In the soils of northeastern India, researchers from Delhi University have uncovered an entirely new family of amphibians. Meet the Chikilidae, which belong to an earthworm-like order of amphibians known as caecilians. Seven new species of Chikilidae were uncovered by the team, who recently published their findings in The Proceedings of The Royal Society B.


Among the many incredible things about these creatures are A.) their morphological similarity with earthworms; and B.) the fact that their nearest genetic relatives live 7,000 miles away in Africa, a discovery that offers clues as to how the continents have shifted throughout the millennia.

Check out a presentation by the Delhi researchers above, and watch out for footage of the amphibians' eggs around 4:27. They are engrossingly foul, not unlike the real-life hypnotoad.


Via Discover. Photo: SD Biju.