Researchers have used DNA from a 1836 pangolin skin to support the Himalayan lineage's recognition as Manis aurita, a naming decision that could sharpen identification of confiscated scales.
In a study published July 1 in Communications Biology, researchers combined genomic analyses of the museum skin with wider comparisons. The dataset comprised 55 whole-genome sequencing datasets covering 53 Manis individuals and two pangolins from other genera, alongside 70 mitochondrial genomes. The sample was an adult skin collected by Brian Houghton Hodgson in Central Nepal in 1836; it grouped with the Himalayan lineage.
The study maps that lineage to Nepal, South Tibet and Assam and estimates that it separated from the Chinese pangolin lineage about 1.8 million years ago. The Field Museum described Himalayan pangolins as larger overall, with longer tails and smaller ears than their Chinese relatives.
The classification has a recent dispute behind it. A 2025 study proposed Manis indoburmanica as a separate species after analyzing 41 mitochondrial genomes, including eight newly sequenced genomes, and estimated a split from Chinese pangolins about 3.4 million years ago. Its authors later challenged the use of M. aurita because the historical type specimen had not been assessed genetically.
The 2026 researchers say the two names refer to one species and apply M. aurita, the earlier valid name. Their genetic analysis of the old specimen addresses the gap raised in the later challenge; the two studies, however, report different divergence estimates.
The research also has a proposed forensic use. Pangolin scales in trade can be hard to identify by species without genetic reference data. The reference could help researchers identify species and trace confiscated scales to their geographic origins, highlighting areas at risk of poaching.
The study also cites earlier reports of M. aurita products in regulated traditional-medicine markets. Its authors call for CITES nomenclatural materials to recognize M. aurita in Appendix I. The study provides no timetable for that update.
