topic: New Species

topic: New Species

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A tiger cat gains new species designation, but conservation challenges remain
- Two Latin American tiger cat species were previously recognized by science in 2013: the southern tiger cat (Leopardus guttulus) and northern tiger cat (Leopardus tigrinus). Both are considered vulnerable according to the IUCN Red List.
- But a paper published in January 2024 described a third, new tiger cat species; Leopardus pardinoides. Dubbed the clouded tiger cat, the species is found in high-altitude cloud forests in Central and South America. This taxonomic reshuffling has major conservation implications for the group as a whole, said experts.
- In addition to proposing the new species, the authors reassessed the tiger cats’ distribution and current status. New data indicate that the small wildcats are not present in areas where they were previously assumed to be, which has slashed their remaining habitat considerably.
- Experts warn that these little-known wildcat species have long flown under the conservation radar. Urgent action is required to protect them in the long term against a litany of threats, including habitat loss, persecution and disease transmission from domestic animals.

Tanzania’s ‘mountain of millipedes’ yields six new species
- Scientists have recently described six new species of millipedes found in Tanzania’s Udzungwa Mountains.
- The six were among thousands of specimens collected by researchers studying forest ecology there and in the nearby Magombera Nature Reserve.
- Magombera was damaged by commercial logging in the 1970s-80s, and affected areas have been overrun by woody vines known as lianas.
- But teams working on the ground think that millipede diversity and abundance in liana thickets is equal to that of undisturbed forests, suggesting they may be dynamic places poised for forest regeneration with minimal human intervention.

‘Mind-blowing’ new orchid species found in Madagascar forest canopy
- Scientists from Madagascar, the U.S. and Europe have described a new orchid species from the forests of central Madagascar, which has a record-breaking long nectar spur relative to its small flower size.
- The orchid is pollinated by a species of hawkmoth with a very long tongue, similar to Darwin’s orchid, which was predicted to exist by Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace in the 1800s.
- Habitat of the newly described orchid species is threatened deforestation and mining activities, especially from the Ambatovy nickel and cobalt mine nearby, though Ambatovy is funding conservation actions to protect the species.
- Madagascar’s unique biodiversity, including many species found nowhere else on Earth, is under serious threat from rapid deforestation driven by agriculture, fires and mining.

New ecoregion proposed for Southern Africa’s threatened ‘sky islands’
- A group of scientists is proposing the designation of a new African “ecoregion” consisting of an “inland archipelago” of 30 isolated mountains, some harboring animals and plants found nowhere else on Earth.
- The South East Africa Montane Archipelago straddles southern Malawi and northern Mozambique.
- This geographical isolation has fueled the evolution of separate species within the forests that grow on them, and those forests are now severely threatened by charcoal production and agriculture.
- It’s hoped the designation of a new ecoregion encompassing these mountains will promote nature conservation on a landscape-wide scale.

New giant anaconda species found on Waorani Indigenous land in Ecuador
- A new species of giant anaconda has been found in the Bameno region of Baihuaeri Waorani Territory in the Ecuadorian Amazon.
- The largest snake the team found in Waorani territory was a female anaconda that measured 6.3 meters (20.7 feet) long from head to tail, but there are Indigenous reports of larger individuals.
- As apex predators, anacondas play a vital ecological role in regulating prey populations like fish, rodents, deer and caimans.
- Anacondas face a number of threats across their range, including habitat loss from deforestation, hunting by humans and pollution from oil spills.

Java’s frogman reflects on half-century dive into amphibian world
- Djoko Tjahjono Iskandar has spent nearly 50 years exploring rural Indonesia in pursuit of novel frog species.
- Indonesia is home to almost 10% of around 6,000 known species of frogs in the world; however, scientists warn half of amphibians worldwide could be lost without urgent action.
- The archipelago of 270 million people also accounts for a majority of the world’s exports of frogs’ legs to Europe and other regions, most of which are caught in the wild.

Three new species of frogs found nestled in Madagascar’s pandan trees
- Scientists have described three new frog species that dwell exclusively in the spiky leaves of pandan trees in Madagascar’s eastern rainforests.
- While the frogs are new to science, locals have observed them for generations, and they’ve been given names in Malagasy.
- The frogs have a unique life cycle completely restricted to the trees, meaning they entirely depend entirely on intact pandan trees.
- Pandan trees, from the genus Pandanus, are threatened by deforestation driven by mining, agriculture and development, while slashing, burning and deforestation threaten Madagascar’s extraordinary biodiversity in general.

In eastern Indonesia, a child adventurer discovers a new giant stick insect
- In March 2021, a 14-year-old boy discovered a new species of stick insect on Indonesia’s Timor Island while hiking with his father.
- Two years later, scientists published the first description of the new species in the March 2023 edition of the journal Faunitaxys.
- Davis Marthin Damaledo, now 17, a co-author on the paper, named the foot-long stick insect after a 19th-century king who ruled over his native Timor.

Newly identified shorebird species takes its name from Hanuman, a mythical Hindu ape god
- The Kentish plover (Charadrius alexandrines) is a widespread shorebird and a constant winter visitor to Sri Lanka and neighboring India, yet a population chooses to remain year-round in Sri Lanka and southern India.
- This population has physical characteristics different from the migratory Kentish plovers, hence it has been identified as a subspecies, known as C. a. seebohmi. As far back in 1887, British ornithologist Henry Seebohm suggested they could possibly be a distinct species.
- A recent study of genetic analysis has established this breeding population of plovers found in Sri Lanka to be different from the migratory Kentish plovers; the new species’ evolution started about 1.19 million years ago after the population separated from its ancestors.
- The new species is named Hanuman plover (Charadrius seebohmi) named after the Hindu mythical ape god Hanuman revered in the Sanskrit epic Ramayana who supposedly built a bridge linking Sri Lanka and India, incidentally where the first specimen of this bird was collected.

In PNG, researchers record 9 new species of predatory hermaphroditic land snails
- A new study describes nine new species of land snails lurking in leaf litter across PNG. The discovery results from an extensive countrywide survey undertaken after a gap of 60 years.
- The newly identified snails, all grouped under the genus Torresiropa, are predatory hermaphrodites and about the size of a fingernail. They are restricted to single islands or mountain ranges.
- The discovery adds to the little-known biodiversity of mollusks in the country, and scientists expect to find many more new species in the future.
- As logging, road construction and other human activities threaten the rainforests of PNG, experts warn that human-mediated activities could drive many land snail species to extinction before they are even known to science.

Newly described tree species from Sumatra could be vital for threatened orangutans
- A new species of stone oak has been described from the forests of northern Sumatra, the first of its kind found on the island in more than 10 years.
- The two lone trees are located in the remote Batang Toru forest, the only known habitat of the critically endangered Tapanuli orangutan, which was itself only described in 2017.
- The new stone oak’s acorns seem to be an important part of the orangutans’ diet, but ongoing habitat destruction means this tree is also likely to be critically endangered.
- Urgent conservation action is needed to save the remaining Batang Toru forest and establish cultivated populations of the rare oak to prevent its extinction, researchers say.

Photos: Top species discoveries from 2023
- Scientists described a slew of new species this past year, including an electric blue tarantula, two pygmy squid, a silent frog, and some thumb-sized chameleons.
- Experts estimate less than 20% of Earth’s species have been documented by Western science.
- Although a species may be new to science, it may already be well known to local and Indigenous people and have a common name.
- Many new species of plants, fungi, and animals are assessed as Vulnerable or Critically Endangered with extinction as soon as they are found, and many species may go extinct before they are named, experts say.

New volcano toad from Mount Kenya reveals an ancient lineage
- International researchers have described a new species of forest toad from Mount Kenya.
- Working with a single specimen collected eight years ago, the team dates the Kenyan volcano toad’s origins back 20 million years, long before Mount Kenya was formed.
- Researchers say the discovery highlights the rich biodiversity of the now-extinct volcano, and provides a fresh impetus to protect its unique habitats.

Collaboration key to rediscovery of egg-laying mammal in Papua’s Cyclops Mountains
- Collaboration between international and local researchers, conservation authorities, NGOs and Indigenous groups was key to the success of an expedition in Indonesia’s Cyclops Mountains that uncovered new sightings of a rare egg-laying mammal and multiple unidentified species.
- “I think the trust between the expedition team and the community was important in the success of the expedition, and a lack of trust may have contributed to former searches being less successful,” said University of Oxford researcher James Kempton who proposed the expedition in 2019.
- The highlight of the expedition was camera-trap images of Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna, distantly related to the platypus, which scientists hadn’t seen since 1961 and which they’d long feared was extinct.
- The expedition also found the Mayr’s honeyeater, a bird scientists haven’t seen since 2008; an entirely new genus of tree-dwelling shrimp; countless new species of insects; and a previously unknown cave system.

Gone before we know them? Kew’s ‘State of the World’s Plants and Fungi’ report warns of extinctions
- The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew’s “State of the World’s Plants and Fungi” report assesses our current knowledge of plants and fungal diversity, the threats they face and how to protect them.
- The report warns that many plant and fungal species, 45% of documented flowering plants and half of all analyzed fungi risk extinction (though less than 0.4% of identified fungi have been assessed for extinction to date).
- The report identified 32 plant diversity darkspots, places where plants are highly endemic but severely under-documented, including Colombia, New Guinea and China South-Central.
- Report authors argue that priority conservation areas should consider distinctiveness in plants or “phylogenetic diversity” and found that these hotspots of phylogenetic diversity differ from the traditional biodiversity hotspots approach.

New electric-blue tarantula species is first found in Thailand mangroves
- A new electric-blue tarantula species, Chilobrachys natanicharum, has been described by scientists in Thailand, making it the first-known tarantula species in Thai mangroves.
- Researchers from Khon Kaen University and wildlife YouTuber JoCho Sippawa found these vibrant blue tarantulas in the muddy conditions of Phang Nga province’s mangrove forest.
- The spider’s vivid blue coloration is created not by pigments but by nanostructures on the tarantula’s hairs that manipulate light and produce an iridescent effect.
- The researchers are concerned about the tarantulas’ mangrove habitats being cleared for oil palm cultivation.

Newly described gecko from Madagascar a master of disguise
- Madagascar is a hotspot for gecko diversity, and the latest to appear on the tree of life is Uroplatus garamaso.
- U. garamaso, with a length of 8.3-13.9 cm (3.3-5.5 in), is one of the larger leaf-tailed lizards inhabiting the island, but is still a master at hiding in plain sight.
- The gecko’s known range is restricted to the forests in the north of the island: Montagne des Français, Montagne d’Ambre, and Ankarana in the Diana region.

It had to be a snake: New species from Peru named after Harrison Ford
- Scientists have described a new-to-science snake species from Peru’s Otishi National Park and named it after the actor Harrison Ford for his conservation advocacy.
- The pale yellowish-brown snake with black blotches was found in high-elevation wetlands and identified using genetic techniques.
- The team faced risks from illegal drug activity in the remote park area where the snake was found, cutting their survey short.
- Satellite data and imagery show several areas of forest loss throughout the park, which appear to have been caused by natural landslides. Still, some bear the hallmarks of human-caused clearing likely linked to coca cultivation and drug trafficking.

Should species be named after people? It’s up for debate.
- The practice of using eponyms, or scientific names based on real or fictional people, has been in place since the 1700s, but is a controversial and hotly debated topic.
- In a recent commentary, a group of scientists argue that eponyms perpetuate a negative legacy associated with imperialism, racism and slavery, and call for offensive names to be changed.
- Others say that changing names threatens the stability of nomenclature, would be costly and time-consuming to implement, and that those who regulate naming should refrain from making moral judgments, as there are no defined criteria for determining offensiveness.
- Researchers offer solutions to alter and improve naming practices including changing the codes that govern naming, implementing a stricter interpretation of the codes, establishing an international committee, or reforming the bodies that govern naming.

Greater Mekong proves an ark of biodiversity, with 380 new species in a year
- Scientists described 380 new-to-science species from the Greater Mekong region of Southeast Asia between 2021 and 2022.
- Researchers working in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam identified 290 plant, 19 fish, 24 amphibian, 46 reptile and one mammal species, including a thick-thumbed bat, a color-changing lizard, and a Muppet-looking orchid.
- However, many of these species already face the threat of extinction due to human activity, prompting advocates to call for increased protection of their habitats by regional governments.
- The most urgent threats to the region’s wildlife and habitats include the construction of hydropower dams, climate change, illegal wildlife trade, and loss of natural habitats.

Fires threaten Afromontane forests’ ‘whole new world’: Q&A with Martim Melo
- A group of international and local scientists has warned of the threat to a key piece of one of Africa’s most threatened habitats: the Afromontane forests that occur in the highlands of western Angola.
- The scientists recently discovered up to 10 new species living in the patches of evergreen forest in the Namba Mountains.
- But pressure from growing human settlements nearby, mainly uncontrolled fires in the grasslands that surround the forests, threatens to overwhelm this unique ecosystem.
- Scientists are calling for the government and international agencies to establish a protected area to preserve this biodiverse hotspot.

Global Ocean Census aims to find 100,000 marine species in 10 years
- A new initiative called the Ocean Census aims to expand marine biodiversity knowledge by finding 100,000 new marine species within a decade.
- It will send scientists on dozens of expeditions at marine biodiversity hotspots and use advanced technology like high-resolution imagery, DNA sequencing and machine learning, to identify new species.
- Scientists estimate that only about 10% of marine species have been formally described, and about 2 million species have yet to be identified.

New ‘snug,’ a snail with a too-small shell, described from Brunei rainforest
- A group of researchers and citizen-scientists have identified a new semi-slug species, Microparmarion sallehi, from the lowland rainforests of northern Borneo Island.
- Their study suggests there may be some half a dozen other species from the same genus waiting to be described, highlighting the rich biodiversity of this region.
- For this description, the local and international scientists involved students and laypersons in the team on a combined program of biodiversity training and exploration.
- The study authors note that scientific knowledge of Southeast Asian slugs in general is lacking due to low collection samples, meaning the prospects for describing a new species is high.

Scientists make ‘rare’ new identification of snake family: Micrelapidae
- A multinational team of researchers has identified a new family of snakes, Micrelapidae, which live in East Africa and the Middle East.
- These small, rear-fanged venomous snakes are thought to have diverged from the rest of the evolutionary tree 50 million years ago and since evolved separately as a distinct family.
- Kenyan researchers hope the news will aid efforts to raise awareness of snakes and their importance to the ecosystem, as it is common for people in Kenya to fear – and kill – snakes.

World’s newest great ape faces habitat loss, multiple threats: Will it survive?
- Scientists designated the Tapanuli orangutan (Pongo tapanuliensis) as a new species in 2017, and it was immediately noted as being the rarest and most threatened great ape with fewer than 800 individuals in western Indonesia.
- The IUCN estimated the apes’ population fell by 83% in recent decades, and the species continues to face grave threats due to habitat loss, a gold mine, a hydroelectric plant and the expansion of croplands.
- While some conservation efforts offer hope, researchers say a coordinated plan is needed to ensure the species survives.

Newly described leafless orchid in Sri Lanka named after a precious yellow sapphire
- A new leafless ground orchid found in a lowland wet zone forest in Sri Lanka has been named after a precious yellow sapphire as Gastrodia pushparaga, a gemstone commonly extracted from the same district.
- This is the third Gastrodia species found in Sri Lanka, after the 1906 identification of G. zeylanica and G. gunatillekeorum, described in 2020, 114 years later.
- The plant grows in Walankanda, a forest frontier in the island’s intermediate zone with unique characteristics that will likely make these plants susceptible to future climate change impacts earlier than other wet zone rainforest plants.
- Tea plantations being the main prompt for forest fragmentation in the area, an ambitious project aims to create an ecological land corridor through neglected tea estates, linking the forest where the orchid was first found with another fragmented forest patch.

Six newly described chameleon species reflect Tanzania’s Eastern Arc Mountains’ fragility and richness
- Six new species of pygmy chameleon have been described from Tanzania’s Eastern Arc Mountains.
- The mountain forests are subject to intense human pressure, threatening the diverse plant and animal species that live in them.
- A recent study using satellite imagery discovered that in one district alone, 27% of its montane forests were lost to small-scale farmers and herders between 2011 and 2017.
- The Tanzanian government is currently working to increase agricultural production in a region that overlaps with the Eastern Arc Mountains, raising fears this will be at a cost to biodiversity.

Newly described DiCaprio’s snake and others threatened by mining in Ecuador and Panama
- Researchers have described five new species of snail-eating snakes from the upper Amazon Rainforest in Ecuador and Colombia and the Chocó-Darién forests of Panama.
- Three of the new species were named by actor Leonardo DiCaprio, conservationist Brian Sheth, and the NGO Nature and Culture International to raise awareness about the threats these snakes face due to mining and deforestation.
- Ecuador and Colombia saw an increase in illegal gold mining along rivers and streams during the COVID-19 pandemic, which may have affected populations of these fragile snakes and has led to conflict and division within communities.
- Snail-eating snakes are arboreal and depend on wet environments to survive, so deforestation and mining pollution, including illegal gold mining, affect both the snakes and the snails and slugs that they rely on for food.

New gecko species from Timor-Leste hints at island’s unknown diversity
- Scientists have described a new species of bent-toed gecko from a remote cave in Timor-Leste.
- The new species was confirmed through DNA analysis and further examination of collected specimens and is named after the young nation’s first national park, Nino Konis Santana National Park.
- Timor-Leste, in Southeast Asia’s Wallacea region, has high levels of biodiversity, including numerous endemic species of birds and other animals.
- Continued research and exploration in Timor-Leste is expected to uncover many more new plant and animal species, possibly from the same cave where the new gecko was found.

‘They’re everywhere out there’: Three new nautilus species described
- Researchers have described three new species of nautilus found in the Coral Sea and the South Pacific.
- The three species can be differentiated due to genetic structure, shell size and coloration, and geographic location.
- Scientists generally know very little about nautiluses but are working to fill in the data gaps to understand how to protect them.
- Nautiluses are highly threatened by the shell trade, as well as pollution and the impacts of climate change.

New species of ‘Tolkien frog’ emerges from Middle Earth of Ecuadoran Andes
- A new species of frog has been described from the tropical Andes of Ecuador and named after J.R.R. Tolkien, the author of famous works of fantasy literature.
- Only one individual of the species has been found, within the bounds of Río Negro-Sopladora National Park.
- Río Negro-Sopladora was declared a protected area in 2018 and serves as a critical link in the highly diverse Sangay-Podocarpus Corridor, home to many rare and endemic plants and animals.
- The scientists who described the frog say research and monitoring are urgently needed to better understand this unique species and assess potential threats to its survival such as invasive species, emerging diseases, or climate change

Kew Gardens joins local partners to save tropical plants from extinction
- The U.K.’s Kew Gardens does far more than preserve and display 50,000 living and 7 million preserved specimens of the world’s plants; it also educates the public about the importance of plant conservation via its famous London facility.
- In 2022, Kew Gardens identified 90 plants and 24 fungi completely new to science. They include the world’s largest giant water lily, with leaves more than 3 meters across, from Bolivia; and a 15-meter tree from Central America, named after the murdered Honduran environmental activist Berta Cáceres.
- The institution is working actively with local partners in many parts of the world, and especially in the tropics, to save these species in-situ, that is, where they were found. When Kew can’t do this, it saves seeds in its herbarium, carrying out ex-situ conservation.
- Kew researchers, along with scientists from tropical nations, are also working together to ensure that local communities benefit from this conservation work. The intention is to save these threatened plants for the long term, helping slow the pace of Earth’s current extinction crisis — the only one caused by humans.

No croak: New silent frog species described from Tanzania’s ‘sky island’ forests
- Scientists have described a new-to-science species of frog from Tanzania’s Ukaguru Mountains with a unique trait: it’s silent.
- The males of this species have tiny spines on their throats, which may serve as a means of species recognition for the females.
- Researchers encountered the species during an expedition in search of another species, the elusive Churamiti maridadi tree toad, which has only been spotted twice in the wild and is feared to be extinct.
- The Ukaguru Mountains have a high degree of endemism, and describing this new species highlights the vast amount of knowledge still to be gained about this biodiversity-rich area.

Forests & finance: Setbacks for a rare bat, and progress for an oil pipeline
- As much as three-quarters of forests flanking Mozambique’s Mount Namuli have been lost since 2006, researchers say, threatening the newly described Namuli horseshoe bat.
- Environmentalists fear a new pipeline linking oil fields in Niger to the Atlantic coast in Benin will damage forest and wetland habitat along its length.
- Forests & Finance is Mongabay’s bi-weekly bulletin of briefs about Africa’s forests.

‘Grumpiest cat’ leaves its calling card on the world’s highest mountain
- The presence of the manul, a cold-adapted wild cat the size of a domestic cat, has been confirmed on the slopes of the world’s highest mountain, thanks to scat samples retrieved from there in 2019.
- The confirmation by DNA testing marks the first time the elusive cat has been formally recorded in Nepal’s eastern Himalayan region.
- The first confirmed sighting of the manul, also known as Pallas’s cat, in Nepal came in 2012, in the country’s western Himalayan region.
- Conservationists say the latest finding can help inform conservation actions for the species, including the protection of its prey.

Top 15 species discoveries from 2022 (Photos)
- A resplendent rainbow fish, a frog that looks like chocolate, a Thai tarantula, an anemone that rides on a back of a hermit crab, and the world’s largest waterlily are among the new species named by science in 2022.
- Scientists estimate that only 10% of all the species on the planet have been described. Even among the most well-known group of animals, mammals, scientists think we have only found 80% of species.
- Unfortunately, many new species of plants, fungi, and animals are assessed as Vulnerable or Critically Endangered with extinction.
- Although a species may be new to science, it may already be well known to locals and have a common name. For instance, Indigenous people often know about species long before they are “discovered” by Western Science.

Of Yetis and extinct turtles: Top wildlife discoveries in Nepal in 2022
- Throughout 2022, Mongabay reported on new species discoveries in Nepal, some of them new to science and others spotted for the first time in the country.
- From busting the Yeti myth to highlighting important biodiversity hotspots in need of conservation, the stories helped bring the Himalayan country’s little-known wildlife to a wider audience.
- These are the top six stories related to important scientific discoveries in Nepal this past year.

‘Bizarre’ newly classified scorpionfly shines light on Nepal’s insect diversity
- After closely examining long-held specimens of insects from Nepal, University of Göttingen zoologist Rainer Willmann has newly described and classified a previously unknown genus of scorpionfly he named Lulilan.
- These scorpionflies have an extremely long abdomen and tail and large genital structure that the male uses to grasp the female during copulation.
- Researchers say the presence of scorpionflies, which are threatened by development, insecticides and disease, indicate a healthy environment — and could be a positive sign for the diversity of Nepal’s insect life.

Here come the sunbirds: New species from Indonesia’s Wakatobi Islands
- A group of researchers have identified several new species of sunbirds whose range spans from Africa to Australia and the tropical Wakatobi Islands in central Indonesia.
- They also found evidence that could divide the more widespread species of the olive-backed and black sunbirds, Cinnyris jugularis and Leptocoma aspasia.
- The researchers said their findings reiterated recommendations to protect the Wakatobi Islands as an endemic bird area, especially as so much remains unknown to the scientific community.
- The tiny archipelago is also part of the Wallacea region that many scientists consider “a living laboratory” for the study of evolution with endemic species being newly identified to science in recent years.

‘A mollusk is as important as a tiger’: Q&A with Prem Bahadur Budha
- Prem Bahadur Budha is Nepal’s leading malacologist, having described 18 new-to-science species of mollusks, mostly land snails, from his homeland.
- A newly published paper honors his achievements by naming a newly described snail species, also from Nepal, after him: Endothyrella prembudhai.
- In an interview with Mongabay, Budha recounts his struggle to break into the rarefied field of malacology, the threats facing Nepal’s mollusks, and the massive potential for more new species descriptions from the Himalayan country.

Toxic new frog species from Ecuador named after Family Guy’s Seth MacFarlane
- A new-to-science frog species has been found in Ecuador and named in honor of Seth MacFarlane, the U.S. film and television creator responsible for the show “Family Guy.”
- The frog was found as part of an expedition to catalog and protect species in the Andes. All told, researchers have only found four individual frogs, all within a few square meters of ridgeline atop Cerro Mayordomo, a mountain on the edge of the Amazon basin.
- The frogs’ vibrant patterns likely serve as a warning sign of their toxicity, with researchers reporting burning and tingling skin after collecting the first specimen.
- Ecuador’s forests are home to more than 600 known species of frogs, and more are being described every year. Six other new-to-science species of frogs have been found on Cerro Mayordomo alone.

Catfished: New species described from DRC after mistaken identity
- Scientists recently identified a new species of air-breathing catfish, Clarias monsembulai, in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Salonga National Park — the first new species of catfish in the Clarias genus to be described in 42 years.
- It was named after Congolese researcher Raoul Monsembula, who collected samples of the species in 2006 and 2010 without realizing at the time that the fish was unknown to science.
- Experts say that species discoveries are very common in Salonga National Park due to the region’s rich biodiversity as well as the limited amount of research being done there.
- However, the area also faces numerous threats, including poaching and the possibility of fossil fuel extraction.

Enigmatic binturong photographed in Nepal for the first time
- Residents in western Nepal’s Pokhara Valley have captured the first known photos of a binturong, or bearcat (Arctictis binturong), in the country.
- The small cat-like mammal is found across much of East and Southeast Asia, and while eastern Nepal is also considered part of its range, its presence in the country has never been confirmed until now.
- Conservation officials were unable to examine the animal in person because it was released back into the wild by local authorities.
- The binturong is categorized as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, with its population thought to have declined by 30% over the past 18 years.

Eight new-to-science geckos described from biodiversity haven Madagascar
- Scientists have described eight new-to-science species of geckos from Madagascar, all about the length of your thumb.
- They were elevated to species level following DNA studies of what was, for decades, thought to be a single species group of dwarf gecko, Lygodactylus madagascariensis. They add there could be up to 18 distinct genetic lineages.
- Scientists have found and named at least 150 new-to-science species from Madagascar in the last 30 years, and are still finding more nearly every year. More than 90% of species in Madagascar are endemic, meaning they’re found nowhere else on Earth.
- Given ongoing threats to the forests and ecosystems in Madagascar, scientists say we may not be finding and naming species quickly enough to know what’s being lost.

Tiny new tree frog species found in rewilded Costa Rican nature reserve
- On a private nature reserve in Costa Rica, Donald Varela-Soto searched for the source of a shrill frog call for six months. What he found turned out to be a new species, a tiny green tree frog that has been named Tlalocohyla celeste.
- Scientists think the Tapir Valley tree frog may be critically endangered. Its only known habitat is the 8-hectare (20-acre) wetland within the Tapir Valley Nature Reserve, which adjoins Tenorio Volcano National Park.
- Varela-Soto and a partner bought the reserve, a former cattle pasture, to protect and restore forest and provide habitat connectivity for wildlife, including the native Baird’s tapir. The reserve has since become a living laboratory for different restoration techniques.
- Today, the Tapir Valley Nature Reserve hosts species such as jaguars, collared peccaries, and tapirs, and many birds. Ecotourism provides income for Varela-Soto’s family and others. The reserve has been hailed as “a great example of how wildlife and humans can co-exist.”

An elusive lizard thought to live only in India makes an appearance in Nepal
- Researchers have confirmed the presence of the Sikkim grass lizard in eastern Nepal, nearly 100 kilometers from its known range in India’s Sikkim state.
- The species was last year classified as endangered on the IUCN Red List because of its limited distribution and threats to its habitat from farming and a hydropower dam.
- Herpetologists say the discovery should prompt more research into Nepal’s little-studied reptile and amphibian life, with the potential for more species coming to light.

In Japanese waters, a newly described anemone lives on the back of a hermit crab
- A newly described anemone species has been found off the coast of Japan and appears to live exclusively on the shells of one hermit crab species.
- First-of-its-kind video recordings of the hermit crab and anemone duo show the hermit crab moving to a new shell and spending more than 40 hours poking, peeling and dragging the anemone to come along.
- Researchers believe the hermit crab and anemone are in an obligate symbiotic relationship, or that they need each other to survive.
- The anemone eats falling debris and protects the hermit crab from parasites and predators, and in turn, gets to hitch a ride to fresh feeding grounds.

Giant kangaroo fossil points to previously unknown species in New Guinea
- Paleontologists have described a new genus of giant fossil kangaroo, named Nombe after the Nombe Rockshelter archaeological site where the fossil was originally found in Papua New Guinea.
- The finding was a chance discovery as Ph.D. candidate Isaac Kerr was reexamining a jawbone bone found in the 1970s and originally believed to belong to the extinct genus Protemnodon, the cousin of the modern day eastern gray and red kangaroos that are found in Australia.
- There has only been limited archaeological research on the island of New Guinea to date, and the fossil record is patchy.
- The team say they hope further research will offer insights into how the island’s extraordinary modern-day biodiversity, much of which is endemic, evolved.

Between six ferns: New tropical fern species described by science
- Researchers have described six species of ferns new to science from the tropical forests of Panama, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, all in the genus Danaea.
- The ferns range in height from 20 centimeters to two meters (8-79 inches), and some of them are very common locally; two species are assessed as threatened with extinction.
- Most of the preserved specimens used to describe the new Danaea species were collected decades ago, some as far back as the 1800s.
- Scientists unearthed the specimens from herbarium samples while researching patterns of biodiversity in the Amazon.

Authorities and Yobin communities clash as deforestation spikes in Indian national park
- Namdapha National Park is India’s third-largest national park and is home to thousands of species, including tigers, clouded leopards and an endemic species of flying squirrel that has only been observed once by scientists.
- Satellite data show deforestation has increased in the park over the last two decades.
- Members of an Indigenous group called the Yobin have been living in portions of the park for generations, but park authorities consider Yobin settlements to be “encroachments” and the main driver of deforestation and poaching in Namdapha National Park
- In the last few months, authorities have destroyed at least eight Yobin settlements inside the park.

Sighting of an American black vulture in Nepal causes a flutter
- Conservationists in Nepal have spotted an American black vulture in the country for the first time.
- It’s believed the bird had escaped from wildlife traffickers or from a private collection or zoo in the region.
- Researchers studying the trafficking problem in the country say the sighting isn’t a surprise, given Nepal’s increasingly prominent role as both a source and transit country in the illegal wildlife trade.
- Ornithologists warn the presence of non-native species in the wild could pose a threat of disease transmission to native wildlife, including the nine vulture species found in Nepal.

Colorful new corals bedeck the busy waters off Hong Kong, study shows
- Scientists have found three new species of sun corals off Sung Kong and Waglan islands in the eastern waters of Hong Kong.
- The discovery of these orange, violet and green corals brings the number of known species in the Tubastraea genus from seven to 10.
- Sun coral species don’t build reefs or host symbiotic algae, but instead live in deeper waters and eat by capturing zooplankton from seawater with their tentacles.
- The discovery “reveals how little we know about marine diversity, and how many undescribed species are still awaiting our discovery,” one of the scientists said.

Indigenous knowledge settles question of a Bornean tree species: Study
- Awareness that much of the world’s biodiversity exists in lands and seas stewarded by Indigenous people and local communities has led scientists to reconsider the value of the knowledge systems that have achieved such successful results.
- But when it comes to species taxonomy, scientists often overlook the deep understanding of species relationships held within Indigenous knowledge systems.
- A new study from Malaysian Borneo found that two trees long recognized as distinct types by Indigenous Iban and Dusun communities, but classified as one species by Western taxonomists, are in fact genetically distinct species.
- The researchers recommend that scientists engage more often with IPLCs, especially in tropical biodiversity hotspots, and that Indigenous and local knowledge be recognized as complementary to modern science.

Chinese pond heron spotted in Nepal for first time
- A Chinese pond heron (Ardeola bacchus) has been spotted for the first time in Nepal, bringing the total number of bird species known to occur in the country to 891.
- Photographers Raju Tamang and Prem Bomjan snapped a picture of the bird in Chitwan National Park, which is better known for its Bengal tigers and greater one-horned rhinos.
- Of the total 891 species, 650 have been found in Chitwan, which hosts important bird habitats, ranging from grasslands to hills to wetlands.

Of rats and bats: Hundreds of mammal species still unidentified, study says
- Scientists estimate that only 10% of all the species on the planet have been described. Among our closest kin, mammals, that number jumps to 80%, but even this well-studied group still holds mysteries.
- According to a new predictive model, most of that hidden mammal diversity consists of small-bodied animals such as rodents and bats that live across larger ranges and in wet tropical areas.
- Researchers used machine learning and a supercomputer to analyze a massive global data set of known mammalian species traits, life histories, records of occurrence, and more than 90,000 gene sequences to make their predictions.
- Understanding the differences in species can be important for conservation work, but there is also an intrinsic value to life, experts say, and to recognizing these species before they are lost.

Spectacular new fish species is first to be named by Maldivian scientist
- A colorful reef fish from the Maldives is the first new-to-science species to be described by a Maldivian scientist.
- Cirrhilabrus finifenmaa has been named by Ahmed Najeeb, a biologist from the Maldives Marine Research Institute (MMRI), after the local word for “rose.”
- Subtle physical differences and DNA analyses confirmed the rose-veiled fairy wrasse is a separate species from the already known rosy-scales fairy wrasse (Cirrhilabrus rubrisquamis).
- Researchers say the newly described fish is already being sold for the aquarium trade, calling it “unsettling when a fish is already being commercialized before it even has a scientific name.”

‘Prospect of existence’: Nameless grasshopper sparks taxonomic debate
- Researchers’ failed attempt to describe a new-to-science species of grasshopper based only on photographs has prompted a debate over established taxonomic convention.
- The grasshopper was photographed in northern Peru in 2008, and researchers from Croatia have since had their attempts to formally describe it rejected by journal after journal.
- In response to what they saw as an “arbitrary” process, the researchers wrote a paper on the challenges of describing a species from only photographs, arguing that conventions should change in an era of biodiversity loss.
- “If a living specimen is never found, it will remain a curiosity, suspended between existence and the prospect of existence,” said lead author Niko Kasalo.

Chocolate frog? New burrowing frog species unearthed in Amazon’s rare peatlands
- Researchers dug up a new-to-science species of burrowing frog in the Peruvian Amazon that resembles chocolate. The frog has been nicknamed the tapir frog for its distinctive-looking snout.
- Herpetologists used the frog’s call to locate and dig up three individual frogs. DNA analyses confirmed that, although the species was known to locals, it had not yet been described by science.
- The team found the small frogs in one of the rarest habitats in the Amazon rainforest, the Amazon peatlands. A past study found that peatlands in the Peruvian Amazon store 10 times the amount of carbon as nearby undisturbed rainforest.
- The discovery was made during a rapid inventory of the Lower Putumayo Basin. A conservation area is proposed for the region and researchers say the tapir frog is yet another reason to conserve this peatland and the surrounding area.

One fish, two fish: New goby species described from the Philippines
- Scientists recently described two new-to-science species of freshwater fish from the Philippine island of Palawan: Rhinogobius estrellae and Rhinogobius tandikan.
- The tiny, blue-spotted fish are endemic to Palawan and each is confined to freshwater pools and streams in a single location.
- The fish were collected during surveys to document freshwater fish diversity on the island; both species belong to a genus previously only known from temperate and subtropical parts of Asia, with the new discovery extending its range south into the tropics.
- Due to their restricted range, the fish are deemed highly threatened and their habitats in need of safeguards against mining, road construction and invasive species.

In Panama, a tiny rainfrog named after Greta Thunberg endures
- A tiny tree frog, new to science, has been named after climate activist Greta Thunberg and her work highlighting the urgency of climate change.
- Scientists found the frog on an expedition to Panama’s Mount Chucantí, home to many unique and endemic species, but which has lost more than 30% of its forest cover in the past decade, mostly to small and medium-scale cattle ranchers.
- High-elevation species like the Greta Thunberg’s rainfrog (Pristimantis gretathunbergae) are vulnerable to fine-scale changes in the environment and climate change and “face a constant risk of extinction,” the study authors write.
- The Panamanian nonprofit Adopt a Rainforest Association created a privately patrolled nature preserve on the mountain where 56 undescribed species have been found by scientists. However, funding shortages made worse by COVID-19 have led to a lack of rangers to protect this unique, forested “sky island.”

Not your ordinary houseplant: World’s tallest begonia found in Tibet
- While surveying in the warm and rainy forests of southern Tibet, researchers spotted a begonia twice as tall as a person.
- The new species, which they named Begonia giganticaulis, is the tallest begonia in the world.
- Because fewer than 1,000 individual plants are estimated to live in the fragmented forest habitat, the species has been classified as endangered.
- China is home to some 300 begonia species, many of which are illegally collected and overharvested for ornamental or medicinal use, a trend driven by increased internet commerce.

New shrews just dropped: Sulawesi yields up 14 freshly described species
- A new study has described 14 new species of shrew endemic to the Indonesian island of Sulawesi.
- The shrews, all from the genus Crocidura, were identified from 1,368 specimens collected from 2010-2018 on 12 mountains and in two lowland areas across Sulawesi.
- This gives the island a much richer diversity of Crocidura shrew life than others in the Indonesian archipelago, which the researchers attribute to the varied landscape.
- They add it’s likely that even more species have yet to be described, and say there needs to be more research into Sulawesi’s biodiversity.

Top 15 species discoveries from 2021 (Photos)
- Science has only just begun to find and describe all of the species on Earth; by some estimates, only 20% have been described.
- This year, Mongabay reported on newly described species from nearly every continent, including an Ecuadoran ant whose name broke the gender binary, an acrobatic North American skunk, an Australian “killer tobacco,” a fuzzy orange bat from West Africa, tiny screech owls from Brazil, and more.
- Though a species may be new to science, that doesn’t mean it has not yet been found and given a name by local and Indigenous communities.

New Himalayan snake found via Instagram
- Locked down at home during the pandemic last year, a postgraduate student in India’s Himalayan region photographed a snake in his backyard that experts had never before seen.
- Uploaded to Instagram, the picture caught the attention of a herpetologist in another part of the country, who set out to find out more about the snake.
- In a newly published paper, they describe it as a new-to-science species of kukri snake (Oligodon spp.).
- The authors say the discovery points to the hidden wealth of biodiversity in the western Himalayas, and call for more studies in this region.

Straight outta Borneo: New gecko species just dropped
- Scientists have described a new species of bent-toed gecko from Borneo, one of the world’s largest islands.
- The newly identified gecko is easily distinguished by its physical characteristics, but the researchers call for a study into its molecular genes for further confirmation.
- The researchers say their findings also underscore the need to focus more attention on uncovering Borneo’s unknown rich biodiversity.

From Shanghai Knights to gecko life: The Jackie Chan gecko among 12 new Indian species
- Researchers have described 12 gecko species from the Western Ghats mountain range in India, ten of which are found nowhere else.
- The geckos were given some creative names, including a quick and nimble species named after martial arts superstar Jackie Chan, a couple named after fictional dragons, and one named after the cosmos.
- The quest to find geckos was part of a larger survey to document the diversity of the frogs, lizards and snakes of the Western Ghats and to search for critically endangered species in the diverse region.
- The Western Ghats have been identified as a biodiversity hotspot and there are many protected areas in the region, but a growing human population is putting pressure on the unprotected habitats through expanding urban areas, logging, dams, and the spread of agriculture.

Pepé Le New: Meet the acrobatic spotted skunks of North America
- Researchers analyzed spotted skunk DNA and found that rather than the four skunk species previously recognized by science, there are actually seven.
- Spotted skunks are sometimes called the “acrobats of the skunk world” due to their impressive handstands, which warn predators that a noxious spray is coming their way.
- Among the new species, the Plains spotted skunk is in significant decline, with habitat and prey loss during the spread of industrial agriculture likely to blame.
- Figuring out the different species lineages may inform efforts conservation efforts, one of the study’s authors said: “Once something has a species name, it’s easier to conserve and protect.”

New Philippine corpse flower is phallic-shaped, funky smelling — and nearly extinct
- A maroon plant with a small, phallic-shaped flower and a putrid odor has been identified as a species new to science, Amorphophallus minimus.
- The plant was first collected in 2019 by a team of foresters conducting a biodiversity study in Pantabangan-Carranglan Watershed Forest Reserve in the Philippines’ Nueva Ecija province.
- Due to threats including logging and increasing human settlement in its sole known habitat, researchers have recommended the plant be listed as critically endangered.

Scientists describe new tree frog in push to catalog Indonesia’s amphibians
- A recent study by researchers from Indonesia and Japan describes the molecular, morphological and acoustic traits of a new frog species from Java: Chirixalus pantaiselatan.
- Scientists recommend further research be conducted to evaluate the breeding traits, distribution and population size to determine IUCN and Indonesian national conservation status of the new species.
- Of the more than 400 frog species in Indonesia, only one amphibian, the bleeding toad (Leptophryne cruentata), is currently listed as an Indonesian protected species.
- Citizen science program Go ARK (Gerakan Observasi Amfibi Reptil Kita) is using the iNaturalist scientific data-sharing platform to contribute to a national database for amphibian and reptile research across the Indonesian archipelago.

A bouquet of discovery: Three new orchid species described from Ecuador
- Three new orchid species from the evergreen montane forests and shrublands of the Ecuadoran Andes have been described by scientists.
- Two of the new orchids have been preliminarily assessed as critically endangered according to IUCN Red List criteria.
- All three of the new-to-science species are in the genus Lepanthes, an extremely diverse group that boasts an estimated 1,100 species.
- Researchers found the flowers while studying plant-hummingbird interactions in cloud forests with different levels of disturbance. Ecuador is one of the most biodiverse places on Earth, where the interactions between many species have not yet been studied.

Platform presents unpublished data on Brazilian biodiversity
- Partnership between scientists and journalists translates scientific data into visual information to warn of the importance of preserving Brazil’s biomes.
- Brazil alone accounts for 17% of the entire terrestrial territory of the tropics with a biodiversity that is more abundant than entire continents: over 20% of the freshwater fish on the planet and 17% of all birds are found in Brazil.
- One problem is the lack of investment in research to survey biodiversity, which usually comes at a slower pace than changes in ecosystems – animals and plants are at risk of disappearing before scientists are able to get to know them.

New species of “killer tobacco” found at Australian truck stop
- Found at truck stop in Australia, Nicotiana insecticida is the first wild tobacco species reported to kill insects.
- The new tobacco does not appear to be carnivorous, but rather uses its sticky hairs to trap insects and protect itself from being eaten.
- This sticky killer is one of seven newly named species of Nicotiana (wild tobacco) from Australia’s harsh, arid regions.
- “The fact that we have only now found it,” said one of the researchers,“means that there are probably a lot more similarly interesting species out there to be found.”

Naming of new ant species from Ecuador breaks with binary gender conventions
- The trap-jaw ant was named after the late artist and human rights activist Jeremy Ayers, a friend of study co-author Douglas Booher.
- When naming a species after an individual, scientific tradition has dictated ending the species name with an “i” for males or “ae” for females; Strumigenys ayersthey is the first species to break with this tradition.
- The ant is found in the Chocó region of Ecuador, a biologically rich and diverse coastal rainforest that is both understudied and under human threat due to mining, oil palm plantations, and logging.

Carving up the Cardamoms: Conservationists fear massive land grab in Cambodia
- Conservationists have expressed concern over a recently published regulation that makes nearly 127,000 hectares (313,800 acres) of previously protected land potentially available for sale or rent to politically connected businesses.
- Known as Sub-decree No. 30, the order is ostensibly meant to redistribute land to communities that had previously lost control of it after it was taken over by the Ministry of Environment and conservation NGOs to manage as protected areas.
- But activists and experts point to several features of the regulation — the proximity of some of the requisitioned land to concessions held by powerful magnates; the inclusion of uninhabited primary forest; the opacity of the land-titling process promised to local communities — that suggest it’s another form of land grabbing.

Deforestation of endangered wildlife habitat continues to surge in southern Myanmar
- The Tanintharyi region of Myanmar is home to unique and endangered species, but its forests are being cleared.
- Tanintharyi’s Kawthoung district lost 14% of its primary forest between 2002 and 2020.
- New satellite data show deforestation activity spiking in many parts of Kawthoung, including in some of the last known habitat of critically endangered Gurney’s pittas.

Reptile traffickers trawl scientific literature, target newly described species
- The descriptions and locations of new reptile species featured in scientific literature are frequently being used by traders to quickly hunt down, capture and sell these animals, allowing them to be monetized for handsome profits and threatening biodiversity.
- New reptile species are highly valued by collectors due to their novelty, and often appear on trade websites and at trade fairs within months after their first description in scientific journals.
- In the past 20 years, the Internet, combined with the ease and affordability of global travel, have made the problem of reptile trafficking rampant. Some taxonomists now call for restricted access to location information for the most in demand taxa such as geckos, turtles and pythons.
- Once a new species has been given CITES protection (typically a lengthy process), traders often keep the reptiles in “legal” commercial circulation by making false claims of “captive breeding” in order to launder wild-caught animals.

Madagascar’s vanishing trees
- Madagascar has a documented 2,900 endemic species of trees, but a new report shows that almost two-thirds of them are in danger of disappearing.
- Of the 3,118 species covered, more than 90% had never been systematically evaluated before, and one in 10 fell in the IUCN’s critically endangered category, a step away from going extinct in the wild.
- Though the island nation’s protected area network has expanded to more than 7 million hectares (17 million acres), a tenth of the tree species are found outside this safety net.
- Scientists are racing against the extinction clock to document this mind-boggling biodiversity and determine just how imperiled individual species are.

Arctic biodiversity at risk as world overshoots climate planetary boundary
- The Arctic Ocean biome is changing rapidly, warming at twice the rate of the rest of the world. In turn, multiyear sea ice is thinning and shrinking, upsetting the system’s natural equilibrium.
- Thinner sea ice has led to massive under-ice phytoplankton blooms, drawing southern species poleward; fish species from lower latitudes are moving into the peripheral seas of the Arctic Ocean, displacing and outcompeting native Arctic species.
- Predators at the top of the food chain, such as polar bears, are suffering the consequences of disappearing ice, forced onto land for longer periods of time where they cannot productively hunt.
- The Central Arctic Ocean Fisheries Agreement has been signed by 10 parties to prevent unregulated commercial fishing in the basin until the region and climate change impacts are better understood by scientists. International cooperation will be critical to protect what biodiversity remains.

Deadly new snake named after mythical Chinese goddess of healing
- Researchers have described a new species of venomous snake, from one of the deadliest and most medically significant groups of snakes in Asia.
- The Suzhen’s krait is found in rice fields and streams in monsoon forests in southwestern China and northern Myanmar.
- Understanding the differences between lethal snakes provides essential information for antivenin development and proper snakebite treatment, the authors say.
- The researchers chose to name the snake after Bai Su Zhen, a snake goddess from the popular traditional Chinese myth Legend of White Snake, “in honor of her courage to true love and kindness to people.”

Spiny new chameleon species described from Bale Mountains of Ethiopia
- Researchers have described a new chameleon species from the Bale Mountains of south-central Ethiopia and say it’s likely that more will emerge.
- Wolfgang Böhme’s Ethiopian chameleon is around 15 centimeters (6 inches) long and has a distinct crest of large spiny scales along its back and tail.
- It lives in bushes and small trees, often at the edges of the forest in the Bale Mountains, a biodiversity hotspot that’s also home to the endemic Ethiopian wolf as well as lions, leopards and warthogs.
- The conservation status of the new chameleon is unknown, but due to its small distribution range and human-caused habitat disturbance and agriculture in the area, it is likely that it will be classified as threatened.

Two new species of endangered screech owls identified from Brazil
- Two new species of tiny screech owls from the Amazon and Atlantic rainforests in Brazil have been described by science.
- Prior to the discovery, the new owl species were grouped together with two other South American species, but by closely examining their calls, DNA, and appearance, scientists determined that there were enough differences to classify two new species.
- Although the owls are new to science, they are at risk of extinction, and will likely be classified as critically endangered.

New map shows where the 80% of species we don’t know about may be hiding
- A new study maps out the regions of the world most likely to hold the highest number of species unknown to science.
- The study found that tropical forests in countries like Brazil, Indonesia, Madagascar and Colombia had the highest potential for undescribed species, mostly reptiles and amphibians.
- According to the lead researcher, the main reason for species going undescribed is a lack of funding and taxonomic experts in some parts of the world.
- He added that it’s essential to learn about as many species as possible to protect them, but that undescribed species are currently not taken into account by governing bodies like the UN’s Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).

Rescue of rare white tarsier raises fears of habitat loss, illegal pet trade
- Conservation authorities in Indonesia have rescued a baby tarsier from a fruit garden in the island of Sulawesi.
- The Gursky’s spectral tarsier has been diagnosed with leucism, a condition similar to albinism, which gives it bright white fur.
- The discovery has prompted mounting calls from conservationists for the protection of the rescued tarsier against wildlife traffickers and its habitat against degradation.

Fewer than 100 of these giant whales make up a newly described species
- In January scientists announced the designation of a new whale species in the Gulf of Mexico they named Rice’s whale (Balaenoptera ricei).
- The team previously collected genetic samples of the whales but didn’t confirm the new species until they had a complete skeleton.
- Only between 33 and 100 individual members of the species exist, researchers estimate. The species is listed as endangered in the U.S.
- The Gulf of Mexico is fraught with many human-made threats to the whales’ survival, including dense ship traffic, oil and gas exploration, and marine trash.

Newly described chameleon from Madagascar may be world’s smallest reptile
- A newly described chameleon from Madagascar is the world’s tiniest chameleon, and possibly the smallest reptile.
- A male specimen of Brookesia nana measured a mere 14 mm (0.55 inches), small enough to perch on an aspirin tablet.
- Madagascar hosts more than 100 species of chameleons, and 30 species belonging to the Brookesia genus alone.
- Many of the chameleons, including B. nana, are only found in tiny patches of forest that are severely threatened by deforestation and degradation.

‘Race against time’: Saving the snakes and lizards of Brazil’s Cerrado
- Brazil’s Cerrado is among the world’s most biodiverse savannas, covering two million square kilometers (772,204 square miles), nearly a quarter of the country and half the size of Europe.
- Once thought of as a “wasteland,” scientists have counted 208 snake species, some 80 lizards, 40 worm lizards, seven turtles and four crocodile species — many recently logged in the biome’s grasslands, palm-covered riverscapes, lowland forests and dry plateaus.
- But half of the Cerrado’s natural vegetation has been lost to mechanized agribusiness and ranching, with native plants and wildlife also at risk from climate change, and more frequent and intense fires. Today’s biome is fragmented, with just 3% under strict protection, and another 5% “protected” in farmed, inhabited mixed-use areas
- While researchers agree that there is an urgent need to protect large swathes of remaining savanna, there is also a vital requirement to preserve patches of unique habitat where diverse, niche-specialized reptilians make their homes.

Invasion of the crayfish clones: Q&A with Ranja Andriantsoa
- An unusual invasive crayfish has been spreading in Madagascar, threatening aquatic biodiversity even as it helps nourish the country’s food-insecure population.
- The marbled crayfish (Procambarus virginalis) evolved only in recent decades as part of the German aquarium trade. It’s entirely female and reproduces clonally without males.
- Ranja Andriantsoa, a Malagasy biologist and epigenetics researcher, began studying marbled crayfish as a way to learn about cancerous tumors, which reproduce in a similar way.
- Andriantsoa’s ongoing research focuses on the social and health impacts of the marbled crayfish and aims to inform Madagascar’s strategy for managing the crayfish’s ecological impact.

‘Spectacular’ orange-furred bat described from West African mountain
- An orange-furred bat has been described from the caves and mining tunnels of the Nimba Mountains in Guinea.
- Researchers say the bat had such a distinctive look that they quickly recognized it was a species new to science.
- The newly described species, which they named Myotis nimbaensis, meaning “from Nimba,” may also be critically endangered and found only in this particular mountain range.
- This discovery, the authors say, speaks to the importance of the Nimba peaks, known as “sky islands,” to bat diversity.

New orchid species from Guiana Highlands named by Indigenous group
- An orchid species new to science has been described from the Guiana Highlands in Venezuela and Brazil.
- Members of the Pemón Arekuna Indigenous community of Paruima named the species in their native language.
- The researcher who described the new orchid advocates for “de-colonizing science nomenclature and giving more representation to Indigenous [and] local languages.”

Rare beaked whale sighting could be a world first for the species
- Researchers looking for elusive beaked whales in the South China Sea believe they spotted a pair of either the ginkgo-toothed or Deraniyagala’s beaked whale.
- Although they collected extensive observational data, they could not confirm the whales’ species without DNA samples.
- The sighting is nevertheless important: Knowledge of both beaked whale species has been limited to what researchers have learned from a handful of stranded whale carcasses and unconfirmed sightings.
- The encounter likely represents either the first ever live sighting of the ginkgo-toothed beaked whale (Mesoplodon ginkgodens), or the first live sighting of the nearly identical Deraniyagala’s beaked whale (Mesoplodon hotaula) in the western Pacific Ocean.

Top environment stories from Madagascar in 2020
- Madagascar witnessed a convergence of calamities this year, from the pandemic to surging forest fires to an unprecedented drought.
- Despite growing pressures on its forests, new species continue to be uncovered from the island, with the description of a mouse lemur, several chameleons, and even the world’s ugliest orchid.
- Protected Area management has emerged as a bone of contention between the government and NGOs that manage them, underscoring the challenges of doing conservation in a poor country.
- Here are ten key stories and trends from Madagascar in 2020.

Top 15 species discoveries from 2020 (Photos)
- In 2020, Mongabay and others reported on several announcements of species new to science.
- Snakes, insects, many new orchids, frogs, and even a few mammals were named in 2020.
- In no particular order, we present our 15 top picks.

[Photos] Tiny frog, venomous viper among 20 new species described in Bolivia
- An expedition into the cloud forests of the Bolivian Andes has uncovered 20 species new to science including a frog smaller than a coin, a new venomous pit viper, four butterflies, and four orchid species.
- Along with the newly described species, the research team also “rediscovered” four species believed to be extinct, including the devil-eyed frog not seen for 20 years.
- Overall, the expedition in the Zongo Valley near La Paz, Bolivia, uncovered rich diversity and endemism and recorded more than 1,200 plants, 247 insects, 10 amphibians, 10 reptiles, 161 birds, nine small terrestrial mammals, nine large mammals, and 12 species of bats.
- The Zongo Valley contributes drinking water and hydroelectric energy for the cities of La Paz and El Alto and is known to provide important ecosystem services. The report calls for urgent measures for formal conservation of this largely intact ecosystem.

Whale of a find: Scientists spot beaked whale believed to be a new species
- Scientists on board a Sea Shepherd vessel say they found a new species of beaked whale near the San Benito Islands off Mexico’s Pacific coast.
- The species differs visually and acoustically from other beaked whales species, according to the researchers.
- The team took photographs, video recordings and acoustical recordings of the species, and also performed environmental genetic sampling to help confirm the existence of a new species.
- However, other experts say that detailed descriptions of the animals’ physical features and skeletal structure are needed before a new species can be accurately identified.

New snail subspecies with ‘upside down shell’ found in last green frontier east of Manila
- Researchers have discovered a subspecies of a microsnail in a protected area east of the Philippine capital Manila.
- Hypselostoma latispira masungiensis is no bigger than an ant and is notable for inverting its shell when resting, unlike other snail species.
- Like many other snails, l. masungiensis thrives on karst formations, but its habitat in Masungi Georeserve has been the target of limestone quarrying companies for years.
- The georeserve is a conservation area where quarrying has been banned since 1993; despite this, three quarrying companies have been operating there since 1998.

The newest species of Philippine false gecko is the 10th (and counting)
- Scientists have described a new species of the Philippine false gecko, a genus found nowhere else on Earth.
- The description of Pseudogekko hungkag, from six live specimens found in the Bicol Peninsula on the central island of Luzon, brings to 10 the number of false gekkos known to science.
- Previous new Pseudogekko species were described through revisionary studies of existing literature and data, coupled with new DNA testing.
- Researchers say it’s hard to pinpoint the full geographical range of the new species, but that its discovery opens prospects for more herpetological studies in the Bicol region.

On a Philippine mountain, researchers describe a ‘fire flower’ orchid species
- A new wild orchid species, Dendrochilum ignisiflorum, has been described in the Philippine province of Benguet in the northern Cordilleras mountain range.
- This fiery orange orchid belongs to a genus found in high-elevation forests in Southeast Asia, particularly in the Philippines, Borneo and Sumatra.
- The scientists who described it say the species is threatened by climate change, which could make its niche range uninhabitable.
- The mountain where it’s found is also an increasingly popular tourist spot, while the forests in the area around it are being cleared for agriculture.

Howling in the dark: Shining a light on a newly remembered wolf
- The African golden wolf was only recently designated as a species in its own right, after decades of being conflated with the golden jackal.
- The patchy taxonomic record means little is known about the species, including its behavior, range and population, leaving researchers without a baseline for determining its conservation status. But pioneering work in Morocco by Liz Campbell, a researcher at the University of Oxford, is starting to paint a picture of this enigmatic species, seen by local shepherds as a major threat to their livestock.
- Campbell’s surveys and interviews show that this fear appears to be overblown, with far more sheep dying from cold weather or disease than predator attack, and half of the witnessed attacks carried out by feral wild dogs.

Latin America has twice the plant life of Africa, SE Asia
- Latin America has more than twice as many plant species as tropical Africa and Southeast Asia and accounts for about a third of global biological diversity, concludes a new study published today in the journal Science Advances.
- Using botanical databases, researchers led Missouri Botanical Garden President Emeritus Peter Raven by found Latin America has 118,308 known species of vascular plants, the Afrotropical region has 56,451, and Southeast Asia has about 50,000.
- Latin America and the Afrotropical region are roughly equivalent in size, meaning that the Americas south of the Mexico-U.S. border have about twice the richness of species on a per-unit basis. But Southeast Asia, which is only a quarter the size of the other two regions, takes the biodiversity crown in terms of the density of species.
- The authors say that their research will be helpful in prioritizing conservation efforts, but that future data collection will be increasingly challenged by rapid habitat loss.

Research behind award-winning documentary film reveals new species
- In one of the most biodiverse spots on earth–the Yasuní Biosphere Reserve in Yasuní National Park – species are still being discovered.
- A first-of-its-kind study was conducted in the area was captured in the film “Yasuní Man,” released in 2017, which can now be found on streaming services. The zone where they filmed is set aside for the Tagaeri and Taromenane, two Waorani clans living in voluntary isolation.
- The region in which the survey was carried out is largely unexplored, and is in a transition zone between bird faunas in northern Peru between the Marañon/Amazon river and the Pastaza/Napo drainages.
- While there are research stations in the northern part of the area, the southern edge of the park and the intangible zone are difficult to access.

Philippine crickets, held nameless in a Hawaii museum, are finally identified
- Six new cricket species have been described from the Philippines, adding to a wealth of biodiversity endemic to this Southeast Asian archipelago.
- Three of the new species were described from specimens collected six decades ago and stored at a museum in Hawaii.
- Researchers say more field surveys need to be done to see if the species still occur in the areas where they were first found.
- They also call for further studies to uncover more of the as-yet-undescribed cricket species around the Philippines.

Illegal plant trade, tourism threaten new Philippine flowering herbs
- Scientists have described a new ornamental plant species in the biodiverse region of Palawan, a province in the western Philippines.
- The new species, Begonia cabanillasii, is the 25th begonia species found on the island and the 133rd recorded in the Philippines.
- Begonias are flowering perennial herbs popular in the ornamental plant trade. The new species grows in a shady and rocky undergrowth habitat in Palawan and is assessed to be critically endangered.
- The illegal plant trade and tourism, a driver of deforestation in the province, pose the biggest threat to this new plant species and other Palawan-endemic flora, researchers say.

New land snail species discovered in Hawaii offers ‘gem of hope’
- Scientists recently announced a new species of land snail, Auriculella gagneorum, which was found living in the Waianae Mountains in O‘ahu, Hawaii.
- There are three known populations of Auriculella perpusilla on O‘ahu, and a small number of snails were selected for a captive-breeding program to help conserve the species.
- Hawaii once had 752 species of land snails, but more than half of them are believed to have gone extinct due to habitat loss and invasive species.

Say hello to Madagascar’s newest mouse lemur, a pint-sized primate
- A new species of mouse lemur, considered the tiniest primates in the world, has been described from Madagascar.
- Microcebus jonahi is named for prominent Malagasy primatologist Jonah Ratsimbazafy, who has dedicated his life to studying and protecting Madagascar’s endemic lemurs.
- Scientists fear the species is already at risk of disappearing like almost all of the 107 other species of lemurs, primates that are native to Madagascar.
- Jonah’s mouse lemurs are found in an area half the size of Yosemite National Park, in a region where forests are fast disappearing.

Habitat of newly described frog in Sumatra threatened by oil palms, roads
- Scientists have described a new frog species found in the southern lowland forests of Indonesia’s Sumatra Island.
- But the habitat where this frog is found is being devastated by encroaching oil palm plantations and infrastructure projects.
- The scientists who described the new species have called for the protection of lowland forests in southern Sumatra where other nearly extinct species live, including tigers and elephants.

Discovery of fish never recorded in the Amazon shows richness of Brazil’s Calha Norte
- Brazilian scientists have identified six fish species never before seen in the Amazon in Calha Norte, in the state of Pará, one of the best-preserved and least studied parts of the rainforest.
- Calha Norte lies north of the Amazon River, along the border with Guyana and Suriname, where those species were previously thought to be endemic, and 80% of its area is protected within conservation areas and Indigenous and Afro-Brazilian territories.
- Even though it is remote and hard to reach, illegal hunting, mining and deforestation are already placing local biodiversity at risk.
- These threats have made research even more urgent, with scientists warning the risk is that species will disappear before they are ever described.

From New Guinea to Florida, one of these crocs is not like the others
- Scientists have described the newest crocodilian species known to science, the Hall’s New Guinea crocodile, previously considered a population of the already known New Guinea crocodile.
- The discovery was nearly 40 years in the making, sparked by the late herpetologist Philip Hall, who, in the 1980s, began questioning the differences between the southern and northern populations of crocodiles on the island of New Guinea.
- To describe the new species, named in honor of Hall, scientists studied and compared New Guinea crocodile skulls held at museums across the U.S.
- They also found some members of this new species hiding in plain sight: at an alligator farm in Florida that’s famous for having specimens of all known crocodilians.

This Philippine butterfly had a mistaken identity for years, until its ‘rediscovery’
- A pair of scientists have discovered a new subspecies of butterfly whose only known habitat is at the peak of a potentially active volcano in the central Philippines.
- Specimens of the new subspecies, Appias phoebe nuydai, were first collected in 2012 by researcher Jade Badon, who initially misidentified them as belonging to a different phoebe subspecies.
- The researcher realized in 2019 that the species was different after comparing its forewings to existing cataloged species.
- Climate change is the biggest possible threat to high-elevation butterflies, with researchers calling for more studies into how the butterflies are adapting.

From a Philippine conflict hotspot, a new insect-eating plant emerges
- Filipino scientists have discovered a new species of insect-eating pitcher plant in a mountain range in the country’s southern Mindanao region.
- The range is a key biodiverse area but has not been granted any form of environmental protection, and is prone to armed conflicts, criminal activity, and tribal wars.
- The scientists risked threats to explore the unprotected remote area, but say they are determined to catalog as much of the biodiversity as they can before it is destroyed by logging and land conversion activities.
- Identifying new species could help preserve the ecology of this area that is crucial to the existence of indigenous ethnolinguistic groups, researchers say.

Sex organs reveal new jumping spider species in the Philippines
- A father-and-daughter pair of Philippine scientists have described three new species of jumping spiders in the country after carefully examining the arachnids’ reproductive organs.
- The new spiders belong to the genus Lepidemathis that’s only found in the Philippines; the new arrivals raise the number of Lepidemathis species from four to seven.
- The spiders were found in three separate provinces on the main island of Luzon in 2014; arachnologist Aimee Lynn Barrion-Dupo and her father, entomologist Albert Barrion, spent the following years trying to differentiate the species from other jumping spiders.
- Male jumping spiders are known for their well-choreographed courtship dance, and it’s possible these new species have a unique song and dance number too, the researchers say.

After a century of mistaken identity, a Balinese gecko gets its own name
- A group of researchers has described as a new species a gecko endemic to the Indonesian island of Bali.
- Cyrtodactylus jatnai was for nearly a century thought to be Cyrtodactylus fumosus, a species found almost a thousand miles away in Sulawesi Island.
- In their newly published paper, the researchers identify distinctive physical characteristics that make the Bali species unique in its own right.
- They named the species in honor of Bali-born ecologist Jatna Supriatna, hailed by Conservation International as “the conservation warrior of Indonesia.”

‘They never intended to conserve it’: Outcry as loggers gut Cambodian reserve
- Prey Lang Wildlife Sanctuary, which stretches across five provinces in northern Cambodia, contains one of the region’s last remaining large areas of old growth rainforest.
- But Prey Lang’s forests are under attack, with satellite data and imagery showing a recent surge in deforestation.
- Sources say the reserve is being illegally logged by politically connected timber companies, with Angkor Plywood and its subsidiaries, Think Biotech and Thy Nga, the “biggest immediate threat to Prey Lang forest.”
- Prey Lang is not included on the U.N.’s World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) — an omission researchers say is deliberate on the part of the Cambodian government, which must voluntarily submit protected area information to the WDPA.

From a Sri Lankan rainforest, a new species of orchid blooms
- A rare new orchid species found in the UNESCO-declared heritage lowland rainforest Sinharaja has been named in honor of two pioneering forest ecologists, Nimal and Savithri Gunatilleke.
- The botanists who described Gastrodia gunatillekeorum discovered only three small populations within Sinharaja, comprising fewer than a hundred mature individuals and considered endangered.
- Any change in the habitat condition is likely to bring change in the fungus community, and by extension to the orchid populations that depend on these fungi for their nutrition, the researchers say.

A ‘crazy beast’ that coexisted with dinosaurs discovered from Madagascar
- Adalatherium hui, which in Malagasy and Greek translates into “crazy beast,” was discovered from the study of a 66 million-year-old fossil from Madagascar.
- An early mammal species, it has a peculiar anatomy and a mosaic of features that is distinct from other mammals, from its peculiar teeth to its curved leg bones.
- It is also unusually large, the size of a house cat, compared to other mammals that coexisted with dinosaurs, which were no bigger than present-day mice.
- The researchers believe it is key to understanding the early evolution of mammals in the southern hemisphere.

One point for Slytherin: New Indian pit viper named after Harry Potter character
- Researchers have described a new species of venomous pit viper found in the Himalayas and named it after Salazar Slytherin, a character in the Harry Potter series who is able to talk to snakes.
- Lead researcher Zeeshan A. Mirza said they named the new species Salazar’s pit viper “to thank J.K. Rowling for introducing the world to the Harry Potter universe.”
- The area where the Salazar’s pit viper was found is home to many new discoveries of plants and animals in recent decades, highlighting the need for greater documentation of its biodiversity.
- The new species is one of 48 known members of the genus Trimeresurus, but scientists believe the true diversity of the genus may be underestimated.

Three new species of chameleons emerge from centuries-old entanglement
- Three new species of soft-nosed chameleons endemic to Madagascar were described in a recent paper in Vertebrate Zoology.
- Calumma emelinae from the east coast of Madagascar, C. tjiasmantoi from the southeast, and C. ratnasariae from the north officially joined the ranks of more than 90 species of chameleon that are endemic to Madagascar.
- A co-author described them as “tiny chameleons with funny noses,” because of the horn-like rostral appendage they sport.
- The discovery of distinct species within the species complex calls for the re-evaluation of their conservation status, according to the authors of the study.

A new mantis species rises from the ashes of Brazil’s National Museum
- Researchers have described a new species of praying mantis from Brazil’s Atlantic Forest, adding to the 250 known mantis species native to the country.
- The new species, Vates phoenix, belongs to a genus previously only known to occur in the Amazon.
- The researchers named it in honor of the National Museum of Brazil, which caught fire in September of 2018, leading to the destruction of 20 million items, including part of the entomological collection.
- Months earlier, the researchers had borrowed mantis specimens from that very collection to help them confirm that they indeed had a new species.

Muduga leaping frog is first new member of its genus found in over a century
- A new species of frog endemic to the Western Ghats, a mountain range in India that is considered a global biodiversity hotspot, is the first new addition to the genus Walkerana in more than a century.
- There are three previously known Walkerana species: W. leptodactyla, W. diplosticta, and W. phrynoderma. The newly discovered Muduga leaping frog, Walkerana muduga, is now the fourth member of the genus.
- “After a span of 137 years, we have discovered a new frog species within the genus Walkerana,” K. P. Dinesh, a scientist at the Zoological Survey of India and lead author of the paper describing the new species, said in a statement. “The last few species descriptions within this genus date to 1876 and 1882.”

Fallout: Threatened species in Australia continue to struggle after fires
- A devastating bushfire season in Australia has led to significant forest loss in tropical and subtropical regions of Australia’s east coast.
- One of the areas most affected is the border region straddling the states of New South Wales and Queensland, which includes significant sections of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area.
- Early findings from the Queensland State Government’s Department of Environment and Science indicate the habitat of 648 threatened species in Queensland has been damaged to some extent by the fires.
- As ecologists travel back into the regions to determine the extent of the damage, questions are being raised about the status of affected species, and the additional threats posed by feral animals, weed infestation and sediment pollution.

New parasitoid wasp species discovered in Amazon manipulate host behavior in ‘complex way’
- Researchers have discovered 15 new wasp species in lowland Amazon rainforests and Andean cloud forests that parasitize spiders in a “complex way.”
- Female Acrotaphus wasps are known to attack spiders in their webs, temporarily paralyzing the arachnids with a venomous sting so they can lay a single egg on a spider. The wasp larva then hatches from the egg and gradually eats the spider before it pupates.
- According to study co-author Ilari E. Sääksjärvi, a professor of biodiversity research at the University of Turku, the 15 newly discovered species of Acrotaphus wasps control host spiders’ behavior in very particular ways in order to ensure the survival of their offspring.

Philippine fruit bats may be entirely new species of their own, DNA suggests
- A recently published genetic study on fruit bats found in the Philippines revealed high genetic difference among island groups and compared to the Southeast Asian region, which could mean they either need to be reclassified as subspecies or be elevated as new species.
- The study covered 19 of the 27 fruit bat species native to the Philippines, which were assessed using a DNA barcoding technology in a six-year study.
- Five of the species were revealed to have 6 to 7% genetic distance from specimens elsewhere in Southeast Asia, possibly justifying the need to name them distinct populations of their own, the researchers say.
- DNA barcoding is part of a growing international effort to create a genetic database to improve wildlife forensics, aid in curbing wildlife trafficking and help implement more efficient species-focused conservation efforts.

As 2019 ends, reptile-rich Sri Lanka delivers three more new gecko species
- With the recent discovery of three new day gecko species of the genus Cnemaspis, Sri Lanka’s known endemic day geckos have increased up to 36.
- The diminutive, range-restricted geckos were discovered from granite hills and rock outcrops in three different locations in the Indian Ocean island.
- One of them, Cnemspis kotagamai, is named in honor of an illustrious Sri Lankan conservationist, Sarath Kotagama, while the other two geckos are named after the lead author’s parents.
- While introducing the three critically endangered geckos, researchers have called for urgent conservation efforts to prevent further habitat loss in a bid to conserve the new species and those yet to be discovered.

One six-week expedition discovered ten new songbird species and subspecies in Indonesia
- A six-week expedition to three small island groups near Sulawesi, Indonesia has yielded five new songbird species and five new subspecies.
- The new species and subspecies were described in a paper published in Science last week. Frank Rheindt, a professor at the National University of Singapore, led the research team that made the discoveries using geological history and the notes of historical explorers as a guide in their search for new avian species.
- While locals knew of some of the species already, it’s possible some of the birds had gone unnoticed because they sound more like insects.

Photos: Top 15 new species of 2019
- In 2019, Mongabay covered several announcements of new-to-science species.
- The “discovery” of a new-to-science species is always an awe-inspiring bit of news; the outcome of dogged perseverance, months or years of field surveys, and long periods of sifting through hundreds of museum records.
- In no particular order, we present our 15 top picks.

New monkey discovered on “island” amid deforestation in Brazil
- DNA analysis has revealed a “new” species in the transition forest between the Amazon rainforest and the Cerrado woodland in Brazil.
- Writing in Primate Conservation, a team of scientists analyzed the traits of a group of titi monkeys rediscovered in 2011 in the Chapada dos Parecis.
- They determined that the monkeys are sufficiently distinct from the closely related ashy black titi to be classified as a separate species.
- They dubbed the primate Plecturocebus parecis after the name of the plateau.

Indonesian dam raises questions about UN hydropower carbon loophole
- North Samatera Hydro Energy (PT NSHE) wants to build the Batang Toru dam, a 510-megawatt project, in Indonesia. But, the discovery of a new primate species, the Tapanuli orangutan (Pongo tapanuliensis), with under 800 individuals mostly inhabiting the project site, has alarmed activists and put the dam’s funding at risk.
- PT NSHE is at the COP25 climate summit this month extolling the project’s contribution to curbing global warming: company reps say the dam will reduce Indonesia’s carbon emissions by 4 percent. In fact, the nation is already counting the proposed project as part of its 2015 Paris Climate Agreement carbon reduction pledge.
- However, while the United Nations and Paris Agreement count most new hydroelectric dams as carbon neutral, recent science shows that tropical dams can emit high levels of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide; this especially occurs when reservoirs are first filled.
- Dams built over the next decade will be adding their greenhouse gas emission load to the atmosphere when the world can least afford it — as the world rushes to cut emissions to prevent a 2 degree Celsius increase in global temperatures. PT NSHE argues its dam will have a small reservoir, so will not produce significant emissions.

‘A crisis situation’: Extinctions loom as forests are erased in Mozambique
- Small mountains called “inselbergs” are scattered widely across the central and northern Mozambique landscape. They are crowned by rainforests, which are homes to species that have evolved in isolation for millennia.
- Inselberg forests are Mozambique’s last inland primary forests. But they’re getting smaller and smaller as humans burn them for agriculture and to flush out game animals, and chop them down for lumber and charcoal.
- One such inselberg is Mount Nallume, which researchers recently surveyed during a November expedition. While there, they found chameleons that they suspect may be a new species
- However, Nallume’s forest is disappearing quickly, with the researchers estimating it may be gone in five to 15 years if deforestation continues at its current rate. They urge the government of Mozambique to do more to protect these “islands in the sky” before they, and the unique animals that live in them, disappear forever.

Amazonian tree with human-sized leaves finally gets ID’d as new species
- More than 35 years after it was first seen, researchers have described Coccoloba gigantifolia, a tree species from the Brazilian Amazon with gigantic leaves that can reach 2.5 meters (8 feet) in length.
- Although C. gigantifolia has been known to the public and the scientific community for a long time, describing it formally and giving it an official name was essential to be able to assess its conservation status and design conservation strategies to protect it, the researchers say.
- The species is rare and likely has disjointed populations occurring in a rapidly changing landscape, and the researchers recommended listing it as endangered on the IUCN Red List.

Meet the new parasitic wasp species named ‘Idris elba’
- British actor Idris Elba has been nominated for four Golden Globe Awards and five Primetime Emmy Awards in addition to being named one of the “Sexiest Men Alive.” Now he’s been awarded an accolade that even he probably never dared aspire to: a parasitic wasp has been named in his honor.
- The genus Idris was first described in 1856 and today includes more than 300 species of wasp, all of which have only been known to parasitize spider eggs. Idris elba, on the other hand, was discovered in Mexico parasitizing the eggs of an invasive stink bug known as the bagrada bug (Bagrada hilaris), an invasive species native to Africa.
- Idris elba could potentially be a valuable part of natural solutions to controlling the B. hilaris population, as opposed to the insecticides currently in use, and reining in the destruction the stink bugs do to crops.

New honeyeater species described from Indonesia’s Alor Island
- Scientists have described a new bird species found only on the island of Alor in eastern Indonesia.
- The Alor myzomela is easily distinguished from other known members of the Myzomela genus of honeyeater birds thanks to its unique call and paler upper wings.
- A growing human population on the island is already fragmenting the species’ only known habitat, prompting the researchers to recommend it be considered endangered on the IUCN Red List.
- The bird’s scientific name, Myzomela prawiradilagae, is a tribute to prominent ornithologist Dewi Malia Prawiradilaga from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI).

New toads named from a Sumatran biodiversity trove that’s under threat
- Researchers have recently described three new species of toads belonging to the Sigalegalephrynus genus of puppet toads living in the highlands of Indonesia’s Sumatra Island.
- The genus was first proposed in 2017 with the description of two species. Researchers believe there may be even more puppet toads left to discover.
- The discovery highlights the vast diversity of Sumatra’s herpetofauna, but also the immense threats the island’s wildlife faces, primarily from loss of habitat to deforestation and agriculture.
- The researchers say all of the newly described species should be listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List.

New species of shrimp-like creature found in a whale shark’s mouth
- Japanese scientists found a new-to-science species of shrimp-like creature from the gills of a female whale shark that lived in a fish preserve off the island of Okinawa.
- The newly described species is a type of amphipod, a group of shell-less crustaceans that usually feed on decaying plant and animal matter and can be found in a wide variety of environments, from freshwater to some of the deepest parts of the ocean.
- The researchers have named the amphipod Podocerus jinbe, after the Japanese word jinbe for whale sharks.
- It unlikely that the amphipods were feeding directly on the whale shark, the researchers say, and may have been inhabiting the whale shark’s mouth because it provided a good habitat with fresh seawater and food and shelter from predators.

New species of orange-red praying mantis mimics a wasp
- From the Peruvian Amazon, researchers have described a new-to-science species of bright orange-red praying mantis that conspicuously mimics a wasp.
- The mantis mimics not only the bright coloration of many wasps, but also a wasp’s short, jerky movements. Such conspicuous mimicry of wasps is rare among mantises, which usually tend to resemble leaves or tree trunks, the researchers say in a new study.
- The researchers have named the praying mantis Vespamantoida wherleyi.

New grouper species discovered in Australian fish market
- A newly discovered species of grouper almost became someone’s dinner before it could be described to science.
- Jeff Johnson, an ichthyologist with Australia’s Queensland Museum, had been asked about the fish before, 15 years ago. Over the intervening years, he would occasionally be sent pictures of the same type of grouper, one lacking distinctive features that struck him as a potential new species, but had never found a specimen to examine.
- Johnson’s big break came in 2017 when a fisherman got in touch and sent along a photo of a grouper, also known as rockcod, that the fisherman was hoping the fish expert could identify. Johnson recognized the fish in the photo as his mystery grouper and asked for the specimens so he could study them, only to be told that the fisherman had already sent the fish to be sold at a local market. But that didn’t stop Johnson from at last getting his hands on a specimen to prove this was an entirely new species.

A ‘sly’ species of leaf-tailed gecko uncovered from Madagascar
- Scientists have described a new species of leaf-tailed gecko, Uroplatus fetsy, believed to be found only in Madagascar’s Ankarana Special Reserve.
- All Uroplatus species are endemic to Madagascar and are best known for their leaf-like tails and coloration that allow them to blend into the foliage.
- Though newly described, U. fetsy may already be at risk: the dry deciduous forests of the reserve are severely threatened by illegal logging, cattle grazing, fires, and artisanal mining.
- The authors of the paper describing the new species say it could warrant endangered status on the IUCN Red List because of these threats to its habitat.

New flowerpecker species discovered in imperiled lowland forests of Borneo
- The Spectacled Flowerpecker wasn’t entirely unknown up until now. Scientists and birdwatchers have spotted the small, gray bird in the lowland tropical forests of Borneo in the past, with the first sighting appearing to have occurred in Sabah, Malaysia’s Danum Valley in 2009.
- A team led by scientists at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. collected a specimen and studied the species for the first time earlier this year. The researchers formally described the Spectacled Flowerpecker to science in a study published in the journal Zootaxa yesterday.
- The researchers say that it’s likely the bird’s current distribution has “become increasingly fragmented and diminished” thanks to human impacts on Borneo’s forests. They hope that by formally describing the new species of flowerpecker, they can help call attention to the importance of Borneo’s lowland forests.

For Indonesia’s newest tarsier, a debut a quarter century in the making
- Scientists first spotted a previously unknown type of tarsier on the Togean Islands off Sulawesi, Indonesia, in 1993, and it’s taken 25 years of further studies to describe the diminutive primate species as new to science.
- Niemitz’s tarsier (Tarsius niemitzi) is named after Carsten Niemitz, one of the scientists on that initial visit to the Togean islands, whom the authors of the new paper call “the father of tarsier field biology.”
- There are now 12 known tarsier species found in Sulawesi and surrounding islands, but the paper’s authors say the region could be home to at least 16, with more research needed.
- They warn that loss of habitat makes it “quite plausible” that some tarsier species may go extinct before scientists have a chance to identify them.

Nine new Fijian bees described, some restricted to a single mountaintop
- From the island country of Fiji, researchers have described nine new, and four previously known, species of bees belong to the genus Homalictus, a group that’s not been taxonomically reviewed in Fiji for 40 years.
- Many Homalictus bee species either have very restricted distributions or are known only from single mountaintops, the researchers say, and could soon become extinct due to changes in climate and other environmental risks.
- The researchers underscore the need for repeated field surveys to document and describe species from Fiji before they are lost.
- One of the four previously described bee species may have already gone extinct, having not been recorded since 2010, despite extensive surveys in the area.

Gravely injured orangutan rescued near site of controversial hydropower project
- A severely injured and malnourished Tapanuli orangutan has been rescued from a plantation near the site of a controversial hydropower project in Sumatra.
- The animal was found to have deep, infected gashes on its head and under its arm, which rescuers say were likely inflicted by humans.
- The orangutan may have been fleeing forest-clearing activity near the project site, which is located in the Batang Toru forest, the only known habitat of the critically endangered Tapanuli orangutan.
- This is not the first instance of orangutans apparently being driven out of their habitat by the project, which environmental activists and scientists say must be put on hold to protect the rarest great ape species in the world.

Newly described Chinese giant salamander may be world’s largest amphibian
- The critically endangered Chinese giant salamander is not just one, but three distinct species, researchers have now confirmed in a new study.
- One of the newly recognized species, the South China giant salamander (Andrias sligoi), could be largest amphibian on the planet, the researchers say.
- The researchers say they hope the recognition of the Chinese giant salamanders as three species will help the amphibians’ conservation by triggering separate management plans for the species.

Shocking news: There are actually three species of electric eel in the Amazon, not one
- A mostly nocturnal species found in freshwater habitats in Mexico and South America, the electric eel (Electrophorus electricus) belongs to the knifefish family and is more closely related to catfish and carp than other eels. It was first described more than 250 years ago by Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus.
- But now a team of scientists led by Carlos David de Santana, an associate researcher at the US Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, has determined that E. electricus is in fact three distinct species.
- During their work in the field, the researchers used a voltmeter to record a member of one of the newly described species, E. voltai, discharging 860 volts, the highest discharge ever recorded for any animal (the previous record was 650 volts).

Sri Lanka scientists stand by naming of new geckos amid nationalist criticism
- The recent naming of six day geckos endemic to Sri Lanka after historical figures has sparked controversy, with ultra-nationalist groups alleging malicious intent on the part of the researchers.
- Scientists, however, are standing in solidarity with the research team, supporting the naming of the new species after forgotten heroes as an act to immortalize their legacy in Sri Lankan history.
- A leading researcher says the criticism of the naming is “steeped in politics,” coming as it does amid a climate of nationalist posturing ahead of elections later this year.

New monkey species found in Amazon forest area that’s fast disappearing
- From a stretch of the Amazon forest lying between the Tapajós and Jamanxim rivers in the Brazilian state of Pará, researchers have described a new-to-science species of marmoset.
- The marmoset, with its distinct white tail, white forearms with a beige-yellowish spot on the elbow, and white feet and hands, has been named Mico munduruku after the Munduruku, an indigenous group of people who live in the Tapajós–Jamanxim interfluve.
- At the moment, given the scarcity of information on M. munduruku, the researchers recommend listing the marmoset as data deficient on the IUCN Red List.
- However, the Amazon forest that’s home to the newly described species is being rapidly cut for agricultural expansion, logging, mining, and infrastructure development.

New species of giant flying squirrel brings hope to one of the world’s ‘most wanted’
- Scientists have discovered a new species of giant flying squirrel in China belonging to one of the world’s rarest and most mysterious genera.
- The first species in the genus, the Namdapha flying squirrel (Biswamoyopterus biswasi), was described in 1981 and hasn’t been seen since.
- A second species, the Laotian giant flying squirrel (Biswamoyopterus laoensis), was described in 2013, but also from just a single specimen.
- Researchers believe the conservation outlook for the new species, the Mount Gaoligong flying squirrel (Biswamoyopterus gaoligongensis), is better than for its relatives, given its greater abundance in the wild and prospects for community and government involvement to protect it.

What’s in a name? For Sri Lanka’s newest geckos, a political firestorm
- Researchers recently described six new species of geckos, but the discovery has been overshadowed by controversy over their naming.
- Nationalist figures accuse the researchers of dishonoring historical heroes by naming the geckos after them, with one group even filing a complaint with the police.
- The scientific community has risen in support of the researchers, pointing out that naming a new species after an individual is universally considered a badge of honor.
- For their part, the researchers say the focus should be on the new species, which are so rare and their range so restricted that they should be considered critically endangered.

‘Like spaghetti’: Worm-slurping, hopping rats discovered in the Philippines
- The highly biodiverse island of Luzon in the Philippines has yielded up two species of rats new to science.
- Both are found high up on Luzon’s mountains, where they’ve evolved to feed on the earthworms that abound in the lush, wet habitat.
- Researchers say they hope the new discoveries, the latest of dozens made here since 2000, will help shine a spotlight on the importance of conserving Luzon’s unique habitats and wildlife.

New orchid species from Japan lives on dark forest floor, never blooms
- Researcher Kenji Suetsugu of Kobe University has found flowering plants of a new species of orchid on Japan’s Amami-Oshima and Tokunoshima islands, now named Gastrodia amamiana.
- G. amamiana belongs to a group of mycoheterotrophic orchids that live on dark forest floors, do not use photosynthesis to get their nutrients, and steal nutrition from fungi instead. G. amamiana’s flowers likely never open up or bloom.
- Researchers have already found evidence of tree thinning close to where G. amamiana was discovered, and they worry that logging could dry the soil and consequently the fungi that the orchid depends on.

‘Extremely rare’ fossil tooth of hamster-sized monkey found in Peru
- From the riverbed of the Río Alto Madre de Dios in southeastern Peru, researchers have found an extremely small tooth that belonged to a species of tiny monkey that lived some 18 million years ago.
- Researchers have named the new species of extinct monkey Parvimico materdei, with parvimico meaning tiny monkey and the species name referring to the river where the fossil tooth was found.
- From the tooth, the researchers have deduced that the monkey was exceptionally small, in the size range of marmosets and tamarins, and likely ate a mix of insects and fruits.
- Given how the monkey fossil record for the period between 13 million and 31 million years ago from South America is extremely scarce, creating a gap in the understanding of the evolution of New World monkeys, the discovery of P. materdei is incredibly exciting, researchers say.

Two ferns presumed extinct found on remote Australian mountaintops
- Researchers have rediscovered two species of ferns on the mountaintops of Queensland, Australia, that were last seen more than 50 years ago and presumed extinct.
- The ferns, Hymenophyllum whitei and Oreogrammitis leonardii, were found on Thornton Peak and Mount Finnigan respectively during an expedition in August 2017.
- Researchers recommend listing both species as endangered in Queensland because they occur over a very limited area.

Newly described pocket shark likely glows in the dark
- Researchers have described a new species of pocket shark, a small shark measuring just 14 centimeters (5.5 inches) long, that possibly glows in the dark.
- The shark has been named the American pocket shark, or Mollisquama mississippiensis, in recognition of the biologically rich region in which it was discovered.
- Only two pocket sharks have ever been caught from the ocean. The previous specimen, M. parini, was collected from the eastern Pacific Ocean in 1979.
- The discovery of a new pocket shark species shows there is much more to learn about the Gulf of Mexico, researchers say.

Newly described tree species from Tanzania is likely endangered
- Researchers have described a new species of tree from the Usambara mountains of northeastern Tanzania.
- The tree, which grows up to 20 meters (66 feet) in height, has been named Mischogyne iddii after Iddi Rajabu, a resident botanist at the Amani Nature Reserve, where some individuals of the tree can be found.
- The newly described species is known from only two locations in the Usambara mountains, and the researchers estimate that fewer than 50 individuals remain, suggesting a threat category of endangered on the IUCN Red List for the species.

Stylish jumping spider named after late fashion icon Karl Lagerfeld
- Researchers have named a previously undescribed species of black-and-white jumping spider Jotus karllagerfeldi, after the late fashion icon Karl Lagerfeld, known for his signature black-and-white style.
- In addition to Karl Lagerfeld’s jumping spider, researchers have described four more new-to-science species of jumping spiders in the new paper, including J. albimanus, J. fortiniae, J. moonensis and J. newtoni.
- All five newly described species belong to a group of miniscule spiders called the brushed jumping spiders, males of which can be extremely colorful and are known to perform elaborate mating dances using a brush of long, colorful bristles on their legs to wave to the females.
- Despite being colorful and charismatic, very little is known about brushed jumping spiders, researchers say, urging amateurs who photograph these spiders to lodge their specimens with museums so that more new species can be described.

Primates lose ground to surging commodity production in their habitats
- “Forest risk” commodities, such as beef, palm oil, and fossil fuels, led to a significant proportion of the 1.8 million square kilometers (695,000 square miles) of forest that was cleared between 2001 and 2017 — an area almost the size of Mexico.
- A previous study found that 60 percent of primates face extinction and 75 percent of species’ numbers are declining.
- The authors say that addressing the loss of primate habitat due to the production of commodities is possible, though it will require a global effort to “green” the international trade in these commodities.

New pilot whale subspecies revealed: Q&A with marine biologist Amy Van Cise
- For centuries, Japanese seafarers have noted two distinct types of pilot whale in their waters: One with a squarish head and dark body, the other a bit bigger with a round head and a light patch on its back.
- The two types have long been officially classified simply as forms of the same species, short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus), but a new genetic study finds that they are actually distinct subspecies.
- The finding is just the latest shake-up of the cetacean family tree after the discoveries of new whale species in recent years.
- Mongabay spoke with the new study’s lead author, Amy Van Cise, a marine biologist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts, about the science of whale taxonomy and what her team’s discovery means for the conservation of short-finned pilot whales.

The health of penguin chicks points scientists to changes in the ocean
- A recent closure of commercial fishing around South Africa’s Robben Island gave scientists the chance to understand how fluctuations in prey fish populations affect endangered African penguins (Spheniscus demersus) absent pressure from humans.
- The researchers found that the more fish were available, the better the condition of the penguin chicks that rely on their parents for food.
- This link between prey abundance in the sea and the condition of penguin chicks on land could serve as an indicator of changes in the ecosystem.

Audio: Exploring a hidden rainforest on an isolated mountain in Mozambique
- On today’s episode of the Mongabay Newscast, we speak with Julian Bayliss, a conservation scientist and explorer who recently discovered a hidden rainforest on top of an isolated mountain in Mozambique.
- Like many other mountains in eastern Africa, Mount Lico is what’s known as an “inselberg” — a German word that means “island mountain.” Bayliss initially spotted the forest atop Mount Lico using Google Earth. He then confirmed its existence via drone reconnaissance, before mounting a campaign to actually scale Mount Lico’s sheer, 410-foot cliffs and explore the forest firsthand.
- On this episode, Julian Bayliss discusses what it was like to behold the unspoiled forest atop Mount Lico for the first time, the new species he found there, and the significance of the pottery he discovered in the rainforest even though no locals have ever been to the top of the mountain.

Meet the new species of venomous pit viper described from India
- Wildlife researcher Rohan Pandit and his teammate Wangchu Phiang first stumbled upon the new-to-science pit viper species in May 2016 while surveying biodiversity in the state of Arunachal Pradesh in India.
- In a new paper, researchers have described this species and named it Trimeresurus arunachalensis, or Arunachal pit viper.
- While the researchers have described the Arunachal pit viper based on a single specimen, they say the species’ unique features distinguish it from all the other known species of pit vipers.

’Unprecedented’ loss of biodiversity threatens humanity, report finds
- The U.N.’s Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services released a summary of far-reaching research on the threats to biodiversity on May 6.
- The findings are dire, indicating that around 1 million species of plants and animals face extinction.
- The full 1,500-page report, to be released later this year, raises concerns about the impacts of collapsing biodiversity on human well-being.

IUCN calls for moratorium on projects impacting rarest great ape species
- The IUCN has cited “ongoing and new threats” to the Tapanuli orangutan, found in a single forest ecosystem in northern Sumatra, to call for a suspension and reassessment of projects being undertaken within the ape’s habitat.
- With a population of no more than 800 individuals, the Tapanuli orangutan is the world’s rarest and most threatened great ape species.
- Roads through the Batang Toru ecosystem where it lives have fragmented the orangutan’s population.
- The most high-profile threat is a planned hydropower plant and dam in the ape’s habitat, which scientists and conservationists have increasingly called to be halted.

New Amazonian species of short-tailed whip scorpion sheds light on ‘the mating march’
- A new species of short-tailed whip scorpion has been discovered by two arachnologists, Gustavo Ruiz and Roberta Valente of the Universidade Federal do Pará in Brazil, who described the new species in an article published in the journal PLOS ONE last month.
- The new species belongs to the genus Surazomus in the Hubbardiidae family of the order Schizomida. Schizomids are small arachnids who can typically be found in leaf litter and caves or in the cavities beneath tree bark, logs, and stones in humid tropical and sub-tropical forests; they are commonly known as short-tailed whip scorpions because of the short flagella possessed by both males and females.
- More than 200 Schizomids have been discovered around the world, but the order has not yet been widely studied.

New species of ancient human found in a Philippine cave
- From a cave on the island of Luzon in the Philippines, researchers have unearthed fossils dating back more than 50,000 years ago, which they say belong to a new species of early human, now dubbed Homo luzonensis.
- H. luzonensis has a mix of ancient and modern traits: Most of its teeth are small and simple in shape, resembling those of modern humans, while its finger and toe bones have features similar to Australopithecus, ancestors of humans who are known to have last walked in Africa around 2 million years ago.
- The researchers involved in the current study are confident that H. luzonensis will hold up as a new species because its skeletal and dental elements “have no equivalents anywhere amongst the known Homo lineage.”

New species of skink from Angola has waited over 70 years to be described
- In the 1950s and 60s, two Belgian herpetologists suspected the occurrence of a new-to-science species of skink based on specimens from Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. But neither of them got around to describing the species in their lifetimes.
- Now, a team of researchers surveying amphibians and reptiles in Cagandala National Park in Angola have formally described the long-tailed skink in a new study.
- Named Trachylepis raymondlaurenti or Laurent’s long tailed skink in honor of Raymond Laurent, the researchers suggest a conservation status of Least Concern for the skink for now.

Meet Mini mum, Mini ature, Mini scule: Tiny new frogs from Madagascar
- Researchers have named three previously undescribed, extremely small species of frogs from Madagascar Mini mum, Mini ature, and Mini scule. All of them belong to Mini, a genus that is entirely new to science.
- The new study describes two more species of tiny frogs, Rhombophryne proportionali, and Anodonthyla eximia, both smaller than thumbnails, just like the Minis.
- The newly described frogs from Madagascar are, however, known only from a handful of locations. While the researchers recommend placing three of the species in a threatened category of the IUCN Red List, two species are data deficient.

Bid to protect Borneo’s wild cattle hinges on whether it’s a new species
- The Bornean banteng is considered to be a subspecies of the banteng found on Java, but some scientists are arguing the animal should be recognized as its own species.
- Local indigenous communities are trying to protect the banteng, invoking customary law to fine their own members and outsiders who hunt it. Community planning has spaced rice fields farther apart so that the banteng have room to travel.
- In the headwaters region of the Belantikan River in central Borneo, only 20 or 30 Bornean banteng are known to remain.

European Parliament to vote on timber legality agreement with Vietnam
- The European Parliament begins debate March 11 on a resolution to consent to the recently signed Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) with Vietnam on the trade of timber and timber products from the Southeast Asian country.
- The VPA is the result of nearly eight years of negotiations aimed at stopping the flow of illegally harvested timber into the EU.
- Members of parliament are expected to vote in favor of the resolution on March 12, though officials in the EU and outside observers have voiced concerns about the legality of the wood imported into Vietnam from other countries, such as the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Tiny subterranean Texas salamanders could be extinct in 100 years
- A recent study has revealed the existence of three previously undescribed species living underground within an aquifer system in Central Texas.
- The authors say one of these species is critically endangered due to human over-use of the aquifer. In all, they say that this unsustainable use could mean the extinction of all aquifer salamanders in the next century.
- The researchers urge the creation of policies that would regulate groundwater usage, as well as greater protection of particularly at-risk species through the U.S. Endangered Species Act.

Allegation of forged signature casts shadow over China-backed dam in Sumatra
- A researcher has claimed that his signature was forged in a document used to obtain a permit for a Chinese-backed $1.6 billion hydropower project in Indonesia.
- If his claim is proven true, the project’s environmental permit would presumably be rendered invalid, raising questions about the project’s future.
- Environmentalists say the cancellation of the project is crucial for the future survival of the Tapanuli orangutan, a newly described great ape that is already at risk of extinction due to habitat fragmentation.

New Species of orangutan threatened from moment of its discovery
- In a November 2017 article, an international team of scientists described a new species of great ape: the Tapanuli orangutan.
- The announcement was based on years of researched that demonstrated the species exhibited genetic, physical and behavioral differences that distinguished it from Sumatran and Bornean orangutans.
- Even as conservationists celebrated the description of a new species, they raised an alarm about the dangers facing the ape — notably, a hydropower dam planned for its sole remaining habitat.
- This is the second in a two-part series about the discovery of the Tapanuli orangutan.

What does it take to discover a new great ape species?
- In a paper published November 2017, an international team of scientists described a new species of orangutan.
- The Tapanuli orangutan, the eighth known great ape, is distinct from its Sumatran and Bornean cousins in several key ways.
- The species is also highly threatened, with plans to develop a hydroelectric dam in its only known habitat raising alarm among conservationists.
- This is the first in a two-part series about the discovery of the Tapanuli orangutan. Part Two will be published Feb. 20.

In the Solomon Islands, making amends in the name of conservation
- The Kwaio people of the Solomon Islands have been working with scientists to protect their homeland from resource extraction and development.
- But violent clashes in 1927 between the Kwaio and the colonial government created a rift between members of this tribe and the outside world.
- To heal those old wounds and continue with their conservation work, a trio of scientists joined the Kwaio in a sacred reconciliation ceremony in July 2018.
- Kwaio leaders say that the ceremony opened the door to a more peaceful future for their people.

Six new catfish species, facial tentacles and all, described in Amazon
- Researchers have described six new species of catfish from the Amazon and Orinoco river basins in South America.
- All six species belong to the genus Ancistrus, and have tentacles sprouting from their faces, spines sticking out from their heads, and armor-like bony plates covering their bodies.
- The newly described fish were once plentiful but are now scarce, the researchers say, largely due to habitat destruction from agricultural expansion, deforestation and gold mining.

New species of leaf-mimicking lizard could already be victim of pet trade
- From the forests of Marojejy National Park in Madagascar, researchers have described a new species of leaf-tailed gecko that has a somewhat compressed body, a small triangular head, and a leaf-shaped tail.
- So far, the gecko, named Uroplatus finaritra, is known only from within a small area at lower altitudes in Marojejy. Since forests in this area are rapidly disappearing due to illegal logging activity, both in and around the park, the researchers recommend that the gecko be listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List.
- The gecko may also have already appeared in the international pet trade under the label of the more common satanic leaf-tailed gecko, Uroplatus phantasticus.

New species of tree frog from Ecuador has a mysterious claw
- A team of biologists surveying a remote and largely unexplored part of the Andes in Ecuador have described a new species of tree frog that’s dark brown in color, with bright orange flecks dotting its body.
- The researchers have named the tree frog Hyloscirtus hillisi, after David Hillis, a U.S. evolutionary biologist known for his work on the Hyloscirtus genus of tree frogs.
- While the researchers don’t have an estimate of the frog’s population, they think its numbers are likely low.
- The species’ small habitat also lies near a large-scale mining operation, putting the frog at immediate risk of extinction.

Photos: Top 10 new species of 2018
- Every year, researchers describe new species of animals and plants, from forests and oceans, after months, or even several years, of trials and tribulations.
- In 2018, Mongabay covered many of these new discoveries and descriptions, some a result of chance encounters.
- In no particular order, we present our 10 top picks.

Deep-sea survey of Australian marine parks reveals striking species
- A monthlong survey of deep-sea seamounts in and around Australia’s Huon and Tasman Fracture marine parks has revealed a spectacular range of species, from feathery corals and tulip-shaped glass sponges to bioluminescent squids and ghost sharks.
- Researchers surveyed 45 seamounts and covered 200 kilometers (124 miles), collecting 60,000 stereo images and some 300 hours of video.
- Close to the surface, they recorded data on 42 seabird species and eight whale and dolphin species. The researchers also used a net to collect some animals from the seamounts for identification, many of which are potentially new to science.

Relative of ‘penis snake’ amphibian named after Donald Trump
- EnviroBuild, a construction materials company based in the U.K., paid $25,000 for naming rights to the amphibian in a charity auction benefiting the Rainforest Trust, a conservation group.
- EnviroBuild chose the name as a cheeky way to spur awareness about President Trump’s climate policies.
- Little else was revealed about the new species, including where or when it was discovered.

New species of giant salamander described after decades of mystery
- Scientists have described a new species of giant salamander that grows up to 60 centimeters (2 feet) long and is a type of siren, a group of eel-like salamanders that have only front limbs, and large, frilled gills behind their heads.
- The formal description of the species, named the reticulated siren, comes after decades of surveys and exploration.
- The researchers do not have a complete understanding of the reticulated siren yet, but given that much of its habitat lies in wetlands within the endangered longleaf pine ecosystem, the species is of conservation concern, they say.

Latam Eco Review: Microbial memories of Venezuela’s lost glaciers

Microbiomes of Venezuela’s lost glaciers, mile-high Andean lizards, and starving baby seals are among the recent top stories from Mongabay Latam, our Spanish-language service. The abandoned microbes of Venezuela’s last glaciers Venezuela will be the first country where glaciers disappear. In 30 years, from 1978 to 2008, its glaciers lost 9 vertical meters a year […]
This blue-throated hummingbird is new to science — but already endangered
- From Ecuador’s southwestern highlands, ornithologists have described a new species of hummingbird, named blue-throated hillstar after its glittering ultramarine-blue chin and throat feathers.
- The blue-throated hillstar prefers grasslands on the Ecuadoran Andes, which is being rapidly lost to human activity, and researchers think the bird is likely already critically endangered.
- The researchers are now working with the local communities to protect the bird and its habitat.

‘No one is helping us’: Venezuelan conservation crippled by crisis
- Many conservationists have fled Venezuela since an economic crisis began in 2014.
- Those who have chosen to remain behind complain of a lack of funding and resources, and say they feel abandoned by the international community.
- Despite incredible difficulties, some conservationists are still able to take action, including rediscovering a long-lost bird.

Haiti may lose all primary forest by 2035, mass extinction underway
- Analysis of satellite imagery and aerial photographs indicate that all of Haiti’s remaining primary forest will disappear in less than two decades if current deforestation rates continue. Results indicate primary forest cover in Haiti shrank from 4.4 percent in 1988 to just 0.32 percent in 2016, and that 42 of Haiti’s 50 largest mountains have lost all of their primary forest cover.
- These forests are home to endangered animals found nowhere else in the world; researchers say the country is already experiencing a mass extinction event due to habitat loss.
- Deforestation-intensified flooding has also been implicated in thousands of human deaths.
- Researchers say Haiti’s forest loss is driven largely by charcoal production and agriculture.

17 new brilliantly colored species of sea slugs described
- Researchers have just described 17 stunning new species of sea slugs that live among coral reefs in the Indo-Pacific region.
- All the species belong to the genus Hypselodoris, and come in a wide variety of colors.
- Researchers reorganized the genus Hypselodoris, adding new-to-science species to the group, and revealing secrets of the evolution of their brilliant color patterns.

Africa’s slender-snouted crocodile is not one but two species
- The critically endangered slender-snouted crocodile is not one but two species, a new study has found.
- While the West African crocodile continues to retain its original name Mecistops cataphractus, the Central African species has been named Mecistops leptorhynchus.
- The description of M. leptorhynchus makes it the first new living crocodile species to be named and detailed in more than 80 years.
- As two species, the slender-snouted crocodiles are smaller in numbers and are at greater risk of extinction.

Bird-rich Indonesian island yields up new songbird species
- Researchers have described a new species of songbird found only on the Indonesian island of Rote — the second new avian discovery there in less than a year.
- The Rote leaf-warbler (Phylloscopus rotiensis) was initially assumed to be the same species as the Timor leaf-warbler from a neighboring island, but closer studies of its physical characteristics and genetic analyses have distinguished it as its own species.
- Rote is home to a large number of species found only there or on neighboring islands, but lacks any major terrestrial protected area.

Hot pink swamp eel discovered in Indian rainforest
- Scientists from London’s Natural History Museum discovered a previously unknown species of swamp eel in the Khasi Hills of Meghalaya, India.
- The biologists found only a single specimen living in mud near a rainforest stream.
- Like other swamp eels, Monopterus rongsaw lives terrestrially, is blind, and has sharp teeth.
- There are some 25 species are known to science worldwide.

New tree species from Cameroon is possibly already extinct
- Nearly 70 years ago, Edwin Ujor of the Nigerian Forestry Service collected a specimen of a tree from a forest high up in the Bamenda highlands in Cameroon.
- Now, in a new study, researchers have formally described the Ujor specimen as a new species named Vepris bali.
- The researchers believe the species is either critically endangered or already possibly extinct, mainly because it has been found in only one location, and because the higher-altitude regions from which the Ujor specimen was collected have mostly been cleared for agriculture.

New species of neon-colored fish discovered off Brazil
- While diving in the waters surrounding Saint Paul’s Rocks, an archipelago off Brazil, in June last year, researchers discovered a stunning pink-and-white neon-colored fish that’s new to science.
- The researchers were so taken by the colorful fish that they did not notice a large six-gill shark swimming very close to them. For its “enchanting” beauty, they named the fish Tosanoides aphrodite, or the Aphrodite anthias, after the Greek goddess of love and beauty.
- Aphrodite anthias is the only known species of the genus Tosanoides found in the Atlantic Ocean. All the other known species of Tosanoides live in the Pacific Ocean.

New species of blood-red coral found off Panama coast
- Researchers have found a new species of bright red coral in Hannibal Bank, an underwater seamount off Panama’s Pacific coast.
- The new coral, Thesea dalioi, is only the second known species of Thesea found in the eastern Pacific, the researchers say.
- Researchers named the new coral after Ray Dalio, a U.S. philanthropist and hedge fund manager whose foundation supports ocean exploration.
- The reefs on Hannibal Bank, where T. dalioi was discovered, occur in low-light environments that are thought to be fragile habitats made of a high diversity of corals, algae and sponges.

Latam Eco Review: Gold fever in Peru and cryptic fish from the deep

The most popular stories from our Spanish-language service, Mongabay-Latam, followed new deforestation from gold mining in Peru, new fish species deep in Chile’s sea, mining on Ecuador’s beaches, and hundreds of dead turtles in Mexico. Gold mining tears through Peru’s Amazon A new study shows that gold mining in Peru’s Madre de Dios region has […]
New orchid species discovered in Peruvian Amazon
- SERNANP, Peru’s national parks service, announced that a new species of orchid was discovered on Bella Durmiente mountain, a prominent natural feature of Tingo Maria National Park in the Huánuco region of central Peru.
- About 240 orchid species are known to occur in Tingo Maria National Park. The new species, which was described to science in a paper published in the journal Phytotaxa last month, was given the scientific name Andinia tingomariana in honor of the park where it was discovered.
- A. tingomariana was found growing epiphytically — meaning it was growing on another plant, but not parasitically — among the mosses and vines on tree trunks in a humid forest at an elevation of 1,285 meters (about 4,216 feet).

The Japan pig is a tiny colorful pygmy seahorse smaller than a fingernail
- Scientists have described a new species of pygmy seahorse that’s colorful and smaller than the average fingernail.
- The researchers have officially named the tiny seahorse Japan pig, or Hippocampus japapigu, because local people believe the animal resembles a “tiny baby pig.”
- Unlike other pygmy seahorses, the newly described species has an elevated ridge on its upper back made of triangular bones, the purpose of which is still unclear.
- The Japan pig is now the fifth pygmy seahorse species to be recorded in Japan.

Earless African pygmy toad discovered on remote mountain in Angola
- Researchers have found a new species of African pygmy toad in Serra da Neve Inselberg, an isolated mountain and Angola’s second-highest peak.
- The new species, formally named Poyntonophrynus pachnodes, or the Serra da Neve pygmy toad, lacks both external and internal parts of the ear that help frogs hear.
- While earless toads aren’t rare, this is the first time a Poyntonophrynus species has been reported without ears.

Africa’s biggest cobra is five species, not one, study finds
- Africa’s largest true cobra is not one, but five separate species, a new study has confirmed.
- Two of these species, the black forest cobra (N. guineensis) and the West African banded cobra (N. savannula), are new to science.
- As a single species, forest cobras were not considered threatened. But with the splitting of the cobra into five species, some species could be more vulnerable to forest loss and bushmeat hunting than others.
- The occurrence of five forest cobra species also has implications for the development of antivenom to treat forest cobra bites, researchers say.

Researcher names spectacular new frog after his granddaughter
- A researcher has identified a colorful tree frog as a new species.
- Andrew Gray, Curator of Herpetology at Manchester Museum, conducted genetic and biochemical analysis on frogs that were thought to be a morph of Cruziohyla calcarifer.
- His research, published in the journal Zootaxa, showed that individuals collected from Panama and northern South America are genetically distinct.
- He named the new amphibian Sylvia’s Tree Frog, Cruziohyla sylviae, after his 3-year-old granddaughter.

New species of shark named after pioneering ‘Shark Lady’ Eugenie Clark
- Scientists have just described a new species of shark from the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico and the western Atlantic Ocean.
- The new species was formally named Squalus clarkae or Genie’s Dogfish, in honor of the late marine biologist Eugenie Clark, best known for her pioneering work on sharks, which earned her the nickname of “Shark Lady.”
- The newly described big-eyed shark belongs to the dogfish family, a group of small sharks that live primarily in deep waters and reproduce slowly.

New species of venomous snake discovered by accident in Australia
- While researching sea snakes in the mining town of Weipa in Australia’s remote Cape York Peninsula, a team of biologists chanced upon a black and white snake that’s new to science.
- The venomous snake, now named Vermicella parscauda, belongs to a group of snakes called bandy bandies that live in burrows and feed on a specialized diet of blindsnakes.
- So far, the team has found only six individuals of the new species in the Weipa area, a site with large-scale bauxite mining, which could suggest that the burrowing snake might be in trouble.

Scientists urge Indonesian president to nix dam in orangutan habitat
- Twenty-five of the world’s top environmental scientists have sent a letter to Indonesia’s president, seeking a halt to a planned hydroelectric dam in the only known habitat of the Tapanuli orangutan, the rarest species of great ape on Earth.
- The scientists also slammed the Chinese government for funding the project as a part of its ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, saying it has disregarded the environmental consequences of building and operating the dam.
- The developers of the project have dismissed the criticism, saying they will enforce strong environmental safeguards to protect the critically endangered Tapanuli orangutan.

Species evolve more than twice as fast at poles as in tropics: study
- Considering the swarming biodiversity at the equator, and the lack of diversity near the poles, scientists have long assumed that species evolve more rapidly in warm waters. But a new study of the evolutionary development of 30,000 fish species has turned that idea on its head.
- Biologists found that a fish species in the tropics split into a new species on average every 10 to 20 million years. But near the poles, that average rate is roughly every four million years – more than twice as fast.
- The reason may be the far more extreme and less stable climatic conditions found near the poles. This results in more frequent extinctions, which clears out species diversity and empties ecological niches, setting the stage for the next new burst of species formation in other groups of organisms.
- But if species form faster at the poles than in the tropics, why isn’t there greater biodiversity in the Arctic and Antarctic than at the equator? One possibility: while speciation is more rapid at the poles, extinctions may be more numerous too. But this still isn’t clear, and more research will be needed to find out.

Latam Eco Review: Five newly described snakes named by auction in Ecuador

Among the top stories published by our Spanish-language service, Mongabay-Latam, this past week were features about five newly described snake species being named by auction in Ecuador, and news that Bolivia’s Madidi Park could possibly be the most biodiverse park on Earth. The banner image above shows one of the newly described snakes, a Bob […]
And then there were 12: Why don’t we hear about extinction until it’s too late? (commentary)
- Species threatened with extinction often don’t get the public’s attention until they no longer exist.
- The author, zoologist Sam Turvey, argues that more attention to these critical cases is required.
- Ahead of International Save the Vaquita Day on July 7, Turvey points out that the world’s most endangered marine mammal is dangerously close to extinction, and it’s not alone.
- This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily Mongabay.

Latam Eco Review: Chocolate as a conservation strategy

The most popular stories by our Spanish language service, Mongabay Latam, for the week of June 18- 24 include features in honor of Colombia’s World Cup team (Humboldt Institute created “Colombian Biodiversity Team” cards profiling the country’s most iconic wildlife) and in other news, Peruvian farmers in a region once dominated by narcotrafficking now seek […]
New ‘goblin spiders’ from Sri Lanka named after Enid Blyton characters
- Scientists have discovered nine new species of “goblin spiders” in Sri Lanka, of which they’ve named six after popular goblin characters from Enid Blyton’s children’s books.
- Two of the nine newly described species belong to genera (Cavisternum and Grymeus) that have never been recorded outside of Australia before.
- Most of the newly described goblin spider species seem to occur only in a few sites, or just a single forest patch, and may all be critically endangered, the authors of the study think.

Scientists find new snail-eating snakes, auction naming rights to save them
- An expedition in Ecuador has uncovered five new species of snail-eating snakes.
- Four out of the five species are threatened with extinction due to habitat loss.
- The researchers who conducted the expedition auctioned off their naming rights and used the funds to purchase and protect an area of forest where two of the most threatened new species are known to live.

Bolivia’s Madidi National Park home to world’s largest array of land life, survey finds
- A two-and-a-half-year biological survey of Madidi National Park in Bolivia added 1,382 species and subspecies of plants and animals to the list of those living in the park.
- The team believes that 124 species and subspecies may be new to science.
- WCS, the organization that led the study, said the 18,958-square-kilometer (7,320-square-mile) park is the world’s most biodiverse protected area.

‘Rainbow’ chameleon among three new species described from Madagascar
- Researchers discovered the brilliantly colored rainbow chameleon, now named Calumma uetzi, during an expedition to the remote Sorata massif in northern Madagascar in 2012.
- Over surveys between 2015 and 2016, the researchers found another new species of chameleon, now dubbed Calumma juliae, in a 15-square-kilometer patch of forest. The researchers were unable to find any males of this species.
- They also found only a single male specimen of the third new chameleon species, Calumma lefona, spotted in Andrevorevo in northern Madagascar.

Scientists highlight 9 potentially new reef fish species off West Papua
- Scientists in Indonesia may have discovered nine new reef fish species in the waters off West Papua province.
- The discovery highlights the importance of protecting the region’s marine ecosystem for its vast and rich biodiversity.
- However, the researchers also found indications of blast fishing in the protected areas, and have called for sustainable management of the ecosystem.

Six new peeping frogs discovered in western Mexico
- Scientists have discovered six new species of peeping frog in the western Mexican states of Jalisco, Colima, and Michoacán.
- All six frogs belong to the genus Eleutherodactylus and were described in the journal Mesoamerican Herpetology last month. According to the authors of the article describing the new species, Eleutherodactylus frogs “are among the most diverse and taxonomically challenging groups of amphibians in the New World.”
- The genus Eleutherodactylus consists of five subgenera, four of which are native solely to the West Indies and are relatively well-studied. The six newly discovered frogs belong to the fifth subgenus, Syrrhophus, a group that has received less attention from scientists.

New species of shrew discovered on a single mountaintop in the Philippines
- The newly described Palawanosorex muscorum, or the Palawan moss shrew, is known to live only near the peak of Mount Mantalingajan on Palawan Island in the southern Philippines.
- The shrew has a stout body and broad forefeet with long claws, which it uses to dig through humus on the forest floor to look for earthworms.
- The moss shrew has no close known relatives in Asia, and how it came to live on Mount Mantalingajan is a mystery, researchers say.

Indonesian activists protest China-funded dam in orangutan habitat
- The Chinese government plans to fund a massive hydroelectric power dam in the Batang Toru ecosystem in North Sumatra, Indonesia, where the newly described Tapanuli orangutan lives.
- Activists staged a protest outside the Chinese Embassy in Jakarta on May 8, coinciding with a state visit by Premier Li Keqiang, to condemn Beijing’s involvement in the project.
- In a letter submitted by the demonstrators to the embassy, they demanded China withdraw its support for the project due to the massive environmental threats posed by the endeavor.

New species of Malaysian water beetle named after Leonardo DiCaprio
- A new species of water beetle has been named after actor and environmentalist Leonardo DiCaprio.
- The species was discovered in Borneo during a survey organized by Taxon Expeditions, which sets up trips for citizen scientists to discover undescribed species.
- The discoverers chose to honor DiCaprio for his support of environmental causes.

New species of superb bird-of-paradise has special dance moves
- Until recently, researchers thought that the island of New Guinea was home to a single species of the superb bird-of-paradise, the bird with the now-famous “smiley face” dance routine.
- Now, researchers have confirmed yet another species of the superb bird-of-paradise in the Indonesian Bird’s Head or Vogelkop region of the island, called the Vogelkop superb bird-of-paradise.
- The males of the two species have different dance moves and calls, and the females look different too, researchers have found.

New species of ‘exploding ant’ discovered in Borneo
- Researchers have revealed a new species of exploding ant, which they discovered living in the rainforest canopy of Brunei on the island of Borneo.
- Named Colobopsis explodens, the new ant ruptures its abdomen when threatened, killing itself in the process. This rupturing releases a sticky, yellow, toxic goo that has a spicy smell.
- The researchers expect more exploding ant species will be described in the near future.

Scientists stumble upon hundreds of octopus moms in the deep sea
- Scientists have discovered a large nursery of octopus mothers some 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) deep in the Pacific Ocean.
- The octopuses are an unknown species of the genus Muusoctopus, a group of deep-sea octopuses generally known to lead solitary lives.
- The octopuses and their eggs will likely not survive, researchers say, because the animals are exposed to warmer temperatures than they are used to.
- But the presence of this large, “suicidal” population of octopuses suggests that there must be many more octopuses living in cooler, more livable crevices on the seafloor, researchers add.

Under the sea: Life is the bubbles in newly described deep-reef zone
- Scientists have recently described a layer of the deep ocean zone as the “rariphotic,” calling it home to an array of unidentified reef fish and a refuge for species from shallower waters drive out of their coral habitats by warming waters.
- Nearly 4,500 fishes were observed representing 71 species, nearly half of them new species, the researchers reported.
- The scientists are calling for more exploration into deeper marine ecosystems to better understand the deep-reef ecosystems and the impact of changes taking place in shallower zones.

Mysterious new butterfly named after YouTuber Emily Graslie
- Scientists have named a new species of butterfly for Emily Graslie, the writer, producer and host of the YouTube channel The Brain Scoop, and the chief curiosity correspondent of Chicago’s Field Museum.
- The postage stamp-sized butterfly Wahydra graslieae is dark rust-colored with jagged bands of silver scales on the underside of its hind wings.
- The scientists identified the butterfly from a single museum specimen collected by American biologist Harold Greeney from the Ecuadorian Andes in 2004. The specimen remained inside a Tupperware box until 2016.

New thumbnail-sized pygmy squid discovered in Australia
- The new species of pygmy squid belongs to the genus Idiosepius, a group of tiny, squid-like marine animals that are believed to be the world’s smallest cephalopods.
- Researchers have named the new species Idiosepius hallami, or Hallam’s pygmy squid after Australian malacologist Amanda Reid’s son, Hallam, who helped her collect live animals for further comparisons.
- Pygmy squids are generally found in shallow waters among seagrass and mangroves, some of the most threatened marine habitats.

Scientists discover 18 new spider-hunting spiders from Madagascar
- Researchers have added 18 new species to the assassin spider family, upping the total number of known Eriauchenius and Madagascarchaea species to 26.
- Assassin spiders, also known as pelican spiders, have special physical and behavioral adaptations that allow them to hunt other spiders.
- The new species were discovered in Madagascar’s forests and through examination of previously collected museum specimens.
- Madagascar is currently experiencing high levels of deforestation. Researchers say the loss of Madagascar’s forests is putting the new assassin spiders – as well as many other species – at risk of extinction.

Ecuador announces a new national park in the Andes
- The new Río Negro-Sopladora National Park comprises more than 30,000 hectares of almost-intact alpine plateaus and forests in Ecuador’s Andes and will protect an estimated 546 species of plants and animals.
- In July 2017, after just 12 days of exploring the area, investigators found three new species of amphibians. Scientists think more species await discovery in the forests and alpine plateaus of the new park.

Two new dog-faced bats discovered in Panama and Ecuador
- Researchers have described two new species of dog-faced bats: the Freeman’s dog-faced bat (Cynomops freemani) from Panama and the Waorani dog-faced bat (Cynomops tonkigui) from Ecuador.
- The Freeman’s dog-faced bat was named after bat specialist Patricia Freeman.
- The species name of the Waorani dog-faced bat, “tonkigui,” honors the Waorani tribe of Ecuador that lives near one of the locations where the bats were captured, the study says.

Stranger than fiction? New spiders found in Brazil named after creatures from popular fantasy stories
- Seven recently discovered spiders all belong to the genus Ochyrocera and were found in the iron caves of Floresta Nacional de Carajás in the northern Brazilian state of Pará.
- While all seven species can live and breed without sunlight, they’re not necessarily consigned to the deepest depths of the underworld. The same cannot be said for some of the new spiders’ namesakes, however.
- Researchers with the Sao Paulo, Brazil-based Instituto Butantan have named the seven new spiders in honor of characters from fantasy works like The Lord of the Rings and the Harry Potter series.

There’s a new member of the lemur family
- Grove’s Dwarf lemur (Cheirogaleus grovesi) was discovered in two of Madagascar’s national parks, Ranomafana and Andringitra, both of which are part of the Rainforests of Atsinanana UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- The new lemur is a nocturnal primate that is smaller than a squirrel. The fur on its back, limbs, and head are a reddish-brown in color, and there are brownish-black rings around its large eyes.
- The species was named for British-Australian biological anthropologist and primate taxonomist Colin Groves, who passed away last year.

Meet Indonesia’s new honeyeater species from Rote Island
- A new bird species from Indonesia has been described by a group of scientists after it was first observed in 1990, a paper said.
- The bird, which belongs to the honeyeater family, has been named after Indonesia’s first lady, Iriana Joko Widodo, as a way to promote the protection of the species.
- The researchers said the newly described species’ population was primarily threatened by deforestation to clear land for residential and agricultural use.

New ‘ghost’ scorpion among several species recorded for the first time in Malaysian rainforest
- For the first time ever, scientists have surveyed the rainforest of Penang Hill comprehensively. The 130-million-year old forest is believed to have never been cut before and has remained largely unexplored.
- Among the exciting discoveries is a potentially new species of “ghost” scorpion, and numerous first records for Penang Hill.
- With a more complete understanding of the forests of Penang Hill, the scientists hope to nominate Penang’s forest as a UNESCO biosphere reserve.

‘New’ giant octopus discovered in the Pacific
- The world’s largest octopus — the giant Pacific octopus — is actually represented by more than one species.
- New research indicates there are at least two species of octopus housed under what is traditionally called the giant Pacific octopus.
- The new species is called the frilled giant Pacific octopus.
- The giant Pacific octopus can weigh up to 70 kilograms (150 pounds).

New checklist catalogs every vascular plant in the Americas
- A team of 24 researchers pulled together information from plant checklists across the two continents and added it to the Tropicos database.
- With the details of all of the species in one place, scientists now have a public, searchable checklist with nearly 125,000 species.
- The authors note that having a checklist like this one to serve as a baseline is helpful to scientists and policymakers alike.

Photos: Top 20 new species of 2017
- There’s still so much we don’t know about life on planet Earth that scientists discover new species with whom we share this planet nearly every day.
- For instance, this year scientists described a new species of orangutan in Sumatra — just the eighth great ape species known to exist on planet Earth. And that’s just one of many notable, bizarre, or downright fascinating discoveries made this year.
- Here, in no particular order, we present the top 20 new species discovered in 2017.

Scientists determine there are seven species of silky anteater, not one
- A study published earlier this month in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society describes six distinct new species of silky anteater, meaning there are now officially seven species of the elusive mammal, not just one.
- Silky anteaters are small, nocturnal animals that live in the canopies of trees in the tropical forests of South and Central America. They are known as very discreet and thus difficult to find, which helps explain why Cyclopes didactylus, the common anteater, was one of the least studied anteaters in the world and had been considered to be a single species up until now.
- The common silky anteater is listed as a species of Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, but that may not pertain to all of the newly discovered species.

Brilliant blue tarantula among potentially new species discovered in Guyana
- In the forests of the Potaro plateau of Guyana, scientists have discovered a bright blue tarantula that is likely new to science.
- The discovery was part of a larger biodiversity assessment survey of the Kaieteur Plateau and Upper Potaro area of Guyana, within the Pakaraima Mountains range.
- Overall, the team uncovered more than 30 species that are potentially new to science, and found several species that are known only from the Kaieteur Plateau-Upper Potaro region and nowhere else.

Indonesia races against time to save new orangutan species
- With an estimated population of less than 800, the newly described Tapanuli orangutan is already at risk of extinction due to habitat destruction and fragmentation.
- The Indonesian government will come up with a strategy to protect the orangutan, including the establishment of protected forest areas and wildlife sanctuaries.
- The government will also review a plan to build a hydroelectric plant in an area with the highest known density of Tapanuli orangutans.

Scientists surprised to discover new butterflyfish
- Because they are relatively well studied, scientists generally don’t expect to come across a new butterflyfish species. But that’s exactly what happened on an expedition by scientists with the San Francisco-based California Academy of Sciences when they were collecting live specimens 360 feet beneath the ocean’s surface in the Philippine’s Verde Island Passage.
- Roa rumsfeldi was found on a mesophotic reef, which is a coral reef system that lies in a narrow band of the ocean known as the “twilight zone” — deep enough for sunlight to be scarce, but not pitch black like the deep sea. Mesophotic reefs are typically located somewhere between 200 and 500 feet beneath the ocean’s surface.
- Scientists with the California Academy of Science’s Hope for Reefs initiative are trained to dive deep into the ocean’s twilight zone in order to explore the mostly unexamined coral reefs that lie there. They frequently collect live fish on their expeditions to these mesophotic reefs, and that is how they first came across Roa rumsfeldi.

A new species of orangutan from Indonesia (analysis)
- Scientists have described a third species of orangutan.
- The Tapanuli orangutan (Pongo tapanuliensis) is found in the Tapanuli region of Indonesia’s North Sumatra province.
- The species is already considered at risk of extinction.
- This guest post is an analysis by researchers, including authors of the paper that describes the new primate species.

The Eighth Great Ape: New orangutan species discovered in Sumatra
- A study indicates what was once assumed to be an isolated population of the Sumatran orangutan is in fact a distinct species.
- The Batang Toru orangutan differs from the Sumatran orangutan in morphology, behavior and genetics. Genomic analysis suggests it diverged from other orangutan species 3.4 million years ago.
- There are fewer than 800 Batang Toru orangutans in existence, making it the rarest of all the great apes.
- It is highly threatened by habitat loss. The study says a hydropower plant planned for the area could affect 8 percent of the species’ remaining forest habitat.

Saving the ‘Star Wars gibbon’: Q&A with primatologist Carolyn Thompson
- Carolyn Thompson, a Ph.D. student at University College London, is studying the newly described and little-known Skywalker hoolock gibbon.
- She is working with the very team that first described the small ape in the China-Myanmar border region.
- Thompson hopes that her research will contribute to the gibbon’s threat assessment on the International Union of Conservation for Nature Species Red List.

Seychelles home to new species of caecilian, a legless amphibian
- The Petite Praslin caecilian (Hypogeophis pti) is the world’s newest — and possibly the smallest — caecilian, a type of legless amphibian.
- Scientists discovered the animal on the island of Praslin in the Seychelles, an archipelago in the Indian Ocean.
- The new species is the seventh caecilian species found in the Seychelles, where the amphibians have been evolving for 64 million years.

Audio: Indonesian rainforests for sale and bat calls of the Amazon
- This episode of the Mongabay Newscast takes a look at the first installment of our new investigative series, “Indonesia for Sale,” and features the sounds of Amazonian bats.
- Mongabay’s Indonesia-based editor Phil Jacobson joins the Newscast to tell us all about “Indonesia for Sale” and the first piece in the series, “The palm oil fiefdom.”
- We also speak with Adrià López-Baucells, a PhD student in bat ecology who has conducted acoustic studies of bats in the central Amazon for the past several years. In this Field Notes segment, López-Baucells plays some of the recordings he used to study the effects of Amazon forest fragmentation on bat foraging behavior.

Myanmar caves yield up 19 new gecko species
- Scientists have discovered 19 new species of strikingly patterned geckos within a small area of 90 kilometers by 50 kilometers in Myanmar.
- These geckos are most likely restricted to the limestone hills and towers within which they were found.
- Conservationists hope that these newly discovered animals can serve as “ambassadors” for the limestone hills, especially since many of these hills are being mined by cement companies.

Two new ‘birdcatcher’ trees described from Puerto Rico
- The two newly described trees have been named Pisonia horneae and Pisonia roqueae after two women who spent several decades trying to document plants of Puerto Rico.
- The trees belong to the genus Pisonia, a group of “birdcatcher trees” known to produce sticky seeds that can entangle (and sometimes kill) birds.
- However, whether Pisonia horneae and Pisonia roqueae use birds to disperse their fruits is currently unknown, the researchers say.

Meet the new Bernie Sanders spider
- Together with four of his undergraduate students, Ingi Agnarsson, a spider expert and professor of biology at the University of Vermont, described 15 new spiders in a paper published by the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society this week.
- All 15 of the new species belong to the genus Spintharus and are known as “smiley-faced” spiders because of the patterning on their abdomens that resemble a smiley face.
- Each of Agnarsson’s graduate students, who did the photography and lab work to document the new species, were given the chance to name a few of the spiders. “[B]ut we all named the Bernie Sanders spider,” Lily Sargeant, one of the students and a co-author of the paper, said in a statement. “We all have tremendous respect for Bernie. He presents a feeling of hope.”

Giant tree-dwelling rat discovered in the Solomon Islands
- The Uromys vika is the first new rodent species to be described from the Solomon Islands in 80 years.
- The elusive rat was finally discovered when an 18-inch, orange-brown individual fell out of a tree that had been cut down by a logging company.
- The researchers think that the rat should be listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List because the rat appears to be rare, and its rainforest habitat is rapidly being logged away.

Four new toads discovered in Sumatra
- Scientists discovered four new species of toads who, unlike their cousins, live isolated in the highlands of Sumatra.
- The four toads are distinguishable from one another by their skin patterns, limb shapes and voices.
- In the wake of the discovery, one of the researchers called on the Indonesian government to strengthen the monitoring of harvesting quotas for toad exports so that scientists can keep track of its population in the wild.

381 new species described from the Amazon over two-year period
- Between January 2014 and December 2015, scientists described 381 new species of wildlife from the Amazon in peer-reviewed scientific journals, a new report by WWF and a Brazil-based organization says.
- These include 216 new species of plants, 93 fish, 32 amphibians, 20 mammals (two of which are fossils), 19 reptiles and one bird.
- Many of the newly described species are already on the verge of extinction, the report says.

Saving the Serranía de San Lucas, a vital link in the ‘jaguar corridor’
- The Serranía de San Lucas in Colombia’s department of Bolivar is an area of renowned biodiversity. Due to the country’s long-running conflict the region has not yet been fully explored and scientists believe a “treasure trove” of undiscovered species may be lying in wait.
- The mountain massif is also key to the “jaguar corridor,” a habitat link that connects Central American jaguar populations to those in South America.
- But San Lucas is also home to some of Latin America’s richest deposits of gold. Mining for gold has damaged the region’s lowlands, releasing mercury into the surrounding environment. In 2014, two jaguar canines were found to contain mercury.
- The race is on to protect the area through establishing it as a national park. Proponents of the initiative say doing to would help maintain its rich biodiversity and ensure it retains viable habitat for jaguars and other wildlife.

New crab with star-shaped outgrowths discovered in Taiwan
- From a red coral fishing ground off Taiwan, scientists have collected a new species of crab.
- The orange crustacean is covered in numerous tiny, star-shaped protrusions and has been named Pariphiculus stellatus, from the Latin word stellatus meaning ‘starry’.
- In the same study, the scientists report the first-ever record of a rare crab species – Acanthodromia margarita – that they collected from the red coral beds.

‘Yoda bat’ happy to be recognized as new species
- A new fruit bat species found in the rainforests of Papua New Guinea and described in the Records of the Australian Museum this month resembles Yoda closely enough that it has actually been referred to simply as the “Yoda bat” — at least until now.
- Acccording to Nancy Irwin, author of the study describing the species, the name Hamamas or “happy” tube-nosed fruit bat was chosen because “Most of the morphological characteristics that separate this bat from other species are associated with a broader, rounder jaw which gives the appearance of a constant smile.”
- The bat was given its scientific name, N. wrightae, in honor of conservationist Deb Wright, who spent two decades building conservation programs and long-term scientific capacity in Papua New Guinea.

Audio: Katharine Hayhoe on how to talk about climate change: ‘Share from the heart and then the head’
- Our first guest on this episode of the Mongabay Newscast is atmospheric scientist Katharine Hayhoe, a professor in the Department of Political Science and the director of the Climate Science Center at Texas Tech University, who teamed up last year with her local PBS station, KTTZ, to write and produce a web series called “Global Weirding.”
- We check in with Hayhoe as she’s in the midst of shooting the second season of Global Weirding in order to get a sense of what to expect from the new episodes of the show and how Hayhoe views the overall political landscape around climate action today.
- Our second guest is Branko Hilje Rodriguez, a PhD student in the Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Department at the University of Alberta, Canada who studies the soundscapes of different successional stages of the tropical dry forest in Costa Rica’s Santa Rosa National Park, the largest remaining remnant of tropical dry forest in Mesoamerica.
- In this Field Note segment, Hilje Rodriguez plays for us a number of the recordings he’s made in the park, allowing us to hear the sounds of the dry forest during different stages of regrowth and different seasons, as well as some of the iconic bird species that call the dry forest home.

Three new frog species found in Peruvian Andes with more to come
- Few biological surveys have been conducted in the Pui Pui Protected Forest in the decades since it was established in 1985, and “the potential for additional discoveries is enormous,” according to one researcher who helped discover the three new frog species.
- The three new species all belong to a family of land-breeding frogs called Craugastoridae whose embryos hatch as froglets rather than going through a tadpole stage, which allows them to survive in a wide array of habitat types with sufficient moisture.
- The researchers say they will describe three more new frogs as well as two new lizards they’ve discovered in the Pui Pui Protected Forest in future papers.

Proposed Colombia dam threatens to wipe out endangered plants, disrupt river
- A proposed $800 million dam in northwestern Colombia would provide 352 megawatts of electricity annually.
- The dam is sited in the Samaná Norte River, which scientists are just starting to survey after being barred due to conflict. A recently discovered, critically endangered species of palm, Aiphanes argos, is highly threatened by the dam. Its discoverer says that flooding caused by dam construction could put the palm at high risk of extinction.
- Other critics say the dam may also displace local communities and reduce populations of a fish species important to the local economy. A dam expert says reduced water flow from damming the Samaná Norte could release more methane into the atmosphere.
- A representative from the company charged with construction of the dam says precautions will be taken to mitigate environmental damage.

Meet the new giant sunfish that has evaded scientists for centuries
- Scientists have named the new species the Hoodwinker sunfish or Mola tecta (derived from the Latin word tectus meaning disguised or hidden).
- The team is yet to determine the Hoodwinker’s range, but they have found the fish around New Zealand, off Tasmania, South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales (Australia), South Africa and southern Chile.
- The Hoodwinker sunfish can grow up to 2.5 meters (over eight feet), the team estimates, and its slimmer, sleeker body doesn’t change much between juveniles and adults.

Photos: Four new species of burrowing frogs discovered in India
- The four new species include Kadar Burrowing Frog (Fejervarya kadar), CEPF Burrowing Frog (F. cepfi), Manoharan’s Burrowing Frog (F. Manoharani) and Neil Cox’s Burrowing Frog (F. neilcoxi).
- Two of the newly described frogs, the Kadar Burrowing Frog and CEPF Burrowing Frog, could be facing serious threats, the researchers warn.
- The Rufescent Burrowing Frog was previously listed as a Least Concern species under the IUCN Red List because of its wide distribution, but the new study shows that the species is actually restricted to a much smaller area.

2 new reptiles discovered in Sumatra
- A newly discovered snake in Takengon, in the highlands of Aceh province, was named for one of Indonesia’s few herpetologists.
- The snake is non-venomous, but it mimics the characteristics of its venomous cousins as a survival technique.
- The other creature, a lizard, inhabits the forests along central Sumatra’s western coast.

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