Wed Nov 19 11:03:11 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a news article summarizing the text, formatted for readability:
Headline: New Owlfly Species Discovered in Kerala’s Biodiversity Hotspot
Thrissur, India – November 19, 2025 – A new species of owlfly has been discovered in the Nedumkayam forest of Malappuram district, Kerala, a vibrant pocket of the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot. The discovery was made by scientists from the Shadpada Entomology Research Lab (SERL) at Christ College, Irinjalakuda.
The new species, named Protidricerus albocapitatus, belongs to the family Myrmeleontidae and order Neuroptera. The name albocapitatus references the insect’s distinctive white tuft of hair on its head and its prominently white antennae club.
The find is significant as it marks only the second time the Protidricerus genus has been recorded in India, 134 years after the first species, Protidricerus elwesii, was identified in West Bengal in 1891.
“Though often confused with dragonflies at a glance, adult owlflies stand apart with their long, clubbed antennae, large eyes, and twilight activity patterns — traits that inspired the name ‘owlfly’,” explains Dr. Suryanarayanan T.B., SERL researcher and Assistant Professor at St. Aloysius College, Elthuruth.
The discovery highlights the potential for further biodiversity finds in unexplored forest regions of India. With this addition, Kerala now boasts five known species of owlflies, and India’s total reaches 37. The formal description of the new species appears in the international journal Zootaxa. The research was supported by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), New Delhi.
First Piper 