Context: Recently, Jeypore Ground Gecko (Cyrtodactylus jeyporensis), has been  included in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

• The proposal to include the gecko in Appendix II was made by India at the recently-concluded 19th Conference of Parties (COP19) to CITES in Panama City. The proposal was adopted by the members of the Working Group.

Jeypore Ground Gecko

• It is a wild reptile species endemic to India.

• The species is rare and was first described by a British officer and amateur naturalist Colonel Richard Henry Beddome in 1878 and rediscovered by a team of researchers in 2011 after a gap of over 130 years.

• IUCN Status: Endangered

• The species does not occur in the protected areas described under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 thereby making it highly vulnerable to habitat loss and poaching for domestic and international trade.

• Distribution: It is found in the Eastern Ghats and is known to be present in four locations including southern Odisha and northern Andhra Pradesh.

• Its occurrence is estimated in less than 5,000 square kilometres of fragmented geographical area. 

• The species resides below rock boulders in high forested hills at an altitude of 1,100-1,400 metres.

• Threats: Habitat loss and degradation, forest fires, tourism, quarrying and mining activity are among the reasons for the species’ decline.