ZSI Study Finds India Home to 191 Cockroach Species, Over 60% Endemic

A recent publication by the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) has found that India is home to 191 species of cockroaches, and 119 of these — more than 60% — are endemic to the country. A species is said to be 'endemic' when it is found naturally only in one specific geographic area and nowhere else.

The study reports that the 191 documented cockroach species are spread across 74 genera, with 126 species having type localities (the place where the species was first identified) within India. The research shows that India's cockroach diversity is far greater than previously recognised.

An important finding is that less than 20% of this diversity is represented by genetic data in public databases. This gap limits scientific understanding of how Indian cockroaches are classified and how they fit into the global family tree of species. To help close this gap, scientists from ZSI and a partner college built the first and largest DNA barcode reference library for the cockroaches of peninsular India.

DNA barcoding works much like a supermarket scanner: it uses short, standardised DNA sequences to identify species quickly and accurately. The study was published in the journal Zootaxa.

For exam aspirants, this highlights India's rich biodiversity, the concept of endemism, the work of the Zoological Survey of India, and the use of DNA barcoding in modern species identification.