Every expedition into a rainforest, mountain valley, or island creek begins with a simple question: What if something here has never been documented before?

In 2025, that question was answered 709 times.

From a bat in the Himalayas to a snake on Great Nicobar Island and two colourful lizards in Arunachal Pradesh, scientists across India recorded the country's highest-ever annual count of animal discoveries.

According to the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), 709 animal species were added to India's records in 2025, surpassing the previous record of 683 species documented in 2024.

Of these, 483 are species new to science, while another 226 were recorded in India for the first time.

At a time when biodiversity is under increasing pressure worldwide, the milestone is a reminder that nature still holds many secrets waiting to be uncovered.

A record year for wildlife discoveries

The findings were released in the report Animal Discoveries: New Species, New Records during the Zoological Survey of India's 111th Foundation Day celebrations.

With these additions, India's documented faunal diversity has reached 105,953 species and subspecies, accounting for about 5.3% of the world's recorded animal diversity.

India also continues........

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