tag:theconversation.com,2011:/africa/topics/new-species-40235/articlesNew species – The Conversation2024-02-01T11:45:51Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2223352024-02-01T11:45:51Z2024-02-01T11:45:51ZRogue taxonomists, competing lists and accusations of anarchy: the complicated journey toward a list of all life on Earth – podcast<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/572430/original/file-20240131-23-p66p9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=40%2C50%2C3354%2C2494&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">It's not easy to create a list of all life on Earth. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/colorful-aquarium-showing-different-fishes-swimming-80384149">Ingrid Prats via Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In our chaotic, rapidly changing modern world, many of us have come to rely on science to provide a sense of order. So it may be disconcerting to learn that there is no single, definitive list of all life on Earth. And there never has been. </p>
<p>In this episode of <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/topics/the-conversation-weekly-98901">The Conversation Weekly</a> podcast, we take you inside the world of taxonomy, where competing lists, rogue taxonomists and recent accusations of anarchy have revealed the messy struggle to classify the world around us.</p>
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<p>It’s remarkably easy to name a new species. “You don’t need peer review. You can put it in a book, you can put it in a magazine, so long as you have followed the rules for naming it and it follows the right Latin,” explains Stephen Garnett, a professor of conservation at Charles Darwin University in Australia. </p>
<p>That new name is then accepted until somebody comes along and refutes it, or publishes another name, says Garnett. And he thinks this is a big problem, particularly for conservationists who rely on clear species definitions in their work.</p>
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<p>Given how difficult it is to keep up with these publications, particularly if they’re somewhere obscure in a book, it means that some people are following some taxonomy, some people are following others. And you get multiple different lists of species depending on whose taxonomy is followed. </p>
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<p>All this is hampering efforts to create one definitive list of life on Earth. A few years ago Garnett put himself at the centre of a taxonomic controversy, when he co-authored a paper in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/546025a">Nature</a> arguing that, “for a discipline aiming to impose order on the natural world, taxonomy (the classification of complex organisms) is remarkably anarchic”. </p>
<p>What ensued was a scientific spat – albeit a good-natured one – about how to go about putting some order to all these competing lists. And how to ensure that rogue taxonomists weren’t allowed to cause chaos. </p>
<p>To find out what happened, listen to the full episode of <a href="https://podfollow.com/the-conversation-weekly/view">The Conversation Weekly</a> podcast. </p>
<p>A <a href="https://cdn.theconversation.com/static_files/files/3128/Taxonomy_Transcript.docx.pdf?1709723586">transcript of this episode</a> is now available. </p>
<p><em>This episode of The Conversation Weekly also features Signe Dean, science and technology editor for The Conversation in Australia. It was written and produced by Katie Flood, with assistance from Mend Mariwany. Sound design was by Eloise Stevens, and our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. Gemma Ware is the executive producer.</em></p>
<p><em>You can find us on X, formerly known as Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/TC_Audio">@TC_Audio</a>, on Instagram at <a href="https://www.instagram.com/theconversationdotcom/">theconversationdotcom</a> or <a href="mailto:podcast@theconversation.com">via email</a>. You can also subscribe to The Conversation’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/newsletter">free daily email here</a>.</em></p>
<p><em>Listen to The Conversation Weekly via any of the apps listed above, download it directly via our <a href="https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/60087127b9687759d637bade">RSS feed</a> or find out <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-listen-to-the-conversations-podcasts-154131">how else to listen here</a>.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/222335/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Stephen Garnett receives funding from the Australian Research Council for a project on taxonomic list governance and coordinates the Catalogue of Life Working Group on Taxonomic Lists. </span></em></p>Stephen Garnett takes us inside a scientific spat about how to govern the naming of new species. Listen to The Conversation Weekly podcast.Gemma Ware, Editor and Co-Host, The Conversation Weekly Podcast, The ConversationLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2203302024-01-11T22:01:41Z2024-01-11T22:01:41ZLess than 10% of Australian scorpions are known to science. We’ve added two new species to the list<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568742/original/file-20240110-23-mw4aqy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=137%2C0%2C1713%2C1170&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/photos/32190014">Mark Newton/iNaturalist</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Scorpions are among the most ancient of land animals. Fossils indicate they were roaming the Earth more than 400 million years ago. For perspective, the non-bird dinosaurs became extinct <a href="https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/diapsids/extinction.html">about 65 million years ago</a>.</p>
<p>Scorpions trivialise the 100-million-year reign of the dinosaurs — they saw them come and go and are still here today. In fact, the external anatomy of scorpions has changed little, based on what we’ve seen from <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/worlds-oldest-scorpions-437-million-year-old-fossils-180973975/">400 million-year-old fossils</a>.</p>
<p>While formally describing a new scorpion species from the Pilbara region of Western Australia, we discovered another species with identical external morphology (shape and structure). The only way to tell the two species apart was by looking at the morphology of the male reproductive organs.</p>
<p>You’d think that is a very small difference, but it’s not uncommon for telling apart species in other groups, like spiders and millipedes. But these are the first scorpion species distinguished solely by male reproductive anatomy.</p>
<p>Our find, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1071/ZO23018">published in the Australian Journal of Zoology</a>, hints significantly more scorpion species await discovery in Australia than previously suspected.</p>
<h2>A widespread and popular group</h2>
<p>Most Australians think of scorpions as exotic desert animals. But they are fairly widespread, ranging from salt lakes in central Australia to ancient rain forests in Tasmania.</p>
<p>Surprisingly, our estimates (based largely on unpublished DNA sequence data we have access to), indicate that less than 10% of Australia’s scorpion species have been scientifically described or named. Describing them means scientifically documenting and applying a unique scientific name to a new species while following the <a href="https://code.iczn.org/">International Code of Zoological Nomenclature</a>.</p>
<p>The scorpion genus <em>Urodacus</em> is endemic to mainland Australia and represents one of the largest <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolutionary_radiation">radiations</a> (increases in diversity) of scorpion species on the continent. Most <em>Urodacus</em> species live in deep spiralling burrows, enabling them to survive in arid ecosystems. In some habitats, these scorpions are a significant part of the ecosystem and comprise much of its biomass.</p>
<p>Despite their reclusive habits, <em>Urodacus</em> are popular exotic “pets” and are among the most popular invertebrates offered by online stores in Australia. There’s also a large community of scorpion enthusiasts.</p>
<p>Trading of scorpions is dependent on an unknown level of harvesting from natural populations. Some <em>Urodacus</em> species are known to live for 15–20 years, but in captivity, their longevity is usually less than a year.</p>
<p>With minimal knowledge about the diversity and distributions of Australian scorpions, the potential for serious impacts to their conservation is high. Traded scorpion species are often unnamed, and some may also live in very small areas.</p>
<p>For example, the two new species we described, <em>Urodacus uncinus</em> and <em>Urodacus lunatus</em>, are restricted to creeks and drainage lines, with a known area of as little as 50 square kilometres. Such small distributions make species particularly vulnerable to habitat loss, which is a growing threat in Australia.</p>
<p>Surprisingly, there is no regulation for scorpion ownership in most Australian states, although you need a permit to keep them as pets in the <a href="https://nt.gov.au/environment/animals/keeping-wildlife-as-pets/keeping-scorpions">Northern Territory</a> and <a href="https://www.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0021/134373/keeping-protected-scorpians-spiders.pdf">Queensland</a>. Collecting them from the wild is only regulated in conservation areas.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568532/original/file-20240110-19-vyxk2z.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A red field with green tufts of grass and a bright blue sky above" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568532/original/file-20240110-19-vyxk2z.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568532/original/file-20240110-19-vyxk2z.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568532/original/file-20240110-19-vyxk2z.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568532/original/file-20240110-19-vyxk2z.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568532/original/file-20240110-19-vyxk2z.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568532/original/file-20240110-19-vyxk2z.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568532/original/file-20240110-19-vyxk2z.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">An example of the type of habitat where the newly described species were collected.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Huon L Clark</span></span>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/buying-bugs-and-beetles-or-shopping-for-scorpions-and-snails-australias-pet-trade-includes-hundreds-of-spineless-species-207932">Buying bugs and beetles, or shopping for scorpions and snails? Australia's pet trade includes hundreds of spineless species</a>
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<h2>We don’t know enough about our scorpions</h2>
<p>The two new species we just described are large (more than 7cm long) yellow scorpions. Males of both species have a striking enlargement in the tip of their “tails”, with a swollen venom gland and a sting that is more strongly curved than in any other known species of the genus.</p>
<p>The task to fully document and understand the diversity of Australian scorpions is colossal. Approximately 3,000 scorpion species are known worldwide, but in Australia only 47 species are currently described and named. Based on our estimates, we think there could be at least 500 scorpion species here.</p>
<p>Only 13 new Australian scorpion species have been described in the last 45 years. At this rate, many are likely to become extinct before they are even named. </p>
<p>Further research on Australian scorpions will also reveal more of these animals’ incredible biology. One example is their curious reproduction. Scorpion mating rituals include a dance during which males of some species even sting the females as part of the courtship. </p>
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<p>Sperm transfer occurs via what could be described as a “detachable penis”, placed on the ground by the male. During mating, part of this organ breaks off in the female reproductive tract and functions as a “mating plug” that prevents the female from remating until the babies from the last mating are born.</p>
<p>Burrowing scorpions give birth to live young that are gestated for up to 18 months within an organ somewhat like a uterus. After birth, mother scorpions carry their babies on their back until they disperse to live a largely solitary life.</p>
<h2>Undiscovered secrets</h2>
<p>These fascinating behaviours are only a small portion of scorpion natural history discovered to date and they are likely to harbour many more as yet undiscovered secrets.</p>
<p>Next to nothing is known about Australian scorpions, which is surprising given their diversity and ecological importance. More research on Australia’s scorpions is urgently needed to help recognise and protect threatened species and their habitats.</p>
<p>Expanding our knowledge about native scorpions would also help with the regulation of wild collections and allow captive breeding to further develop more responsible pet ownership as a force for conservation, rather than a risk.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/ever-wondered-whod-win-in-a-fight-between-a-scorpion-and-tarantula-a-venom-scientist-explains-155138">Ever wondered who'd win in a fight between a scorpion and tarantula? A venom scientist explains</a>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Bruno Alves Buzatto currently works for Flinders University. He has previously been funded by the University of Western Australia, Macquarie University, the Australian Research Council, Australian Geographic and National Geographic. Bruno has also previously worked as a principal biologist for Bennelongia Environmental Consultants in Western Australia.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Erich S. Volschenk owns Alacran Environmental Science, an environmental consultancy business specialising in the diagnoses of terrestrial invertebrates. He has previously received funding from Australian Biological Resources Study. </span></em></p>Most Australians think of scorpions as exotic desert animals, but they are fairly widespread across the continent. Still, next to nothing is known about most local scorpion species.Bruno Alves Buzatto, Lecturer, Flinders UniversityErich S. Volschenk, Senior Research Associate, Murdoch UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2006882023-02-27T16:12:05Z2023-02-27T16:12:05ZBiologists discovered a new species of tiny owl on the forested island of Príncipe, and it’s already under threat – podcast<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/512270/original/file-20230224-2111-9wdxqw.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=251%2C574%2C2640%2C1976&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Research suggests that only about 1,000 to 1,500 Príncipe scops owls exist in the wild.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Martim Melo</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>An international team of biologists has discovered a tiny new species of owl, called the Príncipe scops owl, living in a remote forest on an island off the west coast of Africa. In this Discovery episode of The Conversation Weekly, we speak with <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=h9Op3tMAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=sra">Bárbara Freitas</a>, a Ph.D. fellow who studies bird evolution at the National Museum of Natural Sciences in Madrid. She was on the team that discovered the Príncipe scops owl and talks about how her team discovered this new species and the threats it is already facing.</p>
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<p>Príncipe is a tiny island in the Gulf of Guinea, about 200 miles (320 kilometers) west of Gabon. There is a small town on the north side of the island, but the southern half is mountainous, with dense jungle, and completely uninhabited. In 1998, a biologist named <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=wd2KvvQAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=sra">Martim Melo</a> was on a trip to Príncipe when he started hearing rumors of a mysterious bird that had been scaring local parrot harvesters. </p>
<p>“Instead of finding the parrot chicks, they found a weird bird with such big eyes that they didn’t know what they were looking at,” explains Freitas. Melo was able to get an audio recording of what he believed to be this mystery bird but wasn’t able to see one. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/512268/original/file-20230224-2390-cyf9s8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="An aerial photo of a heavily forested, mountainous island." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/512268/original/file-20230224-2390-cyf9s8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/512268/original/file-20230224-2390-cyf9s8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512268/original/file-20230224-2390-cyf9s8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512268/original/file-20230224-2390-cyf9s8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512268/original/file-20230224-2390-cyf9s8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512268/original/file-20230224-2390-cyf9s8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512268/original/file-20230224-2390-cyf9s8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">The southern half of Príncipe island is remote, rugged and covered in dense, old growth forest.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Alexandre Vaz</span></span>
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<p>Almost two decades later, in 2016, a Belgian bird watcher with a penchant for owls went down to Príncipe and snapped a photo of a small owl that appeared to confirm the rumors Melo had heard. With these pieces of evidence, Freitas and Melo flew to Príncipe in 2018 to try to track down this owl.</p>
<p>They needed to catch an owl to confirm if it was indeed a new species, and they were planning to do so by playing the recording Melo had taken 20 years prior. Freitas and Melo would walk into the jungle and play the recording, hoping that if other owls were nearby, “they listen to the song and they are attracted to it,” Freitas explains. “This is because they are territorial, so they come to defend their territory.”</p>
<p>Freitas and Melo, with the help of a local park ranger named Ceciliano do Bom Jesus, who goes by Bikegila, traveled to the southern part of the island. And as Freitas tells it, before they even began playing recordings, the owl made itself known.</p>
<p>“We were setting up the camp, putting up the sleeping nets and waiting for it to get dark. And then suddenly, we started to hear the owl,” she says.</p>
<p>To hear how Freitas, Melo and Bikegila <a href="https://theconversation.com/we-discovered-a-new-species-of-owl-but-we-already-think-its-in-danger-193996">captured and described the first specimens of the Príncipe scops owl</a>, what these owls sound like and how this <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0959270922000429">newly discovered species</a> is already threatened by human development, tune in to this Discovery episode of The Conversation Weekly.</p>
<hr>
<p>This episode was written and produced by Katie Flood and hosted by Dan Merino. The interim executive producer is Mend Mariwany. Eloise Stevens does our sound design, and our theme music is by Neeta Sarl.</p>
<p>You can find us on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/TC_Audio">@TC_Audio</a>, on Instagram at <a href="https://www.instagram.com/theconversationdotcom/">theconversationdotcom</a> or <a href="mailto:podcast@theconversation.com">via email</a>. You can also sign up to The Conversation’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/newsletter">free daily email here</a>. A transcript of this episode will be available soon.</p>
<p>Listen to “The Conversation Weekly” via any of the apps listed above, download it directly via our <a href="https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/60087127b9687759d637bade">RSS feed</a> or find out <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-listen-to-the-conversations-podcasts-154131">how else to listen here</a>.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/200688/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Barbara Freitas receives funding from FCT-Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia, Portugal. Forever Príncipe Conservation Alliance (from Africa’s Eden), National Geographic Society (Early career grant - EC-364C-18),</span></em></p>A local legend of a mysterious bird with big eyes grew into the discovery of the Príncipe scops owl. A biologist on the team tells the story of finding and cataloging this new species.Daniel Merino, Associate Science Editor & Co-Host of The Conversation Weekly Podcast, The ConversationLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1951122022-11-23T13:19:32Z2022-11-23T13:19:32ZScientists discover five new species of black corals living thousands of feet below the ocean surface near the Great Barrier Reef<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496848/original/file-20221122-17-4lu9z6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=10%2C15%2C3375%2C1888&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Researchers discovered five new species of black corals, including this *Hexapathes bikofskii* growing out of a nautilus shell more than 2,500 feet (760 meters) below the surface.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jeremy Horowitz</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/research-brief-83231">Research Brief</a> is a short take about interesting academic work.</em> </p>
<h2>The big idea</h2>
<p>Using a remote-controlled submarine, my colleagues <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=inNswpIAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=sra">and I</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5213.1.1">discovered five new species of black corals</a> living as deep as 2,500 feet (760 meters) below the surface in the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea off the coast of Australia.</p>
<p>Black corals can be found growing both in <a href="https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4821.3.7">shallow waters and down to depths of over 26,000 feet</a> (8,000 meters), and some individual corals <a href="https://ocean.si.edu/ocean-life/invertebrates/how-old-black-coral">can live for over 4,000 years</a>. Many of these corals are branched and look like <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-394282-1.00002-8">feathers, fans or bushes, while others are straight</a> like a whip. Unlike their colorful, shallow-water cousins that rely on the sun and photosynthesis for energy, black corals are <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-394282-1.00002-8">filter feeders and eat tiny zooplankton</a> that are abundant in deep waters.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">The team of researchers collected 60 specimens of black corals over 31 dives using a remotely operated submarine.</span></figcaption>
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<p>In 2019 and 2020, I and a team of Australian scientists used the <a href="https://schmidtocean.org/">Schmidt Ocean Institute’s</a> remotely operated vehicle – a submarine named SuBastian – to explore the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Our goal was to collect samples of coral species living in waters from 130 feet to 6,000 feet (40 meters to 1,800 meters) deep. In the past, corals from the deep parts of this region were collected <a href="https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4472.2.5">using dredging and trawling</a> methods that would often destroy the corals. </p>
<p>Our two expeditions were the first to send a robot down to these particular deep-water ecosystems, allowing our team to actually see and safely collect deep sea corals in their natural habitats. Over the course of 31 dives, my colleagues and I collected 60 black coral specimens. We would carefully remove the corals from the sandy floor or coral wall using the rover’s robotic claws, place the corals in a pressurized, temperature-controlled storage box and then bring them up to the surface. We would then examine the physical features of the corals and sequence their DNA. </p>
<p>Among the many interesting specimens were five new species – including one we found growing on the shell of a nautilus more than <a href="https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5213.1.1">2,500 feet (760 meters) below the ocean’s surface</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A robotic arm grabbing a thin coral off of a rock." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=541&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=541&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=541&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=680&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=680&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496843/original/file-20221122-15-lxiyuo.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=680&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Researchers used the robotic arm of their rover to collect over 100 samples of rare corals and brought them up to the surface for further study.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jeremy Horowitz</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Why it matters</h2>
<p>Similarly to shallow-water corals that build colorful reefs full of fish, black corals act as important habitats where <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-394282-1.00002-8">fish</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.26496/bjz.2019.33">invertebrates</a> feed and hide from predators in what is otherwise a mostly barren sea floor. For example, a single black coral colony researchers collected in 2005 off the coast of California was <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228350918">home to 2,554 individual invertebrates</a>.</p>
<p>Recent research has begun to paint a picture of a deep sea that contains <a href="https://doi.org/10.5670/oceanog.2020.supplement.01">far more species</a> than <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.608665">biologists previously thought</a>. Considering there are only 300 known species of black corals in the world, finding five new species in one general location was very surprising and exciting for our team. Many black corals are <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/304623882_Illegal_harvesting_and_trading_of_black_corals_Antipatharia_in_Madagascar_the_necessity_of_field_studies">threatened by illegal harvesting for jewelry</a>. In order to pursue smart conservation of these fascinating and hard-to-reach habitats, it is important for researchers to know what species live at these depths and the geographic ranges of individual species. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A large, white, tree-like coral underwater." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=515&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=515&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=515&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=647&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=647&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496830/original/file-20221122-25-tu2m7q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=647&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Black corals don’t form large reefs like shallow corals, but individuals can get quite large – like this <em>Antipathes dendrochristos</em> found off the coast of California – and act as habitat for thousands of other organisms.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Antipathes_dendrochristos.jpg#/media/File:Antipathes_dendrochristos.jpg">Mark Amend/NOAA via Wikimedia Commons</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What still isn’t known</h2>
<p>Every time scientists explore the deep sea, they discover new species. Simply exploring more is the best thing researchers can do to fill in knowledge gaps about what species live there and how they are distributed.</p>
<p>Because so few specimens of deep-sea black corals have been collected, and so many undiscovered species are likely still out there, there is also a lot to learn about the evolutionary tree of corals. The more species that biologists discover, the better we will be able to understand their evolutionary history – including how they have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-020-01291-1">survived at least four mass extinction events</a>.</p>
<h2>What’s next</h2>
<p>The next step for my colleagues and me is to continue to explore the ocean’s seafloor. Researchers have yet to <a href="https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5213.1.1">collect DNA from most of the known species of black corals</a>. In future expeditions, my colleagues and I plan to return to other deep reefs in the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea to continue to learn more about and better protect these habitats.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/195112/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jeremy Horowitz currently works for the Smithsonian Institution.
This research was funded through the ARC DECRA (DE170100516), the ARC
Centre of Excellence Program (CE140100020), and ARC Centre of Excellence Discovery Grant DP180103199.
</span></em></p>Black corals provide critical habitat for many creatures that live in the dark, often barren, deep sea, and researchers are learning more about these rare corals with every dive.Jeremy Horowitz, Post-doctoral Fellow in Invertebrate Zoology, Smithsonian InstitutionLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1907492022-09-28T20:02:11Z2022-09-28T20:02:11ZA kung-fu kick led researchers to the world’s oldest complete fish fossils – here’s what they found<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486470/original/file-20220926-14-8xjh44.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C3425%2C1654&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Heming Zhang</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Some of the world’s most significant fossil discoveries have come from China. These include amazing <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/160405-dinosaurs-feathers-birds-museum-new-york-science">feathered dinosaurs</a>, the <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna44259687">earliest modern mammals</a>, and some of the <a href="https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1388/">oldest-known animals on Earth</a>. </p>
<p>Today, <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-05136-8">four</a> <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-04897-6">new</a> <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-05166-2">papers</a> <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-05233-8">published</a> in Nature carry on this tradition by revealing the world’s oldest well-preserved jawed fishes, dating between 436 million and 439 million years ago to the start of the Silurian period. </p>
<p>The fossil discoveries all come from new fossil sites in the Guizhou and Chongqing Provinces in China. The Chongqing site was found in 2019, when three young Chinese palaeontologists were play fighting, and one was kung-fu kicked into the outcrop. Rocks tumbled down, revealing a spectacular fossil inside. </p>
<p>The research teams behind the papers are led by <a href="http://sourcedb.ivpp.cas.cn/yw/rckyw/200908/t20090811_2364087.html">Zhu Min</a> of the Institute of Vertebrate Palaeontology and Palaeoanthropology in Beijing. Min told me:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The discovery of the Chongqing <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary-sciences/lagerstatte">lagerstatte</a> (a “lagerstatte” is a fossil site of exceptional preservation) is indeed an unbelievable miracle of fossil hunting. Suddenly we realised we have found a jaw-dropping lagerstatte. We are now close to the core of untangling the fishy tree of early jawed vertebrates.</p>
</blockquote>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/v218qXlus_4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<h2>What kinds of fishes were they?</h2>
<p>Most fishes today fall into two main groups: </p>
<ul>
<li>the <a href="https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/vertebrates/basalfish/chondrintro.html">chondrichthyans</a> (which includes sharks, rays and chimaerids) have cartilaginous skeletons</li>
<li>and the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/osteichthyes">osteichthyans</a> (bony fishes such as trout) have bone forming the skeleton.</li>
</ul>
<p>The origins of these living fish groups are now much clearer due to the new findings of the oldest complete fishes from China. </p>
<p>These were shark-like fishes. Some were <a href="https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/vertebrates/basalfish/placodermi.html">placoderms</a>, an extinct class of armoured fish that had bony plates forming a solid shield around the head and trunk. </p>
<p>Others were ancestral kinds of sharks called acanthodians. These are extinct forms of “stem-sharks” that evolved as a separate branch – or stem – of the evolutionary line that led to modern sharks.</p>
<p>Placoderms are the earliest-known jawed vertebrates. Researching them is important as they help reveal the origins of many parts of the human body (including our <a href="https://theconversation.com/we-found-the-oldest-ever-vertebrate-fossil-heart-it-tells-a-380-million-year-old-story-of-how-our-bodies-evolved-190230">hearts</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/hello-fish-face-a-fossil-fish-reveals-the-origins-of-the-face-22976">faces</a>). </p>
<p>A small flattened placoderm called <em>Xiushanosteus</em>, about three centimetres long, is the most common fish found at the new Chongqing site.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485763/original/file-20220921-16-86cwmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485763/original/file-20220921-16-86cwmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=299&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485763/original/file-20220921-16-86cwmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=299&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485763/original/file-20220921-16-86cwmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=299&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485763/original/file-20220921-16-86cwmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=376&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485763/original/file-20220921-16-86cwmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=376&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485763/original/file-20220921-16-86cwmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=376&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The very small <em>Xuishanosteus</em> is the oldest-known placoderm fish. It shows features typical of later forms from the Devonian period.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Heming Zhang</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Its skull shows paired bones which reflect those on top of our own heads. Frontal and parietal bones have their origin in these fishes. Zhu You-an, who led the study on these fishes, told me: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>All the things are still like dreams. Today we are staring at complete early Silurian fishes, 11 million years earlier than the previous oldest finds! These are both the most exciting, as well as the most challenging fossils I have had the privilege to work on!</p>
</blockquote>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486464/original/file-20220926-23-jjbzg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486464/original/file-20220926-23-jjbzg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486464/original/file-20220926-23-jjbzg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486464/original/file-20220926-23-jjbzg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486464/original/file-20220926-23-jjbzg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486464/original/file-20220926-23-jjbzg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486464/original/file-20220926-23-jjbzg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Zhu Min and the team collected Silurian fossils on a rainy day in Chongqing.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Zhu Min et al.</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The world’s oldest sharks and teeth</h2>
<p>The new papers also describe the oldest complete shark-like fish, named <em>Shenacanthus</em>. It has a body shape similar to other prehistoric <a href="https://www.the-scientist.com/the-nutshell/sharks-may-have-evolved-from-acanthodians-31858">acanthodians</a> (or stem-sharks) – but differs in having thick plates forming armour around it, as seen in placoderms. </p>
<p>The fact that <em>Shenacanthus</em> shares the features of both acanthodians and placoderms suggests these two groups evolved from similar ancestral stock. That said, <em>Shenacanthus</em> retains typical shark-like fin spines so it’s not regarded a placoderm, but a chondrichthyan (the group including today’s cartilaginous sharks).</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486466/original/file-20220926-25-ingioe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486466/original/file-20220926-25-ingioe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=208&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486466/original/file-20220926-25-ingioe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=208&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486466/original/file-20220926-25-ingioe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=208&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486466/original/file-20220926-25-ingioe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=262&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486466/original/file-20220926-25-ingioe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=262&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486466/original/file-20220926-25-ingioe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=262&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>Shenacanthus</em> is shown restored here. It’s the oldest chondrichthyan fish known by more than just scales.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Heming Zhang</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The research also reveals the oldest-known teeth of any vertebrate – at least 14 million years older than any previous findings. Coming from a fossil chondrichthyan named <em>Qianodus</em>, the teeth are arranged as coiled rows called “whorls”. Such tooth whorls are common at the junction of the jaws in many ancient sharks and some early bony fishes such as <em>Onychodus</em>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486455/original/file-20220926-11-3ixjga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486455/original/file-20220926-11-3ixjga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=280&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486455/original/file-20220926-11-3ixjga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=280&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486455/original/file-20220926-11-3ixjga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=280&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486455/original/file-20220926-11-3ixjga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=352&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486455/original/file-20220926-11-3ixjga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=352&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486455/original/file-20220926-11-3ixjga.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=352&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A reconstruction of Qianodus (left), an early fossil chondrichthyan that shows the oldest evidence of teeth in any vertebrate.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Heming Zhang (artwork) / Plamen Andreev (CT image).</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The researchers also found another early stem shark called <em>Fangjinshania</em> at the new site in Giuzhou. More than 300 kilograms of rock were collected and dissolved in weak acetic acid to free thousands of microscopic bits of bone and teeth. </p>
<p><em>Fangjinshania</em> resembles a stem shark called <em>Climatius</em> known to have lived about 30 million years later in Europe and North America. <em>Fangjinshania</em> lived as far back as 436 million years ago, which tells us the fossil record of such sharks is much older than we previously thought. </p>
<p>Both <em>Fangjinshania</em> and <em>Qianodus</em> were about 10cm-15cm long, making them many times larger than the placoderms and the <em>Shenacanthus</em>. They would have been the top predators in their ancient ecosystem, and the world’s first predators armed with sharp teeth. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486467/original/file-20220926-19-3bo2d7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486467/original/file-20220926-19-3bo2d7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=208&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486467/original/file-20220926-19-3bo2d7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=208&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486467/original/file-20220926-19-3bo2d7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=208&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486467/original/file-20220926-19-3bo2d7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=262&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486467/original/file-20220926-19-3bo2d7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=262&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486467/original/file-20220926-19-3bo2d7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=262&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>Fanjingshania</em> provides evidence all jawed vertebrates probably underwent a great evolutionary ‘radiation’ (major diversification) in the Ordovician period, more than 450 million years ago.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Heming Zhang</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Plamen Andreev, the lead author on two of the new papers, told me: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>These new finds give support to the idea that older fossil shark-like scales found in the Ordovician period could now really be called sharks.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>From fins to limbs</h2>
<p>Another interesting discovery from these fossils concerns how paired limbs in vertebrates first evolved. A new jaw-less fish called <em>Tujiiaspis</em> now shows the primitive condition of paired fins before they separated into pectoral and pelvic fins – the forerunner to arms and legs.</p>
<p>Pectoral fins were thought to have evolved in jawless fishes called <a href="https://www.miguasha.ca/mig-en/osteostracans.php">osteostracans</a>, then pelvic fins later in placoderms. But the new <em>Tujiiaspis</em> fossil suggests both sets of fins could have evolved at the <a href="https://anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/dvdy.192">same time from fin folds</a> that run along the body and end at the tail fin. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486459/original/file-20220926-20-47e0ha.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486459/original/file-20220926-20-47e0ha.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=444&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486459/original/file-20220926-20-47e0ha.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=444&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486459/original/file-20220926-20-47e0ha.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=444&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486459/original/file-20220926-20-47e0ha.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=558&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486459/original/file-20220926-20-47e0ha.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=558&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486459/original/file-20220926-20-47e0ha.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=558&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>Tujiaaspis</em> fossil (left) and drawing showing its main features. Note the heavy rows of scales that define the lateral ‘fin fold’ area along the body, right down to the tail.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Zhikun Gai et al.</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>When was the first radiation of the jawed fishes?</h2>
<p>Finally, all these discoveries reveal that the first great major “radiation” of the jawed vertebrate (which refers to an explosion in diversity) took place much earlier than anyone imagined. Ivan Sansom from the University of Birmingham was a coauthor on one of the papers. As Sansom notes:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>We’ve had hints of older material previously, but the appearance of clearly defined remains from jawed vertebrates so close to the base of the Silurian suggests jawed and jaw-less fish coexisted for longer than previously thought. There is now evidence for an earlier radiation of sharks and other jawed fish in the Ordovician period.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The four papers have shaken up the evolutionary tree, and new diagrams are showing revised hypotheses of the relationships between living fishes. Zhu Min informed me it will take many years to complete the studies on the new fossils, with several new species not yet having been described in the papers. </p>
<p>We’ll have to wait patiently for the next exciting discoveries to be announced from these extraordinary fossil sites.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487000/original/file-20220928-14-21xybu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487000/original/file-20220928-14-21xybu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487000/original/file-20220928-14-21xybu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487000/original/file-20220928-14-21xybu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487000/original/file-20220928-14-21xybu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487000/original/file-20220928-14-21xybu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487000/original/file-20220928-14-21xybu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487000/original/file-20220928-14-21xybu.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The tiny <em>Xiushanosteus</em> is one of five new fossil fishes described in new research.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Heming Zhang</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/190749/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>John Long receives funding from The Australian Research Council</span></em></p>Spectacular finds of the world’s oldest jawed fishes from China push back the origins of jaws and teeth, and suggest how limbs might have evolved.John Long, Strategic Professor in Palaeontology, Flinders UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1870172022-07-19T20:29:58Z2022-07-19T20:29:58ZIt was long thought these fossils came from an eagle. Turns out they belong to the only known vulture species from Australia<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474759/original/file-20220719-16-4osyy5.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C2991%2C1989&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The extinct species may have been a relative of the living Griffon Vulture (pictured). </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In 1905, a fragment of a fossil wing bone discovered near the Kalamurina Homestead, South Australia, was described as an extinct eagle and named <em>Taphaetus lacertosus</em>, meaning “powerful grave eagle”. </p>
<p>Now <a href="https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5168.1.1">research</a> published by myself and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/trevor-h-worthy-172603">my</a><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/mike-lee-8293">colleagues</a> can reveal this species was no eagle at all. It was an “Old World” vulture, which we have renamed <em>Cryptogyps lacertosus</em>, or “powerful hidden vulture”.</p>
<p>This is the first time one of these scavenging raptors has been found to have lived in Australia. Living more than tens of thousands of years ago, we believe <em>Cryptogyps</em> likely died out with ancient Australia’s megafauna. There’s much about the species we’ve yet to find out.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman in a lab with fossil bones" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474379/original/file-20220716-24-h5v98o.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474379/original/file-20220716-24-h5v98o.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474379/original/file-20220716-24-h5v98o.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474379/original/file-20220716-24-h5v98o.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474379/original/file-20220716-24-h5v98o.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474379/original/file-20220716-24-h5v98o.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474379/original/file-20220716-24-h5v98o.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Here’s me at the Flinders University palaeontology lab, holding the fossil vulture tarsus (left) and a tarsus of a living vulture species (right).</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>A puzzling absence</h2>
<p>Vultures are birds of prey that feed almost exclusively on decaying flesh. They play a vital role in their ecosystems by speeding up the consumption of carcasses. In this way, they assist in redistributing nutrients, and help limit the spread of diseases. </p>
<p>They can be divided into two groups. “New World” vultures inhabit North and South America and belong to their own distinct family. “Old World” vultures are found in Africa, Europe and Asia, and belong to the same family as eagles and hawks.</p>
<p>Considering they’re so widespread today, it’s surprising vultures long appeared absent from Australia. It’s even stranger when you look at the fossil record across South-East Asia, where vulture fossils have been found as far south as the Indonesian island of Flores. Surely they could have flown a little further?</p>
<p>What’s more, the Australian environment would have been well-suited to support vultures until about 50,000 years ago. Back then, megafaunal marsupials were widespread and abundant across the continent, and would have provided plentiful carcasses for scavengers.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/this-giant-kangaroo-once-roamed-new-guinea-descended-from-an-australian-ancestor-that-migrated-millions-of-years-ago-185778">This giant kangaroo once roamed New Guinea – descended from an Australian ancestor that migrated millions of years ago</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The shape of a scavenger</h2>
<p>We aren’t the first to consider there might be vultures in Australia’s fossil record. Other palaeontologists have previously suggested some Australian bird fossils could belong to vultures, and the Kalamurina “eagle” was one such example.</p>
<p>My colleagues and I wanted to find out if this really was the case, and so we began comparing the fossil bones of <em>Cryptogyps</em> to a wide range of living birds of prey, including vultures.</p>
<p>Being scavengers, vultures have a very different musculature and bone structure to eagles. This fact proved to be crucial in confirming <em>Cryptogyps lacertosus</em> was indeed a vulture. </p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="Tarsi of Wedge-tailed eagle and fossil vulture" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474404/original/file-20220717-14-u3tkt6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474404/original/file-20220717-14-u3tkt6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=783&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474404/original/file-20220717-14-u3tkt6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=783&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474404/original/file-20220717-14-u3tkt6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=783&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474404/original/file-20220717-14-u3tkt6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=984&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474404/original/file-20220717-14-u3tkt6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=984&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474404/original/file-20220717-14-u3tkt6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=984&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A silhouette size comparison of a Wedge-tailed Eagle (left) and <em>Cryptogyps lacertosus</em> (right), and tarsi comparisons of both below.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ellen Mather, Wedge-tailed Eagle silhoutette derived from photo by Vicki Nunn.</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The material used in our research included the original wing bone from the Kalamurina Homestead, two identical wing bone fragments from the Wellington Caves in New South Wales, and two “tarsi” (lower leg bones) – one from Wellington Caves and the other from Leaena’s Breath Cave in Western Australia. All of these bones are thought to belong to <em>Cryptogyps</em>.</p>
<p>Close examination of the bones, and comparison to eagles and vultures from around the world revealed their muscle scars and structure are more vulture-like than eagle-like, especially for the tarsi. This strongly indicates they belonged to a scavenger.</p>
<p>To further test this, we placed the fossils in an evolutionary tree with other birds of prey. Our results confirmed what the comparison suggested: <em>Cryptogyps</em> was indeed a vulture, and potentially a close relative of the Griffon Vulture found across Europe and Asia.</p>
<h2>The life and death of a species</h2>
<p>Based on the leg bones, we can infer <em>Cryptogyps</em> didn’t actively hunt and grab prey with powerful talons. Rather, it would have scavenged dead animals as vultures do now. </p>
<p>At this point in time, we don’t have enough of the skeleton to know exactly what <em>Cryptogyps lacertosus</em> looked like, or what it ate.</p>
<p>It could have been a social species, gathering in large flocks around the corpses of megafauna such as <em>Diprotodon</em> or <em>Protemnodon</em>. Or perhaps it was a solitary bird, searching and feeding alone, or in pairs. It may have fed on the soft insides of the body, or may have preferred the tougher muscle and skin.</p>
<p>Gaining this information will require more discoveries in the future. What isn’t in question, however, is that like all vultures today <em>Cryptogyps lacertosus</em> would have played an important role in ecosystem health.</p>
<p>Fossils of <em>Cryptogyps</em> are believed to date from the Middle to Late Pleistocene, somewhere between 770,000 and 40,000 years ago. Its extinction was very likely related to the demise of Australia’s megafauna around 60,000–40,000 years ago.</p>
<p>As large-bodied animals died off, the supply of carcasses scavengers need to survive would have dwindled significantly. Starvation would have become common, breeding attempts less successful and eventually the total population would have fallen below the threshold needed to survive. </p>
<p>Other more generalist raptors such as Wedge-tailed Eagles and Black Kites subsequently filled the reduced scavenging niche.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474757/original/file-20220719-91509-9h3rmq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Camera is zoomed in on the top half of a Wedge-tailed Eagle" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474757/original/file-20220719-91509-9h3rmq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/474757/original/file-20220719-91509-9h3rmq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474757/original/file-20220719-91509-9h3rmq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474757/original/file-20220719-91509-9h3rmq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474757/original/file-20220719-91509-9h3rmq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474757/original/file-20220719-91509-9h3rmq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/474757/original/file-20220719-91509-9h3rmq.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Wedge-tailed Eagle is the largest bird of prey in Australia today.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Australia has the sobering distinction of being the only continent to lose its vultures entirely. Sadly, around half of all living vultures today are endangered and under threat of extinction. </p>
<p>And the <a href="https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/role-scavengers-carcass-crunching">consequences</a> of <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/05/160505145035.htm">this decline</a> have been dire, including increased disease transmission in both animal and human populations, potential impacts on the nutrient cycle, and the restructuring of ecosystems. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-endangered-condor-surprised-researchers-by-producing-fatherless-chicks-could-virgin-birth-rescue-the-species-170965">The endangered condor surprised researchers by producing fatherless chicks. Could 'virgin birth' rescue the species?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/187017/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ellen K. Mather does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The identification of a vulture that lived more than 50,000 years ago is shedding more light on biodiversity loss and ecosystem change in Australia.Ellen K. Mather, Adjunct associate lecturer, Flinders UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1653272021-08-10T20:12:43Z2021-08-10T20:12:43ZHere are 5 new species of Australian trapdoor spider. It took scientists a century to tell them apart<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/414451/original/file-20210804-16-1wzleoe.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1%2C19%2C997%2C643&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A female _Euoplos variabilis_ from Mount Tamborine</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jeremy Wilson</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>After a century of scientific confusion, we can now officially add five new species to Australia’s long list of trapdoor spiders — secretive, burrowing relatives of tarantulas.</p>
<p>It all <a href="https://journals.australian.museum/rainbow-and-pulleine-1918-rec-aust-mus-127-81169/">started in 1918</a>, when a species known as <em>Euoplos variabilis</em>, was first described. Since then, this species has been considered widespread throughout south-eastern Queensland.</p>
<p>However, in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1071/IS20055">new research</a>, fellow arachnologists from the Queensland Museum studied the physical appearance and DNA of these trapdoor spiders. They revealed this “widespread” species is actually several.</p>
<p>Many trapdoor spider species are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1071/IS02009">short-range endemics</a>, meaning they only occur in one small area. This makes them especially vulnerable to threats such as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/jpe/rtr038">habitat destruction and degradation</a>, which is why the discovery and description of these new species from Queensland is so important — they can now be protected from future threats.</p>
<h2>Meet Australia’s trapdoor spiders</h2>
<p>To many people, Australia’s spider diversity is a source of fear. To arachnologists like myself, it’s a goldmine. </p>
<p>Weird and wonderful new species are everywhere. While new discoveries are relatively common, it’s likely most Australian spider species are still yet to be named by science. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412297/original/file-20210720-21-1di1z00.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412297/original/file-20210720-21-1di1z00.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412297/original/file-20210720-21-1di1z00.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412297/original/file-20210720-21-1di1z00.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412297/original/file-20210720-21-1di1z00.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412297/original/file-20210720-21-1di1z00.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=554&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412297/original/file-20210720-21-1di1z00.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=554&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412297/original/file-20210720-21-1di1z00.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=554&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The crenate burrow of <em>Euoplos crenatus</em>, a recently discovered ‘palisade trapdoor spider’.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Michael Rix</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Trapdoor spiders live in burrows that usually have a hinged door at the entrance that the spider constructs using silk, soil or other material from the surrounding area. Their burrows can be camouflaged, but to a trained eye they’re easily found on the <a href="https://mary-cairncross.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au/See-and-do/The-rainforest/Invertebrates/Trapdoor-spider">soil embankments beside walking tracks</a> in eastern Australian rainforests.</p>
<p>In the past few years, I’ve been part of a team studying the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1071/IS16065">spiny trapdoor spiders</a> — a group of relatively large (up to about seven centimetres long, including legs) but highly secretive spiders found throughout Australia. They belong to an ancient group called the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/sysbio/syz064">Mygalomorphae</a> that, alongside tarantulas, includes the infamous Australian funnel-web spiders.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412299/original/file-20210720-13-d4dm8k.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412299/original/file-20210720-13-d4dm8k.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412299/original/file-20210720-13-d4dm8k.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=137&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412299/original/file-20210720-13-d4dm8k.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=137&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412299/original/file-20210720-13-d4dm8k.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=137&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412299/original/file-20210720-13-d4dm8k.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=172&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412299/original/file-20210720-13-d4dm8k.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=172&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412299/original/file-20210720-13-d4dm8k.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=172&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Australian spiders of the group called the Mygalomorphae: left, a funnel-web spider; middle, a wishbone spider; right, a tree trapdoor spider.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jeremy Wilson</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Like other trapdoor spiders, adult male and female spiny trapdoor spiders look shockingly different. When males reach adulthood, their physical appearance changes: their legs get longer and thinner, and their first appendages (called “pedipalps”) develop into structures used for mating. In contrast, adult females remain short-legged and robust. </p>
<p>Male trapdoor spiders undergo this dramatic change because as adults they must leave their burrow and search for females to breed. </p>
<p>Their long legs presumably help them run faster and further in search of females, and also allow them to keep the vulnerable parts of their body out of harm’s way once they meet the (usually larger) female, who isn’t always happy to see them.</p>
<h2>The mystery of the trapdoor spider from Mount Tamborine</h2>
<p>This striking differences in appearance between male and female spiny trapdoor spiders (“sexual dimorphism”) was at the heart of the mystery regarding the true identity of <em>Euoplos variabilis</em>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412301/original/file-20210720-15-kov1hy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412301/original/file-20210720-15-kov1hy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412301/original/file-20210720-15-kov1hy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=203&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412301/original/file-20210720-15-kov1hy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=203&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412301/original/file-20210720-15-kov1hy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=203&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412301/original/file-20210720-15-kov1hy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=255&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412301/original/file-20210720-15-kov1hy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=255&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412301/original/file-20210720-15-kov1hy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=255&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A male and female of the same species of trapdoor spider, showing the sleek, long-legged male and the robust female.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jeremy Wilson</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>When the species was first described in 1918, it was based only on female spiders, which were red-brown, large and lived in the rainforest of Mount Tamborine, just south of Brisbane.</p>
<p>In 1985, a male spider, also from Mount Tamborine, was finally linked to the original females. Matching male and female trapdoor spiders of the same species can be difficult because they look so different. </p>
<p>This all changed when the Queensland Museum team began researching the spiny trapdoor spiders of eastern Australia in 2015. When they looked in the museum’s natural history collection, it seemed like males of the Mount Tamborine trapdoor spider were widespread, spanning Brisbane to the Sunshine Coast.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/i-travelled-australia-looking-for-peacock-spiders-and-collected-7-new-species-and-named-one-after-the-starry-night-sky-135201">I travelled Australia looking for peacock spiders, and collected 7 new species (and named one after the starry night sky)</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<p>But strangely, they found females from different locations looked different. </p>
<p>While females from the Mount Tamborine rainforest were large and red-brown, those from the lowlands of north Brisbane were small and tan. And in the rainforest of the D'Aguilar Range, north of Brisbane, the females were even bigger, with a bright orange carapace and red legs. </p>
<p>Could these really all be the same species?</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412307/original/file-20210720-25-1eofc0e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412307/original/file-20210720-25-1eofc0e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412307/original/file-20210720-25-1eofc0e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412307/original/file-20210720-25-1eofc0e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412307/original/file-20210720-25-1eofc0e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412307/original/file-20210720-25-1eofc0e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412307/original/file-20210720-25-1eofc0e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412307/original/file-20210720-25-1eofc0e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">One of the males originally thought to be <em>Euoplos variabilis</em>. It was later realised these males belong to an entirely different species, now called <em>Cryptoforis hughesae</em>.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Michael Rix</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>This mystery was solved in two steps</h2>
<p>First, in 2018, the museum’s arachnologists discovered the seemingly widespread males were actually members of a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1636/JoA-S-18-100">completely different group of trapdoor spiders</a>, which also occurs in eastern Australia. In other words, there had been a male/female mismatch!</p>
<p>Then, by collecting fresh trapdoor spiders around south-east Queensland and studying their DNA, they discovered the Mount Tamborine trapdoor spider actually doesn’t occur in Brisbane at all. In fact, it’s found only in the mountain ranges bordering New South Wales, with Mount Tamborine being its the most northerly location.</p>
<p>Surprisingly, the female spiders found in Brisbane, the D'Aguilar range, and in various other areas, turned out to be several completely different species, new to science. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/ever-wondered-whod-win-in-a-fight-between-a-scorpion-and-tarantula-a-venom-scientist-explains-155138">Ever wondered who'd win in a fight between a scorpion and tarantula? A venom scientist explains</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>These species can be distinguished by subtle differences in size and colour, and by differences in their DNA. The different species seem to be adapted to different habitats, at different elevations. </p>
<p>So, alongside <em>Euoplos variabilis</em>, the original Mount Tamborine trapdoor spider, the new confirmed species are: </p>
<ul>
<li><p><em>Euoplos raveni</em> and <em>Euoplos schmidti</em>, both from the lowland forests of the Brisbane Valley, south of the Brisbane River</p></li>
<li><p><em>Euoplos regalis</em> from the upland rainforest of the D'Aguilar Range</p></li>
<li><p><em>Euoplos jayneae</em> from the the lowland forests of the Sunshine Coast hinterlands</p></li>
<li><p><em>Euoplos booloumba</em> from the upland rainforest of the Conondales Range</p></li>
</ul>
<p>These five new species put the total number of known spiny trapdoor spider species to 258.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/414461/original/file-20210804-13-1seaokx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/414461/original/file-20210804-13-1seaokx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/414461/original/file-20210804-13-1seaokx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414461/original/file-20210804-13-1seaokx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414461/original/file-20210804-13-1seaokx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414461/original/file-20210804-13-1seaokx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414461/original/file-20210804-13-1seaokx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414461/original/file-20210804-13-1seaokx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Don’t be alarmed, bites from a trapdoor spider aren’t dangerous to humans.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What happens now?</h2>
<p>And so, the mystery was solved. Another small fraction of Australia’s beautiful biodiversity is known to science and can be preserved. But the story isn’t over just yet. </p>
<p>To properly conserve these species, we need to understand more about how they live. This is why the research team and I are undertaking <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/aen.12367">a long-term study</a> on one of these new species, <em>Euoplos grandis</em> from the Darling Downs. We hope to learn the intricacies of their lives and to track whether populations are declining from threats such as habitat destruction.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/photos-from-the-field-zooming-in-on-australias-hidden-world-of-exquisite-mites-snails-and-beetles-147576">Photos from the field: zooming in on Australia's hidden world of exquisite mites, snails and beetles</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>We’re also continuing our mission to discover and describe new species of trapdoor spider, not just from Queensland, but from all around Australia. </p>
<p>The story of the Mount Tamborine trapdoor spider exemplifies the type of detective work Australian scientists undertake on all types of animal groups. But when it comes to invertebrates, we’ve barely scratched the surface, with new species of bugs, spiders, worms and more <a href="https://theconversation.com/photos-from-the-field-zooming-in-on-australias-hidden-world-of-exquisite-mites-snails-and-beetles-147576">waiting to be discovered</a>. </p>
<p>Working on discovering these invertebrates comes with a sense of urgency. These species need a name and formal protection, before it’s too late.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dofuOSR85t4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Who would win in a fight between a scorpion and a tarantula? A venom scientists explains for The Conversation.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p><em>Jeremy Wilson and Michael Rix from Queensland Museum were co-authors on this article</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/165327/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mark Harvey has received ARC and ABRS grants dealing with trapdoor spiders.</span></em></p>To many people, Australia’s spider diversity is a source of fear. To arachnologists, it’s a goldmine, with most Australian spider species still yet to be discovered.Mark Harvey, Curator of Arachnology at the Western Australian Museum, Adjunct Professor, The University of Western AustraliaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1630862021-06-30T09:43:12Z2021-06-30T09:43:12ZWe discovered a new fossil species of horseshoe crab (and named it after David Attenborough)<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/409198/original/file-20210701-21243-1fzmbee.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C3%2C2316%2C1611&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Katrina Kenny</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>There are only four known species of horseshoe crabs alive today. But the fossil record shows that hundreds of millions of years ago they came in a huge range of shapes and sizes. </p>
<p>In our research, published today in the open-access journal <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.7717/peerj.11709">PeerJ</a>, we describe one of these extinct species — <em>Attenborolimulus superspinosus</em> — for the first time. </p>
<p>We named this fossil crab after the famous naturalist and documentary host Sir David Attenborough, in honour of his contributions to conservation and science communication.</p>
<h2>When life peaked for horseshoe crabs</h2>
<p>Today’s horseshoe crabs live along the east coast of North America, as well as the coasts of China, India, Indonesia and Japan. But despite this distribution, the four species are only minutely different from each other.</p>
<p>During the Triassic period, however, between 250 million and 200 million years ago, a whole host of bizarre horseshoe crabs had evolved. We call these austrolimulids. </p>
<p>They lived alongside horseshoe crabs that look broadly similar to limulids — the curious critters we see along the beaches of the United States and Asia today. </p>
<p>The concurrence of two major horseshoe crab groups reflected a recovery from the <a href="https://theconversation.com/new-analysis-sheds-important-light-on-an-ancient-mass-extinction-event-132105">end-Permian extinction</a>. This event defined the end of the Paleozoic and the beginning of the Triassic, and 95% of marine organisms died out during it!</p>
<p>The newly described animal in our study comes from the early part of the Middle Triassic. We think <em>Attenborolimulus superspinosus</em> lived in marginal marine to freshwater conditions. This is in contrast with modern horseshoe crabs, which are almost exclusively marine animals.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/ancient-marvels-the-first-shell-crushing-predators-ground-up-their-prey-between-their-legs-153381">Ancient marvels: the first shell-crushing predators ground up their prey between their legs</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>A new austrolimulid from Russia</h2>
<p>During research trips to the Ural Mountains of Russia that spanned 2018 and 2019, a team of Russian fossil collectors, palaeontologists and geologists collected fossils from a rock section thought to represent a Triassic-aged floodplain.</p>
<p>One particular group of fossil-rich rocks had preserved a host of animals, including the very rare specimens we examined and published on today.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/408375/original/file-20210625-24-yej9zs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/408375/original/file-20210625-24-yej9zs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/408375/original/file-20210625-24-yej9zs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=1059&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/408375/original/file-20210625-24-yej9zs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=1059&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/408375/original/file-20210625-24-yej9zs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=1059&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/408375/original/file-20210625-24-yej9zs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1331&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/408375/original/file-20210625-24-yej9zs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1331&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/408375/original/file-20210625-24-yej9zs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1331&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A fossil of the newly described species.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em>Attenborolimulus superspinosus</em> is a unique austrolimulid as it has very developed spines on its head section (called “genal spines”), but notably rounded and somewhat reduced spines on other sections of its segmented body.</p>
<p>This condition of overdeveloping and reducing spines, as well as other body sections, is observed in other austrolimulids. However, the combination of spine size, shape and structure in the new material was unique enough to warrant a new genus and species. </p>
<p><em>Attenborolimulus superspinosus</em> was over an order of magnitude smaller than modern horseshoe crabs. It was likely a bottom-dwelling organism that fed on whatever it could get into its mouth, which is effectively how modern horseshoe crabs feed today.</p>
<p>What’s rather interesting about some of the fossils we studied is evidence of worms and other arthropods having lived on top of the horseshoe crabs. This tells us they may have been hosts for other parts of their ecosystem, effectively becoming “micro-habitats” for other species in the Triassic floodplain. </p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/409014/original/file-20210630-28-e5d87z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/409014/original/file-20210630-28-e5d87z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/409014/original/file-20210630-28-e5d87z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=581&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/409014/original/file-20210630-28-e5d87z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=581&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/409014/original/file-20210630-28-e5d87z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=581&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/409014/original/file-20210630-28-e5d87z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=730&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/409014/original/file-20210630-28-e5d87z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=730&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/409014/original/file-20210630-28-e5d87z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=730&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The head section of another <em>Attenborolimulus superspinosus</em> specimen.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We don’t really know why austrolimulids didn’t make it into modern ecosystems. But the best explanation relates to how the group inhabited conditions that were closer to freshwater than marine (saltwater) environments.</p>
<p>They may have been outmatched by the resilience of other animals that arose as Jurassic ecosystems developed. This would suggest austrolimulids were simply not very well adapted for the ecosystems that flourished during the Jurassic.</p>
<h2>In honour of the great naturalist</h2>
<p>We named the new genus after Sir David Attenborough, who has influenced generations of people from all walks of life to understand the natural world and the importance of conservation. </p>
<p>This is especially important for horseshoe crabs now, as two of the four living species are considered endangered. And this is due to negative interactions with humans, including habitat modification and harvesting for their blood (which has applications in modern medicine).</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/living-fossils-we-mapped-half-a-billion-years-of-horseshoe-crabs-to-save-them-from-blood-harvests-141042">'Living fossils': we mapped half a billion years of horseshoe crabs to save them from blood harvests</a>
</strong>
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</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Attenborolimulus superspinosus</em> is one of more than <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/topics/science/nature/article/2016/08/25/here-are-all-12-species-named-after-sir-david-attenborough">12 animals</a> named after Sir David Attenborough, who has dedicated his life to helping us appreciate the beauty and vitality of the natural world.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cfpeyALO03c?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">This BBC documentary clip details some of the physical traits and breeding habits of modern horseshoe crabs.</span></figcaption>
</figure><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/163086/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Russell Dean Christopher Bicknell does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Between 250 and 200 million years ago, a whole host of bizarre horseshoe crabs had evolved in two distinct groups. Only one of these groups survives.Russell Dean Christopher Bicknell, Post-doctoral researcher in Palaeobiology, University of New EnglandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1617932021-06-01T20:12:07Z2021-06-01T20:12:07ZAbout 500,000 Australian species are undiscovered – and scientists are on a 25-year mission to finish the job<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/403711/original/file-20210601-19-1tnmg7t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=3%2C6%2C1695%2C1296&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Here are two quiz questions for you. How many species of animals, plants, fungi, fish, insects and other organisms live in Australia? And how many of these have been discovered and named?</p>
<p>To the first, the answer is we don’t really know. But the best guess of taxonomists – the scientists who discover, name, classify and document species – is that Australia’s lands, rivers, coasts and oceans probably house <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/land/nrs/about-nrs/protecting-biodiversity">more than 700,000 distinct species</a>.</p>
<p>On the second, taxonomists estimate <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/science/abrs/online-resources">almost 200,000 species have been scientifically named</a> since Europeans first began exploring, collecting and classifying Australia’s remarkable fauna and flora. </p>
<p>Together, these estimates are disturbing. After <a href="https://www.anbg.gov.au/biography/vlamingh-willem.html">more than 300 years</a> of effort, scientists have documented <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-09-07/75-per-cent-of-species-unknown-fact-check/5649858?nw=0">fewer than one-third</a> of Australia’s species. The remaining 70% are unknown, and essentially invisible, to science. </p>
<p>Taxonomists in Australia name an average <a href="https://www.taxonomyaustralia.org.au/new-species-2019">1,000 new species</a> each year. At that rate, it will take at least 400 years to complete even a first-pass stocktake of Australia’s biodiversity.</p>
<p>This poor knowledge is a serious threat to Australia’s environment. And a first-of-its kind report <a href="http://science.org.au/taxonomyplan">released today</a> shows it’s also a huge missed economic opportunity. That’s why today, Australia’s taxonomists are calling on governments, industry and the community to support an important mission: discovering and documenting all Australian species within 25 years.</p>
<h2>Australia: a biodiversity hotspot</h2>
<p>Biologically, Australia is one of the richest and most diverse nations on Earth – between 7% and 10% of all species on Earth <a href="https://www.cbd.int/countries/profile/?country=au">occur here</a>. It also has among the world’s <a href="https://stateoftheworldsplants.org/2016/">highest rates of species discovery</a>. But our understanding of biodiversity is still very, very incomplete.</p>
<p>Of course, First Nations peoples discovered, named and classified many species within their knowledge systems long before Europeans arrived. But we have no ready way yet to compare their knowledge with Western taxonomy.</p>
<p>Finding new species in Australia is not hard - there are almost certainly unnamed species of insects, spiders, mites and fungi in your backyard. Any time you take a bush holiday you’ll drive past hundreds of undiscovered species. The problem is recognising the species as new and finding the time and resources to deal with them all.</p>
<figure>
<iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/533025445" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen="" mozallowfullscreen="" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Taxonomists describe and name new species only after very careful due diligence. Every specimen must be compared with all known named species and with close relatives to ensure it is truly a new species. This often involves detailed microscopic studies and gene sequencing. </p>
<p>More fieldwork is often needed to collect specimens and study other species. Specimens in museums and herbaria all over the world sometimes need to be checked. After a great deal of work, new species are described in scientific papers for others to assess and review.</p>
<p>So why do so many species remain undiscovered? One reason is a shortage of taxonomists trained to the level needed. Another is that technologies to substantially speed up the task have only been developed in the past decade or so. And both these, of course, need appropriate levels of funding.</p>
<p>Of course, some groups of organisms are better known than others. In general, noticeable species – mammals, birds, plants, butterflies and the like – are fairly well documented. Most less noticeable groups - many insects, fungi, mites, spiders and marine invertebrates - remain poorly known. But even inconspicuous species are important.</p>
<p>Fungi, for example, are essential for maintaining our natural ecosystems and agriculture. They fertilise soils, control pests, break down litter and recycle nutrients. Without fungi, the world would literally grind to a halt. Yet, <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/science/abrs/publications/other/numbers-living-species/executive-summary#fungi">more than 90% of Australian fungi</a> are believed to be unknown. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-we-discovered-a-hidden-world-of-fungi-inside-the-worlds-biggest-seed-bank-156051">How we discovered a hidden world of fungi inside the world’s biggest seed bank</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="fungi on log" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/403713/original/file-20210601-23-i6ddjf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/403713/original/file-20210601-23-i6ddjf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403713/original/file-20210601-23-i6ddjf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403713/original/file-20210601-23-i6ddjf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403713/original/file-20210601-23-i6ddjf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403713/original/file-20210601-23-i6ddjf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403713/original/file-20210601-23-i6ddjf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Fungi plays an essential ecosystem role.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Mind the knowledge gap</h2>
<p>So why does all this matter? </p>
<p>First, Australia’s biodiversity is under severe and increasing threat. To manage and conserve our living organisms, we must first <a href="https://theconversation.com/hundreds-of-australian-lizard-species-are-barely-known-to-science-many-may-face-extinction-161572">discover and name them</a>.</p>
<p>At present, it’s likely many undocumented species are becoming extinct, invisibly, before we know they exist. Or, perhaps worse, they will be discovered and named from dead specimens in our museums long after they have gone extinct in nature.</p>
<p>Second, many undiscovered species are crucial in maintaining a sustainable environment for us all. Others may emerge as pests and threats in future; most species are rarely noticed until something goes wrong. Knowing so little about them is a huge risk.</p>
<p>Third, enormous benefits are to be gained from these invisible species, once they are known and documented. A report <a href="http://science.org.au/taxonomyplan">released today</a>
by Deloitte Access Economics, commissioned by Taxonomy Australia, estimates a benefit to the national economy of between A$3.7 billion and A$28.9 billion if all remaining Australian species are documented. </p>
<p>Benefits will be greatest in biosecurity, medicine, conservation and agriculture. The report found every $1 invested in discovering all remaining Australian species will bring up to $35 of economic benefits. Such a cost-benefit analysis has never before been conducted in Australia. </p>
<p>The investment would cover, among other things, research infrastructure, an expanded grants program, a national effort to collect specimens of all species and new facilities for gene sequencing.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-few-months-ago-science-gave-this-rare-lizard-a-name-and-it-may-already-be-headed-for-extinction-140356">A few months ago, science gave this rare lizard a name – and it may already be headed for extinction</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Two scientists walk through wetlands holding boxes" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/403715/original/file-20210601-25-1yf3pk4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/403715/original/file-20210601-25-1yf3pk4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403715/original/file-20210601-25-1yf3pk4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403715/original/file-20210601-25-1yf3pk4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403715/original/file-20210601-25-1yf3pk4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403715/original/file-20210601-25-1yf3pk4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403715/original/file-20210601-25-1yf3pk4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Discovering new species often involves lots of field work.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Mission possible</h2>
<p>Australian taxonomists – in museums, herbaria, universities, at the CSIRO and in
government departments – have spent the last few years planning an ambitious mission to discover and document all remaining Australian species within a generation.</p>
<p>So, is this ambitious goal achievable, or even imaginable? Fortunately, yes. </p>
<p>It will involve deploying new and emerging technologies, including <a href="https://research.csiro.au/environomics/team-research-projects/high-throughput-collection-genomics-of-highly-variable-dna-samples/">high-throughput robotic DNA sequencing</a>, <a href="https://research.csiro.au/icv/critterpedia-an-ai-powered-app-to-identify-insect-and-snake-species/#:%7E:text=Critterpedia%3A%20an%20AI%2Dpowered%20app%20to%20identify%20insect%20and%20snake%20species,-July%2015th%2C%202020&text=Critterpedia%20is%20an%20AI%2Dpowered,or%20snake%20submitted%20by%20users.">artificial intelligence</a> and <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/supercomputer-scours-fossil-record-for-earths-hidden-extinctions/">supercomputing</a>. This will vastly speed up the process from collecting specimens to naming new species, while ensuring rigour and care in the science.</p>
<p>A national meeting of Australian taxonomists, including the young early career researchers needed to carry the mission through, was held last year. The meeting confirmed that with the right technologies and more keen and bright minds trained for the task, the rate of species discovery in Australia could be sped up by the necessary 16-fold – reducing 400 years of effort to 25 years. </p>
<p>With the right people, technologies and investment, we could discover all Australian species. By 2050 Australia could be the world’s first biologically mega-rich nation to have documented all our species, for the direct benefit of this and future generations.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/hundreds-of-australian-lizard-species-are-barely-known-to-science-many-may-face-extinction-161572">Hundreds of Australian lizard species are barely known to science. Many may face extinction</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/161793/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kevin Thiele has received funding from The Ian Potter Foundation and from relevant sector organisations for the work that led to this article.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jane Melville does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>After more than 300 years of effort, scientists have documented fewer than one-third of Australia’s species. The remaining 70% are unknown, and essentially invisible, to science.Kevin Thiele, Adjunct Assoc. Professor, The University of Western AustraliaJane Melville, Senior Curator, Terrestrial Vertebrates, Museums Victoria Research InstituteLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1551372021-02-15T18:51:28Z2021-02-15T18:51:28ZBlind shrimps, translucent snails: the 11 mysterious new species we found in potential fracking sites<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/383938/original/file-20210212-19-1y4jq3k.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C12%2C2087%2C1534&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">An ostracod, a small crustacean with more than 70,000 identified species.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Anna33/Wikimedia</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>There aren’t many parts of the world where you can discover a completely new assemblage of living creatures. But after sampling underground water in a remote, arid region of northern Australia, we discovered at least 11, and probably more, new species of stygofauna. </p>
<p>Stygofauna are invertebrates that have evolved exclusively in underground water. A life in complete darkness means these animals are often blind, beautifully translucent and often extremely localised – rarely living anywhere else but the patch they’re found in. </p>
<p>The species we discovered live in a region earmarked for fracking by the Northern Territory and federal government. As with any mining activity, it’s important future gas extraction doesn’t harm groundwater habitats or the water that sustains them.</p>
<p>Our findings, <a href="https://gisera.csiro.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/GISERA-Project18-Stygofauna_final-report-20201208.pdf">published today</a>, show the importance of conducting comprehensive environmental assessments before extraction projects begin. These assessments are especially critical in Australia’s north, where many plants and animals living in surface and groundwater have not yet been documented.</p>
<h2>When the going gets tough, go underground</h2>
<p>Stygofauna were first discovered in Western Australia in 1991. Since then, these underground, aquatic organisms have been recorded across the continent. Today, more than 400 Australian species have been formally recognised by scientists.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/384203/original/file-20210215-23-d83h18.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/384203/original/file-20210215-23-d83h18.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/384203/original/file-20210215-23-d83h18.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=840&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384203/original/file-20210215-23-d83h18.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=840&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384203/original/file-20210215-23-d83h18.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=840&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384203/original/file-20210215-23-d83h18.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1055&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384203/original/file-20210215-23-d83h18.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1055&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384203/original/file-20210215-23-d83h18.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1055&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The subterranean fauna we collected from NT aquifers, including a range of species unknown to science. A–C: Atyid shrimps, including <em>Parisia unguis</em>; D-F: Amphipods in Melitidae family; G: The syncarid species <em>Brevisomabathynella sp</em>.; H-J: members of the Candonidae family of ostracods; K: the harpacticoid species <em>Nitokra lacustris</em>; L: a new species of snail in the Caenogastropoda: M-N: Members of the Cyclopidae family of copepods; O: The worm species <em>Aeolosoma sp.</em></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">GISERA</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Stygofauna are the ultimate climate change refugees. They would have inhabited surface water when inland Australia was much wetter. But as the continent started drying around 14 million years ago, they moved underground to the relatively stable environmental conditions of subterranean aquifers.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/hidden-depths-why-groundwater-is-our-most-important-water-source-91484">Hidden depths: why groundwater is our most important water source</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Today, stygofauna help maintain the integrity of groundwater food webs. They mostly graze on fungal and microbial films created by organic material leaching from the surface. </p>
<p>In 2018, the final report of an <a href="https://frackinginquiry.nt.gov.au/">independent inquiry</a> called for a critical knowledge gap regarding groundwater to be filled, to ensure fracking could be done safely in the Northern Territory. We wanted to determine where stygofauna and microbial assemblages occurred, and in what numbers. </p>
<p>Our project started in 2019, when we carried out a pilot survey of groundwater wells (bores) in the Beetaloo Sub-basin and Roper River region. The Beetaloo Sub-basin is potentially one of the most <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-04-15/beetaloo-basin-at-the-heart-of-the-nt-fracking-gas-debate/9652390">important areas</a> for shale gas in Australia.</p>
<h2>What we found</h2>
<p>The stygofauna we found range in size from centimetres to millimetres and include: </p>
<ul>
<li><p>two new species of ostracod: small crustaceans enclosed within mussel-like shells </p></li>
<li><p>a new species of amphipod: this crustacean acts as a natural vacuum cleaner, feeding on decomposing material </p></li>
<li><p>multiple new species of copepods: tiny crustaceans which form a major component of the zooplankton in marine and freshwater systems </p></li>
<li><p>a new syncarid: another crustacean entirely restricted to groundwater habitats</p></li>
<li><p>a new snail and a new worm.</p></li>
</ul>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/383936/original/file-20210212-15-k8466y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/383936/original/file-20210212-15-k8466y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/383936/original/file-20210212-15-k8466y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383936/original/file-20210212-15-k8466y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383936/original/file-20210212-15-k8466y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383936/original/file-20210212-15-k8466y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383936/original/file-20210212-15-k8466y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383936/original/file-20210212-15-k8466y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A thriving stygofauna ecosystem lies beneath the surface of northern Australia’s arid outback. We sampled water through bores to measure their presence.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jenny Davis</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>These species were living in groundwater 400 to 900 kilometres south of Darwin. We found them mostly in limestone karst habitats, which contain many channels and underground caverns.</p>
<p>Perhaps most exciting, we also found a relatively large, colourless, blind shrimp (<em>Parisia unguis</em>) previously known only from the Cutta Cutta caves near Katherine. This shrimp is an “apex” predator, feeding on other stygofauna — a rare find for these kinds of ecosystems. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/383934/original/file-20210212-23-zzbqy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/383934/original/file-20210212-23-zzbqy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/383934/original/file-20210212-23-zzbqy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383934/original/file-20210212-23-zzbqy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383934/original/file-20210212-23-zzbqy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383934/original/file-20210212-23-zzbqy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=580&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383934/original/file-20210212-23-zzbqy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=580&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383934/original/file-20210212-23-zzbqy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=580&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A microscopic image of <em>Parisia unguis</em>, a freshwater shrimp.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Stefanie Oberprieler</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Protecting groundwater and the animals that live there</h2>
<p>The Beetaloo Sub-basin in located beneath a major freshwater resource, the Cambrian Limestone Aquifer. It supplies water for domestic use, cattle stations and horticulture.</p>
<p>Surface water in this dry region is scarce, and it’s important natural gas development does not harm groundwater.</p>
<p>The stygofauna we found are not the first to potentially be affected by a resource project. Stygofauna have also been found at the <a href="https://theconversation.com/its-not-worth-wiping-out-a-species-for-the-yeelirrie-uranium-mine-116059">Yeelirrie uranium mine</a> in Western Australia, approved by the federal government in 2019. More research will be required to understand risks to the stygofauna we found at the NT site. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/its-not-worth-wiping-out-a-species-for-the-yeelirrie-uranium-mine-116059">It's not worth wiping out a species for the Yeelirrie uranium mine</a>
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</p>
<hr>
<p>The discovery of these new NT species has implications for all extractive industries affecting groundwater. It shows the importance of thorough assessment and monitoring before work begins, to ensure damage to groundwater and associated ecosystems is detected and mitigated.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Gas infrastructure at Beetaloo Basin" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/384150/original/file-20210215-19-yinoa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/384150/original/file-20210215-19-yinoa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=351&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384150/original/file-20210215-19-yinoa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=351&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384150/original/file-20210215-19-yinoa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=351&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384150/original/file-20210215-19-yinoa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384150/original/file-20210215-19-yinoa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384150/original/file-20210215-19-yinoa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Beetaloo Basin is part of the federal government’s gas expansion strategy.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Where to from here</h2>
<p>Groundwater is vital to inland Australia. Underground ecosystems must be protected – and not considered “out of sight, out of mind”.</p>
<p><a href="https://gisera.csiro.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/20-00341_GISERA_FACTSHEET_SGW-NTStygofauna_WEB_210210.pdf">Our study</a> provides the direction to reduce risks to stygofauna, ensuring their ecosystems and groundwater quality is maintained.</p>
<p>Comprehensive environmental surveys are needed to properly document the distribution of these underground assemblages. The new stygofauna we found must also be formally recognised as a new species in science, and their DNA sequence established to support monitoring programs. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/383937/original/file-20210212-19-uxshb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/383937/original/file-20210212-19-uxshb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/383937/original/file-20210212-19-uxshb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=358&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383937/original/file-20210212-19-uxshb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=358&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383937/original/file-20210212-19-uxshb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=358&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383937/original/file-20210212-19-uxshb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383937/original/file-20210212-19-uxshb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/383937/original/file-20210212-19-uxshb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Different species of copepods from various parts of the world.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Andrei Savitsky/Wikimedia</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Many new tools and approaches are available to support environmental assessment, monitoring and management of resource extraction projects. These include remote sensing and molecular analyses.</p>
<p>Deploying the necessary tools and methods will help ensure development in northern Australia is sustainable. It will also inform efforts to protect groundwater habitats and stygofauna across the continent. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/victoria-quietly-lifted-its-gas-exploration-pause-but-banned-fracking-for-good-its-bad-news-for-the-climate-133923">Victoria quietly lifted its gas exploration pause but banned fracking for good. It’s bad news for the climate</a>
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</p>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/155137/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jenny Davis receives funding from CSIRO’s Gas Industry Social and Environmental Research Alliance (GISERA) and the Department of Agriculture, Water and Environment for baseline environmental surveys in the Beetaloo Sub basin and the Roper River region.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Daryl Nielsen receives funding from GISERA</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Gavin Rees receives funding from GISERA</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Stefanie Oberprieler does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>We discovered 11 (and probably more) new species of stygofauna living in water underground. These animals are usually blind, beautifully translucent and long-limbed.Jenny Davis, Professor, Research Institute for Environment & Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University, Charles Darwin UniversityDaryl Nielsen, Principal Research Scientist, CSIROGavin Rees, Principal Research Scientist, CSIROStefanie Oberprieler, Research associate, Charles Darwin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1497462020-11-11T01:06:08Z2020-11-11T01:06:08ZScientists thought these seals evolved in the north. 3-million-year-old fossils from New Zealand suggest otherwise<p>A fossil discovery in New Zealand has revealed a new species of monk seal that once called Australasia home. We introduce the three million-year-old seal, <em>Eomonachus belegaerensis</em>, in a paper published today in the <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2020.2318">Proceedings of the Royal Society B</a>. </p>
<p><em>Eomonachus</em> is the first monk seal species, living or extinct, ever found in the southern hemisphere — and the oldest found anywhere. </p>
<p>It’s rewriting everything experts thought they knew about the evolution of “monachines”, a group of seal relatives comprising the two living species of monk seal, the elephant seals, as well as certain species of Antarctic seals.</p>
<h2>On the brink of vanishing</h2>
<p>Monk seals are some of the world’s rarest and most endangered marine mammals. There are fewer than 2,100 <a href="https://www.mmc.gov/priority-topics/species-of-concern/mediterranean-monk-seal/">Mediterranean</a> and <a href="https://www.staradvertiser.com/2020/03/27/breaking-news/noaa-hawaiian-monk-seal-population-remained-steady-at-just-above-1400-in-2019/">Hawaiian</a> monk seals alive today. The Caribbean monk seal was <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/06/080608074828.htm">hunted to extinction</a> by the 1950s.</p>
<p>Conservationists are now scrambling to save what’s left of Earth’s last exclusively tropical seals from disappearing.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A Hawaiian monk seal, and its pup, on a beach." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/368246/original/file-20201109-18-qvoamc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/368246/original/file-20201109-18-qvoamc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368246/original/file-20201109-18-qvoamc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368246/original/file-20201109-18-qvoamc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368246/original/file-20201109-18-qvoamc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368246/original/file-20201109-18-qvoamc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368246/original/file-20201109-18-qvoamc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A Hawaiian monk seal emerges from the surf. This is an endangered species of earless seal (Phocidae family) that’s endemic to the Hawaiian Islands.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Robert Harcourt (Macquarie University)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>That said, we would be wrong to assume monk seals were doing just fine before humans began exploiting them. How they fared over the past few million years remains unclear. We also don’t know where they originated, as fossils are few and far between.</p>
<p>Scientists traditionally thought all monk seals evolved in the North Atlantic Ocean. Before the discovery of <em>Eomonachus</em>, monk seals had only been found in the Northern Hemisphere. </p>
<p>In fact, most monachine fossils are found in the north, even though several living monachines (Antarctic seals and elephant seals) live <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/am/am11036">almost exclusively</a> in the Southern Ocean.</p>
<p>The unexpected discovery of <em>Eomonachus</em> has completely flipped the evolutionary history not only of monk seals, but of all monachines — by placing all three in the Southern Hemisphere for the first time. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/marine-species-are-more-threatened-than-we-thought-and-weve-only-looked-at-3-36914">Marine species are more threatened than we thought – and we've only looked at 3%</a>
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</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>A monk seal from New Zealand</h2>
<p>The recovery of the first known <em>Eomonachus</em> fossils came in the form of seven skulls uncovered along the coast of Taranaki, on New Zealand’s North Island. The fossils were retrieved by local collectors and donated to the <a href="https://www.tepapa.govt.nz/">Te Papa Tongarewa</a> and <a href="https://www.canterburymuseum.com/">Canterbury</a> museums. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/368486/original/file-20201110-22-zc7lxt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/368486/original/file-20201110-22-zc7lxt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=313&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368486/original/file-20201110-22-zc7lxt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=313&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368486/original/file-20201110-22-zc7lxt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=313&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368486/original/file-20201110-22-zc7lxt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=394&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368486/original/file-20201110-22-zc7lxt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=394&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368486/original/file-20201110-22-zc7lxt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=394&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The seven fossilised skulls of the extinct monk seal species <em>Eomonachus</em>.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Erich Fitzgerald (Museums Victoria)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Our team eventually named the species <em>Eomonachus belegaerensis</em>. This translates to “dawn monk seal from Belegaer”. Belegaer is the fictional sea that lies west of “Middle Earth”, the land from J. R. R. Tolkein’s Lord of The Rings trilogy which is often associated with New Zealand.</p>
<p>But what were monk seals doing in New Zealand three million years ago? </p>
<p>Well, in the past, southern oceans were a lot warmer than they are today. And ancient monk seals, much like their modern relatives, lived in subtropical waters. </p>
<p>But until <a href="https://theconversation.com/in-a-land-of-ancient-giants-these-small-oddball-seals-once-called-australia-home-144574">this year</a>, few scientific studies on extinct monachines had been conducted in the southern hemisphere. This is likely why <em>Eomonachus</em> eluded scientists for so long.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/in-a-land-of-ancient-giants-these-small-oddball-seals-once-called-australia-home-144574">In a land of ancient giants, these small oddball seals once called Australia home</a>
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</p>
<hr>
<h2>The evolution of monachines</h2>
<p>Following the unveiling of <em>Eomonachus</em>, we decided to re-investigate the evolution of the monachines. </p>
<p>Our research indicates this group of seals evolved in the Southern Hemisphere after all. This is in contrast with every theory previously put forward by scientists.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/368243/original/file-20201109-21-c1qo1p.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A picture of James Rule holding one of the monk seal fossils." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/368243/original/file-20201109-21-c1qo1p.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/368243/original/file-20201109-21-c1qo1p.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368243/original/file-20201109-21-c1qo1p.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368243/original/file-20201109-21-c1qo1p.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368243/original/file-20201109-21-c1qo1p.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368243/original/file-20201109-21-c1qo1p.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368243/original/file-20201109-21-c1qo1p.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Monash University palaeontologist James Rule with one of the <em>Eomonachus</em> skull fossils found in New Zealand.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Erich Fitzgerald/Museums Victoria</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>If there is indeed a southern origin for monachines, this would mean the group crossed the equator at least eight times throughout its evolutionary history.</p>
<p>However, the warm waters at the equator are widely accepted to be a thermal barrier which is difficult for <a href="https://theconversation.com/northern-exposure-fossils-of-a-southern-whale-found-for-the-first-time-in-the-north-85254">marine mammals to cross</a>. </p>
<p>If past monachines did jump between both hemispheres, they would have had broad environmental tolerances that let them do this. And this would have enabled their dispersal around the world. </p>
<p>It’s difficult to say conclusively whether modern seals share this trait, but we do know it’s rare for them to cross the equator during their lifetime.</p>
<h2>Climate change and seal extinction</h2>
<p>So why aren’t monk seals living around New Zealand now?</p>
<p>About 2.5 million years ago, marine megafauna experienced an <a href="https://www.popsci.com/marine-megafauna-mass-extinction/">extinction event</a>, thought to have been caused by a drop in sea levels as a result of falling global temperature.</p>
<p>Previous research has theorised this change in climate spurred the extinction of many <a href="https://lens.monash.edu/@science/2020/04/04/1379872/rare-fossil-tooth-discovery-reveals-extinct-group-of-seals">ancient seals</a> in the Southern Hemisphere. This would have included <em>Eomonachus</em>, as well as other extinct monachines.</p>
<p>This suggests the world’s last two species of monk seal, vestiges of what was once likely a widespread group, are also at risk from climate change. </p>
<p>If sea levels continue to rise, the beaches monk <a href="https://theconversation.com/unlocking-the-mystery-of-how-true-seals-disappeared-from-the-cape-44344">seals rely on</a> for resting and breeding may disappear. Rising temperatures could also <a href="https://theconversation.com/climate-change-could-drive-coastal-food-webs-to-collapse-76798">disrupt food webs</a>, making it difficult for them to find food. </p>
<p>While the discovery of <em>Eomonachus</em> is exciting, it can also be considered a cautionary tale.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/149746/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>James Patrick Rule receives funding from an Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship, and the Robert Blackwood Scholarship. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Felix Georg Marx received funding from Australian Research Council DECRA fellowship (DE190101052).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Erich Fitzgerald and Justin W. Adams do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>This newly discovered ancient monk seal is challenging previous theories about how and where monachine seals evolved. It’s the biggest breakthrough in seal evolution research in about 70 years.James Patrick Rule, Palaeontology PhD Candidate, Monash UniversityErich Fitzgerald, Senior Curator, Vertebrate Palaeontology, Museums Victoria Research InstituteFelix Georg Marx, Curator Vertebrates, Te Papa TongarewaJustin W. Adams, Senior Lecturer, Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, Monash UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1494452020-11-05T19:06:42Z2020-11-05T19:06:42ZThis tiny amphibian that outlived the dinosaurs provides the earliest example of a rapid-fire tongue<p>Albanerpetontids, or “albies” for short, are the cute little salamander-like amphibians you’ve likely never heard of.</p>
<p>Now extinct, Albies had a dream run. They’d been around since the Middle Jurassic around 165 million years ago, and probably even earlier. They lived through the age of dinosaurs (and saw out their extinction), then lived through the rise of the great apes, before quietly disappearing about 2.5 million years ago.</p>
<p>Albie fossils are scattered across continents, including in Japan, Morocco, England, North America, Europe and Myanmar. But until recently, we knew relatively little about what they looked like or how they lived. </p>
<p><a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/370/6517/687">New research</a> by my colleagues and I, published today in Science, reveals these amphibians were the earliest known creatures to have rapid-fire tongues. This also helps explain why albies were once misidentified as chameleons. </p>
<h2>A miniature marvel uncovered</h2>
<p>The reason albies remained largely elusive until recently is because they were tiny. Their slight, fragile bones are usually found as isolated jaw and skull fragments, making them hard to study. </p>
<p>The first almost complete albie specimen was found in the wetland environment deposits of Las Hoyas, Spain, and <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/373143a0">reported in 1995</a>. Even though it was squashed flat, it was enough for palaeontologists to conclude albies were unlike any living salamander or any other amphibian.</p>
<p>They were completely covered in scales like reptiles, had highly flexible necks like mammals, an unusual jaw joint and large eye sockets suggesting good vision. Why were albies so unique?</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/meet-the-super-salamander-that-nearly-ate-your-ancestors-for-breakfast-39221">Meet the super salamander that nearly ate your ancestors for breakfast</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<h2>Mistakes do happen</h2>
<p>The answer partly came to light in 2016, when a group of researchers <a href="https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/2/3/e1501080">published a paper</a> demonstrating the diversity of lizards found in the <a href="https://www.livescience.com/29231-cretaceous-period.html">Cretaceous</a> forests of what is now Myanmar. </p>
<p>They presented a dozen tiny 99-million-year-old “lizards”, all preserved in amber. Some were even found with soft tissue remains such as skin, claws and muscles, still attached within the fossilised tree resin. </p>
<p>The researchers used “<a href="https://www.microphotonics.com/what-is-micro-ct-an-introduction/">micro-CT</a>” technology to digitally excavate and study the specimens in detail. This involved using 3D imaging to digitally remove the fossil from the amber and study it on a computer — a technique that avoids the risk of physically damaging the fossil.</p>
<p>They noticed one small, juvenile specimen had a long rod-shaped tongue bone. It was identified as the earliest known chameleon: a remarkable discovery! Or was it?</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/z3oh73amxQo?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">See a chameleon’s rapid-fire tongue in attack mode. (BBC Earth)</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Alas, mistakes do happen in science. As lizard experts, the researchers had interpreted their results through this lens. It took the keen eye of Susan Evans, a professor of vertebrate morphology and palaeontology at University College London, to recognise this particular “lizard” was actually a misidentified albie.</p>
<h2>A tongue-tying revelation</h2>
<p>Some time later, Sam Houston State University assistant professor Juan Daza spotted another unbelievable specimen among a collection of fossils preserved in <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/318588578_A_catalogue_of_Burmite_inclusions">Burmite amber</a>, <a href="http://vertpaleo.org/Membership/Member-Ethics/Guidelines-from-the-Ethics-Committee.aspx">ethically sourced</a> from Myanmar’s Kachin state.</p>
<p>It was an adult version of the juvenile albie Evans identified. Needing higher-resolution 3D images, the sample was sent to me to study at the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation’s <a href="https://www.ansto.gov.au/research/facilities/australian-synchrotron/overview">Australian Synchrotron</a> in Melbourne.</p>
<p>Named after a class of mythical spirits responsible for guarding natural treasures, Yaksha, and the person who discovered the fossil, Adolf Peretti (founder of the non-profit <a href="https://www.pmf.org/">Peretti Museum Foundation</a>) — the <em>Yaksha perettii</em> specimen was an entire skull trapped in golden amber. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367658/original/file-20201105-20-1fvtl1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Specimen preserved in amber." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367658/original/file-20201105-20-1fvtl1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367658/original/file-20201105-20-1fvtl1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=622&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367658/original/file-20201105-20-1fvtl1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=622&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367658/original/file-20201105-20-1fvtl1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=622&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367658/original/file-20201105-20-1fvtl1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=781&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367658/original/file-20201105-20-1fvtl1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=781&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367658/original/file-20201105-20-1fvtl1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=781&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The <em>Yaksha perettii</em> specimen is preserved in amber. The fossil was studied without being removed.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Quick hits to unsuspecting prey</h2>
<p>Its features that stood out were a long bone projecting back out of the mouth and soft tissue remains, including part of the tongue, jaw muscles and eyelids. By sheer luck, the soft tissue remains proved the long bone in the mouth was directly attached to the tongue. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367659/original/file-20201105-15-1ha34bq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Computer rendering of the _Yaksha perettii_ specimen" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367659/original/file-20201105-15-1ha34bq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367659/original/file-20201105-15-1ha34bq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367659/original/file-20201105-15-1ha34bq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367659/original/file-20201105-15-1ha34bq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367659/original/file-20201105-15-1ha34bq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=520&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367659/original/file-20201105-15-1ha34bq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=520&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367659/original/file-20201105-15-1ha34bq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=520&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">This rendering of the <em>Yaksha perettii</em> skull shows the extinct amphibian’s soft tissue and projectile tongue apparatus (in orange).</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Edward Stanley/Florida Museum of Natural History</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In other words, <em>Y. perettii</em> was a predator armed with an incredible weapon: a specialised ballistic tongue that fired at lightning speed to capture prey — just as chameleons do today. It’s no wonder the original juvenile, only 1.5 centimetres long, was initially mistaken for a chameleon.</p>
<p>Modern chameleons have accelerator muscles in their tongues that lock in stored energy. This lets them fire their tongues at speeds of up to <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2016/01/video-chameleon-has-one-fastest-tongues-animal-kingdom">100 kilometres per hour</a> in just a fraction of a second. </p>
<p>We believe albies’ projectile tongues were just as fast, used to great effect while sitting motionless in trees or on the ground. If so, this also explains why albies had unusual jaw joints, flexible necks and large, forward-facing eyes. All these traits would have made up their predator toolkit.</p>
<h2>Tree sap turned to iridescent amber</h2>
<p>Despite these remarkable new insights, however, many mysteries of albanerpetontids remain. For instance, how exactly are they related to other amphibians? How did they survive for so long, only to die out relatively recently? </p>
<p>We’ll need more intact specimens to answer these questions. And most of these specimens will probably come from the <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg24232280-600-blood-amber-the-exquisite-trove-of-fossils-fuelling-war-in-myanmar/">Hukawng Valley</a> in Kachin, Myanmar. </p>
<p>It’s expected about 100 million years ago this region was an island covered in vast forests. Global temperatures back then would have exceeded today’s, with trees producing vast amounts of resin (which later turned into amber) as a result of damage by insects and fire. </p>
<p>Amber studied from this region will not only increase our knowledge of its expired ecosystems, it could also provide insight into how certain organisms today might evolve in response to a warming climate.</p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/fossil-footprints-give-glimpse-of-how-ancient-climate-change-drove-the-rise-of-reptiles-69067">Fossil footprints give glimpse of how ancient climate change drove the rise of reptiles</a>
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</p>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/149445/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Joseph Bevitt does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>If albanerpetontids were around today, they’d easily fit in your hand. And although their bones are found all over the world, these unique amphibians eluded experts for a long time.Joseph Bevitt, Senior Instrument Scientist, Australian Nuclear Science and Technology OrganisationLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1493252020-11-05T16:49:33Z2020-11-05T16:49:33ZHow we discovered three new species of penguin in the Southern Ocean<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367468/original/file-20201104-15-fj6caa.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">_P. poncetii_ in South Georgia.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Gemma Clucas</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>When you think of scientists discovering new species, you might imagine searching the Amazon rainforest for new types of <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/01/200114104031.htm">insect</a> or the depths of the ocean for undiscovered <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/stories/meet-the-newly-discovered-ocean-species-plastic">crustaceans</a>. But these days most new species we discover are found hiding in plain sight. </p>
<p>Such “hidden” species can look so similar to their relatives that they aren’t obviously a different species, yet are revealed as such based on differences in their DNA. These discoveries are made not by travelling the globe but in molecular genetics labs.</p>
<p>Thanks to a new abundance of genetic data, science is in the midst of a second wave of biodiversity discovery. In the past ten years, scientists have discovered new species of <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-37311716">giraffes</a>, <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-14921665">dolphins</a>, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1055790317306887">birds</a>, and <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/stories/new-species-of-orangutan-announced">orangutans</a>. And now my colleagues and I have identified three new species of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.6973">penguins</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Three penguins stood on a rock in front of a wall of ice" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367461/original/file-20201104-13-nsm3ot.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367461/original/file-20201104-13-nsm3ot.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367461/original/file-20201104-13-nsm3ot.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367461/original/file-20201104-13-nsm3ot.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367461/original/file-20201104-13-nsm3ot.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367461/original/file-20201104-13-nsm3ot.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367461/original/file-20201104-13-nsm3ot.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>P. ellsworthi</em> penguins on the Antarctic Peninsula.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Gemma Clucas</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Following analysis of the DNA and morphology (shape) of the gentoo penguin, we’ve found that it’s not one species as previously thought but rather four independent species. This brings the total number of penguin species to 21, <a href="https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/">up from 18</a>, and along with it the potential for further discoveries.</p>
<p>In our study of gentoo penguins, we analysed genetic differences among colonies across the Southern Ocean, including from the Falkland Islands, South Georgia Island, <a href="https://theconversation.com/humans-threaten-the-antarctic-peninsulas-fragile-ecosystem-a-marine-protected-area-is-long-overdue-147671">the Antarctic Peninsula</a>, and Kerguelen Island. We were surprised to find that gentoo penguins from these four regions do not interbreed with each other and have become genetically distinct, to the point that an individual penguin’s origin can be identified by its DNA alone.</p>
<p>We didn’t expect this because other species of penguin, like the larger king penguin that overlaps in range with the gentoo, are known to interbreed between colonies separated by as much as <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/mec.14896">7,500km of open ocean</a>. In fact, the degree of genetic divergence between the four gentoo penguin colonies is so great that we should consider them to be evolving independently of each other. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Group of penguins on a beach." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367464/original/file-20201104-21-caeqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367464/original/file-20201104-21-caeqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367464/original/file-20201104-21-caeqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367464/original/file-20201104-21-caeqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367464/original/file-20201104-21-caeqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367464/original/file-20201104-21-caeqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367464/original/file-20201104-21-caeqdm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>P. papua</em> in the Falkland Islands.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Gemma Clucas</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The four groups of penguins look superficially very similar. But when we measured their skulls, bills, flippers, and legs we found that they were significantly different in size, with those living on the Antarctic Peninsula being smallest and those on the Falkland Islands largest. </p>
<p>These physical and genetic differences are great enough that the former gentoo penguin (<em>Pygoscelis papua</em>) is now recognised as four distinct species: <em>P. papua</em> from the Falkland Islands, <em>P. ellsworthi</em> from the Antarctic Peninsula, <em>P. poncetii</em> from South Georgia, and <em>P. taeniata</em> from Kerguelen Island.</p>
<p>The four species inhabit distinct environmental conditions across a large range of latitudes. <em>P. ellsworthi</em> lives on the cold, icy Antarctic Peninsula at a latitude of around 65° south, in stark contrast to the milder conditions experienced by <em>P. taeniata</em> at 49° south. The four species also consume different diets, with the more southerly species eating more krill and fewer fish. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Penguin crying and flapping its wings on a beach." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367463/original/file-20201104-23-1mt7dtt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367463/original/file-20201104-23-1mt7dtt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=346&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367463/original/file-20201104-23-1mt7dtt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=346&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367463/original/file-20201104-23-1mt7dtt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=346&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367463/original/file-20201104-23-1mt7dtt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367463/original/file-20201104-23-1mt7dtt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367463/original/file-20201104-23-1mt7dtt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>P. poncetii</em> in South Georgia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Gemma Clucas</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Now we need to understand how the four species have adapted to their distinct habitats and how they are likely to respond to environmental changes in the future.</p>
<p>The division of gentoo penguins has important implications for conservation. Gentoo penguins are listed as of “<a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22697755/132600694">least concern</a>” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species. The total number of gentoo penguins has <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00300-020-02759-3">increased</a> over the past decade and the gentoo was thought to be the penguin species that may benefit most from climate change, even <a href="https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1890/11-1588.1">expanding its territory southward</a>.</p>
<p>But this growth in numbers is predominantly within the new species <em>P. ellsworthi</em> on the Antarctic Peninsula. Population assessments have not been done for South Georgia or Kerguelen Island since the <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00300-020-02759-3">1980s</a>. As such, the conservation statuses of the new species <em>P. poncetii</em> and <em>P. taeniata</em> are unknown. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Group of penguins on rocks in front of wall of ice." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367465/original/file-20201104-19-1qd0p3f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367465/original/file-20201104-19-1qd0p3f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367465/original/file-20201104-19-1qd0p3f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367465/original/file-20201104-19-1qd0p3f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367465/original/file-20201104-19-1qd0p3f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367465/original/file-20201104-19-1qd0p3f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367465/original/file-20201104-19-1qd0p3f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>P. ellsworthi</em> on the Antarctic Peninsula.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Gemma Clucas</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Given their location on isolated islands far north of the Antarctic Peninsula, they are almost certainly experiencing different effects of climate change than the prosperous <em>P. ellsworthi</em>. The conservation status of all four species must be urgently assessed given ongoing environmental change <a href="https://theconversation.com/climate-change-threatens-antarctic-krill-and-the-sea-life-that-depends-on-it-138436">across the Southern Ocean</a>.</p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/emperor-penguins-could-march-to-extinction-if-nations-fail-to-halt-climate-change-126320">Emperor Penguins could march to extinction if nations fail to halt climate change</a>
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<p>Extinctions from climate change and habitat loss are happening at a truly alarming pace. The discovery of three new species of penguin, arguably one of the most beloved animals on Earth, highlights how little we still understand about the amazing diversity of life on this planet. </p>
<p>We must continue to seek out new species to have the best chance of preserving biodiversity for future generations. Without these efforts, we face losing species that we never knew existed.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/149325/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jane Younger receives funding from the British Ecological Society, the National Geographic Society the Linnean Society of London, and the Australian Antarctic Division.</span></em></p>The discovery that gentoo penguins are actually four distinct species has important implications for their conservation.Jane Younger, Research Fellow, Department of Biology & Biochemistry, University of BathLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1397542020-09-25T02:50:53Z2020-09-25T02:50:53ZWe accidentally found a whole new genus of Australian daisies. You’ve probably seen them on your bushwalks<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359924/original/file-20200925-16-1jdunxq.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=3%2C27%2C2580%2C1909&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>When it comes to new botanical discoveries, one might imagine it’s done by trudging around a remote tropical rainforest. Certainly, that does <a href="https://theconversation.com/geosiris-is-an-early-contender-for-sexiest-plant-of-2019-109889">still happen</a>. But sometimes seemingly familiar plants close to home hold unexpected surprises. </p>
<p>We <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/tax.12321">recently discovered</a> a new genus of Australian daisies, which we’ve named <em>Scapisenecio</em>. And we did so on the computer screen, during what was meant to be a routine analysis to test a biocontrol agent against <a href="https://research.csiro.au/cape-ivy/">a noxious weed</a> originally from South Africa. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/tree-ferns-are-older-than-dinosaurs-and-thats-not-even-the-most-interesting-thing-about-them-138435">Tree ferns are older than dinosaurs. And that's not even the most interesting thing about them</a>
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<p>The term “genus” refers to groups of different, though closely related, species of flora and fauna. For example, there are more than 100 species of roses under the <em>Rosa</em> genus, and brushtail possums are members of the <em>Trichosurus</em> genus.</p>
<p>This accidental discovery shows how much is still to be learned about the natural history of Australia. <em>Scapisenecio</em> is a new genus, but thousands of visitors to the Australian Alps see one of its species flowering each summer. If this species was still misunderstood, surely similar surprises are still out there waiting for us.</p>
<h2>How it began</h2>
<p>It all started with a biocontrol researcher asking a plant systematist, who looks at the evolutionary history of plants, to help figure out the closest Australian native relatives of the weed, Cape ivy (<em>Delairea odorata</em>). </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359925/original/file-20200925-20-469wfd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Cape ivy leaves covering a tree stump" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359925/original/file-20200925-20-469wfd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359925/original/file-20200925-20-469wfd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359925/original/file-20200925-20-469wfd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359925/original/file-20200925-20-469wfd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359925/original/file-20200925-20-469wfd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359925/original/file-20200925-20-469wfd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359925/original/file-20200925-20-469wfd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Cape ivy is destructive to agriculture and native plants.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Murray Fagg/Australian Plant Image Index</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Weeds like Cape ivy cause major damage to agriculture in Australia, displace native vegetation and require extensive management. <a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-how-biocontrol-fights-invasive-species-31298">Biological control</a> (biocontrol) is one way to reduce their impact. This means taking advantage of insects or fungi that attack a weed, generally after introducing them from the weed’s home range. </p>
<p>A well-known Australian example is the introduction of the <em>Cactoblastis</em> moth in 1926 to control <a href="https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0014/55301/IPA-Prickly-Pear-Story-PP62.pdf">prickly pear</a> in Queensland and New South Wales. Even today it continues to keep that weed in check.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-how-biocontrol-fights-invasive-species-31298">Explainer: how 'biocontrol' fights invasive species</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>To minimise the risk of selecting a biocontrol agent that will damage native flora, ornamental plants or crops, it’s tested carefully against a list of species of varying degrees of relatedness to the target weed. </p>
<p>Authorities will approve the release of a biocontrol agent only if scientists can show it’s highly specific to the weed. Assembling a list of species to test therefore requires us to understand the evolutionary relationships of the target weed to other plant species. </p>
<p>If such relationships are poorly understood, we might fail to test groups of species that are closely related to the target. </p>
<h2>Missing data</h2>
<p>Our target weed Cape ivy is a climbing daisy that has <a href="https://weeds.dpi.nsw.gov.au/Weeds/CapeIvy">become invasive</a> in temperate forests and coastal woodlands throughout south-eastern Australia. One of us, Ben Gooden, is researching the potential use of <em>Digitivalva delaireae</em> — a stem-boring moth — for its biocontrol. </p>
<p>We tried to design a test list, but could not find up-to-date information on Cape ivy’s relatives. We already knew it is related to the large groundsel genus <em>Senecio</em>, but we didn’t know how closely. And no genetic data existed for many Australian native species of <em>Senecio</em>.</p>
<p>So, we set out to solve this problem together. </p>
<p>First, we assembled already-published DNA sequences for as many <em>Senecio</em> species and relatives as we could find, and then generated sequences for an additional 32 native Australian species. </p>
<p>We then united all these genetic data into a comprehensive <a href="https://www.nature.com/scitable/topicpage/reading-a-phylogenetic-tree-the-meaning-of-41956/">phylogenetic analysis</a>. “Phylogenetics” infers the evolutionary relatedness of organisms to each other.</p>
<h2>Hidden in the evolutionary tree</h2>
<p>The resulting “evolutionary tree” showed many of the native <em>Senecio</em> species where we expected them to be. More importantly, however, it showed us that Cape ivy is actually quite distantly related to <em>Senecio</em>. </p>
<p>To our surprise, the analysis also placed several Australian species traditionally belonging to the <em>Senecio</em> genus far outside of it, indicating they didn’t belong to <em>Senecio</em> at all and needed to be renamed.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359926/original/file-20200925-18-1lo871p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Simplified phylogenetic tree" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359926/original/file-20200925-18-1lo871p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359926/original/file-20200925-18-1lo871p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=711&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359926/original/file-20200925-18-1lo871p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=711&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359926/original/file-20200925-18-1lo871p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=711&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359926/original/file-20200925-18-1lo871p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=893&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359926/original/file-20200925-18-1lo871p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=893&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359926/original/file-20200925-18-1lo871p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=893&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Simplified phylogenetic tree of the daisy tribe <em>Senecioneae</em> showing the evolutionary distance between Senecio, Cape ivy, and the new genus. Unlabelled branches indicate other lineages of the same tribe.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The most interesting group of not-actually-<em>Senecio</em> are five species with leaf rosettes and one (or rarely, a few) flowerheads carried on distinctive stalks. </p>
<p>They’re all restricted to alpine or subalpine areas of south-eastern Australia, and all except one are found only in Tasmania. They turned out to be so unrelated, and so distinct from any other named plant genera, that they have to be recognised as a genus in its own right.</p>
<h2>Introducing <em>Scapisenecio</em></h2>
<p>We have now <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/tax.12321">named</a> this new genus as <em>Scapisenecio</em>, after the long flower stalks (scapes) characterising the plants. </p>
<p>The most widespread and common species is <em><a href="https://bie.ala.org.au/species/https://id.biodiversity.org.au/node/apni/2920621">Scaposenecio pectinatus</a></em>, commonly known as the alpine groundsel, which is a familiar sight to hikers and bushwalkers in the Australian mainland alps and the central highlands of Tasmania. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359927/original/file-20200925-18-d5xuyh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Close-up of a single yellow daisy" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359927/original/file-20200925-18-d5xuyh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359927/original/file-20200925-18-d5xuyh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359927/original/file-20200925-18-d5xuyh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359927/original/file-20200925-18-d5xuyh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359927/original/file-20200925-18-d5xuyh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359927/original/file-20200925-18-d5xuyh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359927/original/file-20200925-18-d5xuyh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Species belonging to this genus are a common sight to alpine hikers.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Apart from the excitement of finding a previously undescribed, distinctive genus, these results were also directly relevant to the original purpose of our work: informing a plant list to test possible biocontrol agents. </p>
<p>The traditional misclassification of these species would have misled us about their true relationships. Our new genetic data now allow us to test biocontrol agents on an appropriate sample of species, to minimise risks to our native flora.</p>
<p>It is not often we find that a new, unexpected lineage of plants has existed all along, right in front of us.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/majestic-stunning-intriguing-and-bizarre-new-guinea-has-13-634-species-of-plants-and-these-are-some-of-our-favourites-144279">'Majestic, stunning, intriguing and bizarre': New Guinea has 13,634 species of plants, and these are some of our favourites</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/139754/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn receives funding from the Australian Department of Agriculture, Water, and the Environment. The project received grant funding from the Australian Government under the ‘Improving Your Local Parks and Environment’ program.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ben Gooden receives funding primarily from Commonwealth, state and local governments, and rural Research and Development Corporations.</span></em></p>This stroke of serendipity shows how much there is still to be learned about the natural history of Australia. Surely more surprises are out there waiting for us.Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn, Research Scientist, CSIROBen Gooden, Plant ecologist, CSIROLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1287462020-07-23T10:01:39Z2020-07-23T10:01:39ZWe discovered a new species, but war means it may now remain hidden forever<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335036/original/file-20200514-77247-1ahbywz.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The male specimen discovered in the Natural History Museum, Vienna.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Alec Moore</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The world has a new species. My colleagues and I were hugely <a href="https://www.biotaxa.org/Zootaxa/article/view/zootaxa.4819.2.8">excited to announce it</a> but, alas, this stingray – a distant cousin of sharks – can’t be claimed to be a particularly spectacular or awe-inspiring animal. It’s small – about the size of an outstretched hand – and, as far as we know, plain, without distinctive markings. But what’s special about this stingray is where it came from, how we came to discover it – and why we may never see it again.</p>
<p>“Discovery” might conjure up images of intrepid marine biologists finding this animal hidden in a remote cave, or while diving into the abyss in a submersible. In fact, many of the sharks and rays discovered in recent years have been found in <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/9/110901-shark-new-species-eaten-science-ocean-squalus-formosus-dogfish/">fish markets</a>. But not this one! We found it in a glass jar, on a shelf, in a museum, in the centre of Vienna.</p>
<p>The new species – to be known scientifically as <em>Hemitrygon yemenensis</em> – is, you’ve guessed it, from Yemen, on the Arabian Peninsula. And it comes with quite a story.</p>
<p>In 1902, an Austrian husband and wife team – Wilhelm and Marie Hein – were in the coastal town of Qishn, to study the unique Mehri language. While placed under house arrest by the local sheikh, the Heins busied themselves. Marie, in addition to providing medical treatment to locals, collected over 2,000 botanical and zoological specimens, which, fortunately for us, included two stingrays. These specimens – a male and a female – were preserved and brought back to the Natural History Museum in Vienna where they sat in a glass jar gathering dust for 115 years.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335037/original/file-20200514-77239-1m6mpm7.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335037/original/file-20200514-77239-1m6mpm7.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335037/original/file-20200514-77239-1m6mpm7.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335037/original/file-20200514-77239-1m6mpm7.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335037/original/file-20200514-77239-1m6mpm7.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335037/original/file-20200514-77239-1m6mpm7.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335037/original/file-20200514-77239-1m6mpm7.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Natural History Museum, Vienna.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Alec Moore</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>As part of my ongoing research work on the elasmobranchs (sharks and rays) of the Arabian region, I had been aware of the Heins – one of the other fish they brought back was a small shark, which turned out to be a <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/01/shark-extinct-fish-market/">story in itself</a>. I had been combing through the museum’s list of specimens from the Heins’ expedition when I noticed a mysterious entry – to an old, now obsolete name for a stingray. Further investigation – and preliminary photographs kindly emailed by the museum staff – suggested these were something special we hadn’t seen before, so I packed my bag and headed to Vienna.</p>
<p>On a chilly November morning, deep in the cavernous back rooms of the impressive old museum, the sealing wax on the jar was broken. As I gently drew out the stingrays – pale and shrivelled from a century in alcohol – I wondered if I was the first person to have handled them since the Heins bottled them on a hot, distant, sun-bleached beach so many years ago.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335038/original/file-20200514-77276-1o52qtt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335038/original/file-20200514-77276-1o52qtt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335038/original/file-20200514-77276-1o52qtt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335038/original/file-20200514-77276-1o52qtt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335038/original/file-20200514-77276-1o52qtt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335038/original/file-20200514-77276-1o52qtt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335038/original/file-20200514-77276-1o52qtt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335038/original/file-20200514-77276-1o52qtt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Measuring the stingray specimen.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Alec Moore</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The painstaking work of measurements, observations and photographs then began – recording everything from the relative size and position of features like fins and gill slits, the shape and coverage of tooth-like “denticles” on the skin, to the angle the snout makes (the first time I had used a protractor since school).</p>
<p>Having this information allowed us to compare the Yemen specimens with known, closely related species – and pick out key features that, in combination, define the new species. This information is published in a “description”, the scientific document (admittedly, a dry one) that officially names the new species and designates a single individual museum specimen as the “holotype” to which all future researchers should refer. The scientific name and description are also the fundamental building blocks underlying all species identification field guides that fishers, divers and scientists might use. </p>
<h2>A mysterious creature</h2>
<p>But what do we know about this species? Sadly, almost nothing – and chances are it will stay that way. Other than the two museum specimens collected over a century ago, the animal is completely unknown to science.</p>
<p>Small stingray species don’t tend to swim far, and often have small geographic ranges as a result – so there is a chance <em>H. yemenensis</em> only occurs in Yemen. Yet research there is almost impossible due to a brutal ongoing war and humanitarian crisis, decades of previous conflict, and it being among the “least developed countries” for indicators like poverty, education and life expectancy.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335040/original/file-20200514-77251-96570.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335040/original/file-20200514-77251-96570.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335040/original/file-20200514-77251-96570.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335040/original/file-20200514-77251-96570.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335040/original/file-20200514-77251-96570.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335040/original/file-20200514-77251-96570.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335040/original/file-20200514-77251-96570.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335040/original/file-20200514-77251-96570.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The female specimen.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Alec Moore</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The intensive, unmanaged and unsustainable fisheries in these areas – <a href="https://theconversation.com/eu-targets-fragile-west-african-fish-stocks-despite-protection-laws-125679">often by foreign vessels</a> – threaten not just unique marine species like our stingray, but the livelihoods of the fishing communities themselves. There is even a chance that our species may have become extinct before we realised it was a new species, like the “<a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/new-shark-discovery-extinction-lost-borneo-overfishing-carcharhinus-obsolerus-a8711686.html">lost shark</a>” found recently.</p>
<p>We can but hope that Yemen, and countries like it with rich biodiversity, has a brighter future. The formal name of our new species celebrates the country it was found in, but we have proposed the vernacular name “Heins’ stingray” to acknowledge the role of Marie and Wilhelm in helping to document the riches – biological, linguistic and cultural – of this part of the world.</p>
<p>It seems remarkable that the only shark and ray specimens the Heins bought back turned out to be new species, especially as non-specialists with limited access to information. Sadly, Wilhelm died the year after the expedition, at the age of just 42. It is hoped that his stingray has not died out with him.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/128746/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alec Moore received funding from the Fisheries Society of the British Isles to conduct the museum research. He is affiliated with the IUCN Shark Specialist Group. </span></em></p>The extraordinary story of a stingray, its discovery and its uncertain fate in the Yemen war.Alec Moore, Post-Doctoral Fisheries Scientist, Bangor UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1428072020-07-16T20:02:10Z2020-07-16T20:02:10ZA rare discovery: we found the sugar glider is actually three species, but one is disappearing fast<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347859/original/file-20200716-23-yfnbbw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=22%2C28%2C3755%2C2651&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Most Australians are familiar with the cute, nectar-loving sugar glider (<em>Petaurus breviceps</em>), a marsupial denizen of forests in eastern and northern Australia.</p>
<p>However, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/zoolinnean/zlaa060">our new study</a> shows the sugar glider is actually three genetically and physically distinct species: <em>Petaurus breviceps</em> and two new species, Krefft’s glider (<em>Petaurus notatus</em>) and the savanna glider (<em>Petaurus ariel</em>).</p>
<p>This discovery has meant the distribution of the sugar glider has substantially reduced, and it’s now limited only to coastal regions in southeastern Australia. The devastating bushfires last summer hit this part of Australia hard.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/summer-bushfires-how-are-the-plant-and-animal-survivors-6-months-on-we-mapped-their-recovery-142551">Summer bushfires: how are the plant and animal survivors 6 months on? We mapped their recovery</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Our new species from northern Australia, the savanna glider, is particularly at risk, living in a region that’s suffering ongoing <a href="https://theconversation.com/scientists-and-national-park-managers-are-failing-northern-australias-vanishing-mammals-10089">small mammal declines</a>. We must urgently assess the conservation status of both the sugar glider and savanna glider before they’re lost.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347856/original/file-20200716-21-1cybnzr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347856/original/file-20200716-21-1cybnzr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347856/original/file-20200716-21-1cybnzr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347856/original/file-20200716-21-1cybnzr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347856/original/file-20200716-21-1cybnzr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347856/original/file-20200716-21-1cybnzr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347856/original/file-20200716-21-1cybnzr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347856/original/file-20200716-21-1cybnzr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">These gliding abilities likely evolved to adapt to Australia’s open forests.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Nature’s BASE-jumpers</h2>
<p>Our discovery of new Australian mammal species is rare and exciting. That’s because while Australia is filled with hidden and undiscovered animal and plant diversity, our mammal fauna is considered relatively well known, with more than 99% of all species scientifically <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/system/files/pages/2ee3f4a1-f130-465b-9c7a-79373680a067/files/nlsaw-2nd-complete.pdf">described</a>. </p>
<p>Perhaps Australia’s most graceful mammals, species of the genus <em>Petaurus</em> (meaning “rope-dancer”) have the unique ability to expand the skin between wrist and ankle to glide from tree to tree – they are nature’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BASE_jumping">BASE-jumpers</a>. It’s believed these gliding capabilities evolved as a way to adapt to the open forests of Australia. </p>
<p>The palm-sized sugar glider, named after its insatiable appetite for all things sweet, is the most widely known member of the genus and is commonly kept and bred in captivity <a href="https://peerj.com/articles/6180/?td=tw">around the world</a>.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sZ-PzBRSPsw?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<h2>From the Aussie outback to London’s Natural History Museum</h2>
<p>An investigation into <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/zo/zo10016">sugar glider genetics</a> a decade ago highlighted two divergent groups within the species, suggesting sugar gliders may represent more than one species. </p>
<p>In that study, scientists also unexpectedly found that one glider from Melville Island in the Northern Territory was genetically distinct from sugar gliders. Instead, this Melville Island glider showed a close relationship with two larger existing species, the squirrel glider (<em>Petaurus norfolcensis</em>) and mahogany glider (<em>Petaurus gracilis</em>). </p>
<p>Prompted by this unusual finding, we investigated the mysterious glider’s identity. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347854/original/file-20200716-33-1q3aryw.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347854/original/file-20200716-33-1q3aryw.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347854/original/file-20200716-33-1q3aryw.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347854/original/file-20200716-33-1q3aryw.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347854/original/file-20200716-33-1q3aryw.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347854/original/file-20200716-33-1q3aryw.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347854/original/file-20200716-33-1q3aryw.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347854/original/file-20200716-33-1q3aryw.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">We studied more that 300 specimens from museums to the Aussie outback.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Teigan</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>From some of the most remote areas of outback Australia to our vast national museum collections, and ultimately the hallowed halls of London’s Natural History Museum, we captured, measured and compared every glider we could find to evaluate their relationships. </p>
<p>Indigenous knowledge of the savanna glider <em>Petaurus ariel</em> and the contributions of local Aboriginal people were also invaluable to our investigation.</p>
<p>The savanna glider is culturally significant and valued across multiple language groups in northern Australia and we are grateful to the Traditional Owners for sharing their knowledge of the species and its habitat.</p>
<p>In the end, we assessed more than 300 live and preserved specimens and established three species where once there was one.</p>
<h2>Meet the new gliders</h2>
<p>The savanna glider lives in the woodland savannas of northern Australia and looks a bit like a squirrel glider with a more pointed nose, but much smaller. The remaining two species look similar to each other and may overlap in some areas of southeastern Australia. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347855/original/file-20200716-33-1x4vq43.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347855/original/file-20200716-33-1x4vq43.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347855/original/file-20200716-33-1x4vq43.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347855/original/file-20200716-33-1x4vq43.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347855/original/file-20200716-33-1x4vq43.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347855/original/file-20200716-33-1x4vq43.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347855/original/file-20200716-33-1x4vq43.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347855/original/file-20200716-33-1x4vq43.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Sugar gliders are restricted to forests East of the Great Dividing Range.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Michael J Barritt</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Krefft’s glider has a clearly defined dorsal stripe and fluffy tail. It is widespread in eastern Australia and has been introduced to <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/ddi.12717">Tasmania</a>. </p>
<p>The sugar glider, with a less-defined dorsal stripe, is apparently restricted to forests east of the Great Dividing Range, extending from southeast Queensland to around the border of New South Wales and Victoria.</p>
<h2>What does this mean for sugar gliders?</h2>
<p>Despite ongoing debate about the role of <a href="https://www.nature.com/news/taxonomy-anarchy-hampers-conservation-1.22064">taxonomy</a> (the science of classifying species) in conservation, it is clear from our work that species definitions provide an essential foundation for effective conservation. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347857/original/file-20200716-25-1ea7wf9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347857/original/file-20200716-25-1ea7wf9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347857/original/file-20200716-25-1ea7wf9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347857/original/file-20200716-25-1ea7wf9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347857/original/file-20200716-25-1ea7wf9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347857/original/file-20200716-25-1ea7wf9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347857/original/file-20200716-25-1ea7wf9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347857/original/file-20200716-25-1ea7wf9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Sugar gliders use tree hollows, which makes them vulnerable to intense bushfires.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>When considered as one species, sugar gliders were widespread, abundant and officially classified as “<a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/16731/21959798">least concern</a>”. </p>
<p>The distinction of these three species has resulted in a substantially smaller distribution for the sugar glider, making the species vulnerable to large scale habitat destruction, such as the recent bushfires. </p>
<p>And sadly, the bushfires have incinerated a large proportion of the sugar glider’s updated range. Given they are tree hollow users and require a diverse habitat with a variety of foods, the bushfires have most likely had a devastating effect on this much-loved species. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/click-through-the-tragic-stories-of-119-species-still-struggling-after-black-summer-in-this-interactive-and-how-to-help-131025">Click through the tragic stories of 119 species still struggling after Black Summer in this interactive (and how to help)</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The savanna glider is disappearing</h2>
<p>Our work has shown urgent intervention is needed to save this important plant pollinator and icon of the Australian bush.</p>
<p>The savanna glider in particular is facing its own conservation concerns in the ongoing northern Australian <a href="https://theconversation.com/pilbara-shows-how-to-save-the-most-species-per-dollar-26971">small mammal declines</a>. Tree-dwelling mammals are among those worst affected there, and it appears the savanna glider is no exception. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347814/original/file-20200716-25-xg5k32.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347814/original/file-20200716-25-xg5k32.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347814/original/file-20200716-25-xg5k32.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347814/original/file-20200716-25-xg5k32.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347814/original/file-20200716-25-xg5k32.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347814/original/file-20200716-25-xg5k32.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347814/original/file-20200716-25-xg5k32.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347814/original/file-20200716-25-xg5k32.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">This is a rare discovery as most Australia’s mammals are considered already known.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>An <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10531-019-01807-7">earlier study of ours</a> showed the species has undergone a 35% range reduction over the last 30 years, and is slowly disappearing from the inland areas it once inhabited. It’s likely feral cats, changed fire regimes and feral herbivores have played a significant role in the savanna glider’s vanishing range. </p>
<p>It would be a tragedy if this species is lost to the world just as it was discovered, especially with Australia’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/fixing-australias-extinction-crisis-means-thinking-bigger-than-individual-species-115559">appalling track record</a> of human-induced mammal extinctions.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/scientists-and-national-park-managers-are-failing-northern-australias-vanishing-mammals-10089">Scientists and national park managers are failing northern Australia’s vanishing mammals</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>More scientific work is urgently needed. We must define the distinct ecology of each species and determine their distribution in more detail. </p>
<p>This will enable us to effectively assess the conservation status of each species and determine what management efforts are required to ensure their protection as they face an uncertain future.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/142807/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Steve Cooper receives funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alyson Stobo-Wilson, Andrew M. Baker, Sue Carthew, and Teigan Cremona do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The sugar glider is an icon of the Australian bush. But discovering it’s actually three distinct species has big consequences for its conservation.Teigan Cremona, Research Associate, Charles Darwin UniversityAlyson Stobo-Wilson, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Charles Darwin UniversityAndrew M. Baker, Senior Lecturer, Queensland University of TechnologySteve Cooper, Principal Researcher , South Australian MuseumSue Carthew, Provost and Vice President, Charles Darwin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1412962020-06-25T20:14:17Z2020-06-25T20:14:17ZMeet the giant wombat relative that scratched out a living in Australia 25 million years ago<p>Wombats are among the most peculiar of animals. They look like a massively overgrown guinea pig with a boofy head, a waddling gait, squared-off butt, backwards-facing pouch and ever-growing molars. </p>
<p>Indeed, wombats are oddballs and don’t look much like their nearest living relatives, the koala. But koalas and wombats (collectively known as <a href="https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/tetrapod-zoology/vombatiform-radiation-part-i/">“vombatiformes”</a>) are the last survivors of a once far more diverse group of <a href="https://australian.museum/learn/species-identification/ask-an-expert/what-is-a-marsupial/">marsupials</a> whose fossil history stretches back for at least 25 million years.</p>
<p>Working out how this diverse group fizzled out to just wombats and koalas has taken centuries of extraordinary discoveries in the fossil record. We are announcing one of these today in our research <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-66425-8">published in Scientific Reports</a>.</p>
<p><em>Mukupirna nambensis</em> is one of the oldest discovered Australian marsupials. Its unveiling has deepened our understanding of the relationships and evolutionary history of one of the strangest groups that once ruled this continent.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/aboriginal-australians-co-existed-with-the-megafauna-for-at-least-17-000-years-70589">Aboriginal Australians co-existed with the megafauna for at least 17,000 years</a>
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</p>
<hr>
<h2>Acupuncturing the earth</h2>
<p>In 1973 at Lake Pinpa – a small dry salt lake in South Australia – a multi-institutional expedition <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?id=LwMkO0M1mPQC&pg=PA23&lpg=PA23&dq=dick+tedford+lake+pinpa&source=bl&ots=GgedFpuV0d&sig=ACfU3U3r3Hheo6D9PGDk6FByRV_RpwUtFA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiKs92RgZzqAhU8yjgGHRrPDrYQ6AEwAHoECAoQAQ#v=onepage&q=dick%20tedford%20lake%20pinpa&f=false">led by</a> palaeontologist Dick Tedford from the American Museum of Natural History discovered a host of extinct animals.</p>
<p>A combination of drought and strong winds had blown the sand off the surface of the lake bed, revealing the remains of animals that died after getting stuck in mud 25 million years ago. </p>
<p>One of the discoveries was a skull and partial skeleton of a large, distinctive wombat-like animal that was clearly new to science – <em>Mukupirna</em>. </p>
<p>Its fossils were found by pushing a metal rod into the clay at intervals across the lake surface, a bit like acupuncturing the skin of Mother Earth. If the rod struck something hard, the team excavated down to find what was commonly the fossilised skeleton of an otherwise unseen animal. </p>
<p>Once uncovered, they were encased in plaster shells for transport back to the Museum of Natural History, where they were subjected to years of careful preparation. Although <em>Mukupirna</em> was discovered this way in 1973, it’s only now we can formally announce this discovery to the world.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/343909/original/file-20200625-33557-1bz7zth.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/343909/original/file-20200625-33557-1bz7zth.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/343909/original/file-20200625-33557-1bz7zth.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=796&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343909/original/file-20200625-33557-1bz7zth.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=796&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343909/original/file-20200625-33557-1bz7zth.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=796&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343909/original/file-20200625-33557-1bz7zth.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1001&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343909/original/file-20200625-33557-1bz7zth.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1001&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343909/original/file-20200625-33557-1bz7zth.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1001&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">This photo shows the skull of the giant wombat relative <em>Mukupirna nambensis</em>. The front of the skull is towards the top of the photograph. The skull is 19.7cm long.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Julien Louys, Griffith University and Robin Beck, University of Salford</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>A mammoth find</h2>
<p>One of the most remarkable things about this marsupial is its large size, which we estimate was between 143-171kg, more than four times larger than any living wombat. </p>
<p>Its size inspired the scientific name <em>Mukupirna</em>, from the words <em>muku</em>, meaning “bones” and <em>pirna</em>, meaning “big”, in the Malyangapa and Dieri languages of Aboriginal people from central Australia. </p>
<p>We worked out the earliest vombatiform marsupials probably weighed about 5kg or less (about the size of a modern koala). That said, body weights of about 100kg, such as that of <em>Mukupirna</em>, then evolved independently at least six times in different branches of the family tree.</p>
<p>The biggest of these would be <em><a href="https://australian.museum/learn/australia-over-time/extinct-animals/diprotodon-optatum/">Diprotodon</a></em> at about three tonnes, the world’s largest marsupial.</p>
<h2>Behaviour up to scratch</h2>
<p><em>Mukupirna</em>‘s forearms were powerfully muscled and its hands may have worked like shovels, an attribute shared with modern wombats. Also like wombats, it was probably a good scratch-digger. But unlike today’s wombats, it probably couldn’t burrow. </p>
<p>Although <em>Mukupirna</em> was clearly herbivorous, unlike wombats its cheek teeth were low-crowned with well-developed roots. This indicates it couldn’t have survived on abrasive plant materials such as grasses, which today’s wombats consume without problems. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/343950/original/file-20200625-33563-19b66g6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/343950/original/file-20200625-33563-19b66g6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/343950/original/file-20200625-33563-19b66g6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343950/original/file-20200625-33563-19b66g6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343950/original/file-20200625-33563-19b66g6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343950/original/file-20200625-33563-19b66g6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343950/original/file-20200625-33563-19b66g6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343950/original/file-20200625-33563-19b66g6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Australia has three endemic species of wombat: the common wombat <em>Vombatus ursinus</em> (pictured), the northern hairy-nosed wombat (<em>Lasiorhinus krefftii</em>) and the southern hairy-nosed wombat (<em>Lasiorhinus latifrons</em>).</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Pollens in the fossil deposit indicate that, unlike today, there were no grasslands in this area of central Australia back then. Instead, it was dominated by scrubby rainforest that was also home to possums, koalas and galloping kangaroos. </p>
<p>But alongside them were much stranger, more primitive animals that have left no living descendants. These included <em><a href="https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/tetrapod-zoology/vombatiforms-part-ii/">Ilaria</a></em>, which was a bit like a gigantic koala, <a href="https://museumsvictoria.com.au/collections-research/journals/memoirs-of-museum-victoria/volume-74-2016/pages-173-187/"><em>Ektopodon</em></a>, an arboreal marsupial with teeth like a cheese-grater and <a href="https://australian.museum/learn/australia-over-time/extinct-animals/wakaleo-vanderleuri/"><em>Wakaleo</em></a>, a leopard-sized marsupial lion with some of the most ferocious butchering teeth ever evolved by a mammal.</p>
<p>These forests were also punctuated by huge inland lakes that were home to lungfish, turtles, crocodiles, flamingos, ducks, stone curlews and even freshwater dolphins.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-new-species-of-marsupial-lion-tells-us-about-australias-past-88633">A new species of marsupial lion tells us about Australia's past</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>A lost land</h2>
<p>By comparing different features of <em>Mukupirna’s</em> teeth and skeleton, we discovered it to be the closest known relative of modern wombats. Yet, it was as different from wombats as wombats are from koalas, which is why it has been placed in a new family of its own: the Mukupirnidae.</p>
<p>Formal recognition of <em>Mukupirna</em> fills yet another fascinating gap in our knowledge of the weird and wonderful evolutionary history of mammals on this continent. </p>
<p>Sadly, it’s likely all mukupirnids vanished when a shift in global climate triggered an environmental change from scrubby rainforests 25 million years ago, to far lusher and more biodiverse rainforests 23 million years ago. </p>
<p>This would have resulted in more intense greenhouse conditions and an environment presumably not suited to mukupirnids.</p>
<p>Hopefully this rings a warning bell about the state of Earth’s climate now. If we can’t slow the global heating we’ve triggered, how many more of Australia’s uniquely endemic living creatures will soon join <em>Mukupirna</em> in the increasingly crowded abyss of extinction?</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/141296/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robin Beck has received funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Julien Louys receives funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mike Archer receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Phil Creaser CREATE Fund in UNSW. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Philippa Brewer works for the Natural History Museum, London</span></em></p>The extinct Mukupirna - which translates to ‘big bones’ - is estimated to have been more than four times larger than any living wombat.Robin Beck, Lecturer in Biology, University of SalfordJulien Louys, ARC Future Fellow, Griffith UniversityMike Archer, Professor, Pangea Research Centre, UNSW SydneyPhilippa Brewer, Senior Curator, Natural History MuseumLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1369622020-05-20T10:12:59Z2020-05-20T10:12:59ZHow an underwater photo led to the discovery of a tiny new seahorse species<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/330024/original/file-20200423-47820-1jb8pl7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A juvenile Hippocampus nalu</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Richard Smith</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Before you read this article, pause for a moment and look at the nail on your little finger. That’s about the size of a <a href="https://zookeys.pensoft.net/article/50924/">new species of seahorse</a> discovered in the waters of Sodwana Bay, South Africa, which falls within the iSimangaliso Wetland Park, a World Heritage Site, in KwaZulu-Natal province.</p>
<p><em>Hippocampus nalu</em> grows to a maximum size of just 2cm. It is the first pygmy seahorse ever discovered in African waters. Our team has <a href="https://zookeys.pensoft.net/article/50924/">conclusively demonstrated</a> that <em>Hippocampus nalu</em> is physically and genetically distinct from the seven known species of pygmy seahorses. Its nearest relatives are found more than 8,000 km away in the Pacific Ocean.</p>
<p>Seahorses are threatened all around the world. Many species are at risk of becoming extinct because of human activities such as bottom trawling, over-fishing, and habitat destruction. As a result, several species are listed on the <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/">IUCN Red List of Threatened Species</a>. However, to date no pygmy seahorses are considered threatened – because we simply do not know enough about them. By discovering more species, and learning more about these tiny creatures, scientists can offer advice on how best to protect them. </p>
<p>Pygmy seahorses can also provide an important boost for tourism: scuba divers love these small species and are willing to <a href="https://www.dive-the-world.com/creatures-seahorses.php">travel far and wide</a> for a chance to see them. If coastal communities and scuba divers alike are taught about the best ways to protect these species and others in the oceans, there can be huge economic and social benefits.</p>
<p>The most astonishing part of this discovery is that it didn’t start in a laboratory, or with keen scientific minds assessing the likelihood of finding a pygmy seahorse in African waters. Instead, it began with a photograph.</p>
<h2>Tracking the seahorse</h2>
<p>Dr Louw Claassens and Dr Dave Harasti arrived in Sodwana in early 2018 looking for an entirely different animal: a seahorse-like species called a <a href="https://crittersresearch.com/2018/11/08/time-for-something-new/">pygmy pipehorse</a>. But then a local dive guide named Savannah Olivier showed them a photograph of a very small seahorse. The scientists recognised it as a pygmy seahorse, which are supposed to live an entire ocean away. South Africa is home to four other seahorse species, but this was the first time a pygmy seahorse had been observed in South Africa, let alone Africa. </p>
<p>Nine months later Louw returned to Sodwana Bay, this time accompanied by Dr Richard Smith, a pygmy seahorse expert. They, with Olivier, found a pair of the tiny pygmy seahorses along a rock face at about 15m depth. The little creatures were grasping on to slivers of algae amid raging surging seas. The reefs of Sodwana Bay are exposed to the swells of the Indian Ocean, very unlike the more sheltered coral reef settings in the tropical Pacific where the other known pygmy seahorses are found. </p>
<p>Later they even found a tiny juvenile measuring just a centimetre in length, which was dwarfed by a diver’s finger.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/330961/original/file-20200428-110785-esacc2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/330961/original/file-20200428-110785-esacc2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/330961/original/file-20200428-110785-esacc2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/330961/original/file-20200428-110785-esacc2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/330961/original/file-20200428-110785-esacc2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/330961/original/file-20200428-110785-esacc2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/330961/original/file-20200428-110785-esacc2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">An adult male Hippocumpus nalu.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Copyright Dr Richard Smith</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Finding the seahorses was only the first step in describing the new species. The rest of the team now got to work. Graham Short, a researcher at the Australian Museum and California Academy of Sciences, compared the mystery seahorses with other pygmy seahorse species by looking at their characteristics under a microscope, as well as a powerful CT scanner. Dr Mike Stat, a geneticist from Australia, used genetic methods to test how distinct it was from other species. Through combined team efforts, we confirmed that the Sodwana pygmy seahorse was a new species and could give it an official scientific name. </p>
<p>The name “nalu” has three layers of meaning. In the local isiXhosa and isiZulu languages it means “here it is”, to show that the species had been there all along until its discovery. “Nalu” is also the diver Savannah Olivier’s middle name. Finally, “nalu” means “surging surf, wave” in Hawaiian, which hints at the habitat the species lives in.</p>
<h2>More to learn</h2>
<p>The discovery of the Sodwana pygmy seahorse is exciting for more than just its scientific value. It provides new insights into the global distribution of these tiny fish and paves the way for further exploration in other locations. Only a handful of research publications focused on the <a href="https://oceanrealmimages.com/pygmy-seahorses/species/">ecology of pygmy seahorses</a> exist, so anything we can learn more about these critters will help the future conservation of this unique group. </p>
<p>Finding a species like <em>Hippocampus nalu</em> also shows how little we know about Africa’s marine biodiversity, and how much more is left to discover. It highlights how important the observations of keen amateurs are to help scientists. If a keen fisherman did not consider a strange looking fish caught off the south coast of South Africa worth sharing with Marjory Courtney-Latimer in 1938, the <a href="https://www.knysnamuseums.co.za/pages/the-coelacanth/">discovery of the coelacanth</a>, a living fossil, might never have happened. </p>
<p>Similarly, without a diver’s sharp eyes and an expert’s initial questions, the world would still not know that the Sodwana pygmy seahorse exists. As scientists, being open to questions from the general public not only helps inform non-scientists, but can also help us make new discoveries.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/136962/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Graham Short works for Australian Museum and the California Academy of Sciences.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>David Harasti, Louw Claassens, and Maarten De Brauwer do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>South Africa is home to four other seahorse species, but this was the first time a pygmy seahorse had been observed in South Africa, let alone Africa.Maarten De Brauwer, Research fellow, University of LeedsDavid Harasti, Adjunct assistant professor, Southern Cross UniversityGraham Short, Research Associate, Australian MuseumLouw Claassens, Research Associate of Zoology and Entomology, Director of the Knysna Basin Project, Rhodes UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1352012020-04-17T05:10:41Z2020-04-17T05:10:41ZI travelled Australia looking for peacock spiders, and collected 7 new species (and named one after the starry night sky)<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328568/original/file-20200416-192703-137e8gr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C6%2C2044%2C1355&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Heath Warwick</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>Environmental scientists see flora, fauna and phenomena the rest of us rarely do. In this series, we’ve invited them to share their unique <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/photos-from-the-field-92499">photos from the field</a>.</em></p>
<hr>
<p>After I found my first peacock spider in the wild in 2016, I was hooked. Three years later, I was travelling across Australia on a month-long expedition to document and name new species of peacock spiders.</p>
<p>Peacock spiders are a unique group of tiny, colourful, dancing spiders <a href="https://peckhamia.com/peckhamia/PECKHAMIA_148.3.pdf">native to Australia</a>. They’re roughly between 2.5 and 6 millimetres, depending on the species. Adult male peacock spiders are usually <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsif.2016.0437">colourful</a>, while female and juvenile peacock spiders are usually dull brown or grey. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-spectacular-peacock-spider-dance-and-its-strange-evolutionary-roots-51327">The spectacular peacock spider dance and its strange evolutionary roots</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Like peacocks, the mature male peacock spiders display their vibrant colours in elegant <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3181266/">courtship displays</a> to impress females. They often elevate and wave their third pair of legs and lift their brilliantly coloured abdomens – like dancing. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328570/original/file-20200417-192698-17m7ipa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328570/original/file-20200417-192698-17m7ipa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328570/original/file-20200417-192698-17m7ipa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328570/original/file-20200417-192698-17m7ipa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328570/original/file-20200417-192698-17m7ipa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328570/original/file-20200417-192698-17m7ipa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1031&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328570/original/file-20200417-192698-17m7ipa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1031&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328570/original/file-20200417-192698-17m7ipa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1031&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>Maratus laurenae</em>. Male peacock spiders have brilliant colours on their abdomen to attract females.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Up until 2011, there were <a href="https://museumsvictoria.com.au/article/the-wild-west-of-peacock-spider-research/">only seven known species</a> of them. But since then, the rate of scientific discovery has skyrocketed with upwards of 80 species being discovered in the last decade.</p>
<p>Thanks to my trip across Australia and the help from citizen scientists, I’ve recently scientifically described and named seven more species from Western Australia, South Australia and Victoria. This brings the total number of peacock spider species known to science <a href="https://www.mapress.com/j/zt/article/view/zootaxa.4758.1.1">up to 86</a>.</p>
<h2>Spider hunting: a game of luck</h2>
<p>Citizen scientists – other peacock spider enthusiasts – shared photographs and locations of potentially undocumented species with me. I pulled these together to create a list of places in Australia to visit. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nVosUZA1Tjg?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>I usually find spider hunting to be a relaxing pastime, but this trip was incredibly stressful (albeit amazing). </p>
<p>The thing about peacock spiders is they’re mainly active during spring, which is <a href="https://peckhamia.com/peckhamia/PECKHAMIA_117.1.pdf">when they breed</a>. Colourful adult males are difficult – if not impossible – to find at other times of year, as they usually die shortly after the mating season. This meant I had a very short window to find what I needed to, or I had to wait another year. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xYIUFEQeh3g?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Classic.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Even when they’re active, they can be difficult to come across unless weather conditions are ideal. Not too cold. Not too rainy. Not too hot. Not too sunny. Not too shady. Not too windy. As you can imagine, it’s largely a game of luck.</p>
<h2>The wild west</h2>
<p>I arrived in Perth, picked up my hire car and bought a foam mattress that fitted in the back of my car – my bed for half of the trip. I stocked up on tinned food, bread and water, and I headed north in search of these tiny eight-legged gems.</p>
<p>My first destination: Jurien Bay. I spent the whole day under the hot sun searching for a peculiar, scientifically unknown species that Western Australian photographer <a href="https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/topics/wildlife/2018/03/photographing-was-colourful-insects/">Su RamMohan</a> had sent me photographs of. I was in the exact spot it had been photographed, but I just couldn’t find it! </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328572/original/file-20200417-192689-fzagz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328572/original/file-20200417-192689-fzagz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328572/original/file-20200417-192689-fzagz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328572/original/file-20200417-192689-fzagz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328572/original/file-20200417-192689-fzagz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328572/original/file-20200417-192689-fzagz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328572/original/file-20200417-192689-fzagz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328572/original/file-20200417-192689-fzagz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">I travelled across Denmark, Western Australia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The sun began to lower and I was using up precious time. I made what I now believe was the right decision and abandoned the Jurien Bay species for another time. </p>
<p>I spent days travelling between dramatic coastal landscapes, the rugged inland outback, and old, mysterious woodlands. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328571/original/file-20200417-192749-1rl4esf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328571/original/file-20200417-192749-1rl4esf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328571/original/file-20200417-192749-1rl4esf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328571/original/file-20200417-192749-1rl4esf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328571/original/file-20200417-192749-1rl4esf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328571/original/file-20200417-192749-1rl4esf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328571/original/file-20200417-192749-1rl4esf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328571/original/file-20200417-192749-1rl4esf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Kalbarri Gorge, Western Australia, where <em>Maratus constellatus</em> was found.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>I hunted tirelessly with my eyes fixed on the ground searching for movement. In a massive change of luck from the beginning of my trip, it seemed conditions were (mostly) on my side. </p>
<p>With the much-appreciated help of some of my field companions from the University of Hamburg and volunteers from the public, a total of five new species were discovered and scientifically named from Western Australia.</p>
<h2>The Little Desert</h2>
<p>Two days after returning from Western Australia, I headed to the Little Desert National Park in Victoria on a <a href="https://bushblitz.org.au/the-little-desert-bush-blitz-is-preparing-for-some-big-finds/">Bush Blitz expedition</a>, joined by several of my colleagues from Museums Victoria.</p>
<p>I’d thought the landscape’s harsh, dry conditions were unsuitable for peacock spiders, as most described species are <a href="https://peckhamia.com/peckhamia/PECKHAMIA_148.3.pdf">known to live in temperate regions</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328601/original/file-20200417-192762-1mkb5mz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328601/original/file-20200417-192762-1mkb5mz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328601/original/file-20200417-192762-1mkb5mz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328601/original/file-20200417-192762-1mkb5mz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328601/original/file-20200417-192762-1mkb5mz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328601/original/file-20200417-192762-1mkb5mz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328601/original/file-20200417-192762-1mkb5mz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328601/original/file-20200417-192762-1mkb5mz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Capturing spiders in a bug net.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Heath Warwick</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>To my surprise, we found a massive diversity of them, including two species with a bigger range than we thought, and the discovery of another species unknown to science. </p>
<p>This is the first time two known species – <em>Maratus robinsoni</em> and <em>Maratus vultus</em> – had been found in Victoria. Previously, they had <a href="https://peckhamia.com/peckhamia/PECKHAMIA_206.1.pdf">only been known</a> to live in eastern New South Wales and southern Western Australia respectively. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/dont-like-spiders-here-are-10-reasons-to-change-your-mind-126433">Don't like spiders? Here are 10 reasons to change your mind</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Our findings suggest other known species may have much bigger geographic ranges than we previously thought, and may occur in a much larger variety of habitats.</p>
<p>And our discovery of the unknown species (<em>Maratus inaquosus</em>), along with another collected by another wildlife photographer <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/68921296@N06">Nick Volpe</a> from South Australia (<em>Maratus volpei</em>) brought the tally of discoveries to seven.</p>
<h2>What’s in a name?</h2>
<p>Writing scientific descriptions, documenting, and naming species is a crucial part in conserving our wildlife. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/spiders-are-a-treasure-trove-of-scientific-wonder-51048">Spiders are a treasure trove of scientific wonder</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>With global extinction rates at an <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/conl.12682?af=R">unprecedented high</a>, species conservation is more important than ever. But the only way we can know if we’re losing species is to show and understand they exist in the first place. </p>
<hr>
<ul>
<li><strong><em>Maratus azureus</em>:</strong> “Deep blue” in Latin, referring to the colour of the male.</li>
</ul>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328574/original/file-20200417-192749-u4u68x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328574/original/file-20200417-192749-u4u68x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328574/original/file-20200417-192749-u4u68x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=614&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328574/original/file-20200417-192749-u4u68x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=614&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328574/original/file-20200417-192749-u4u68x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=614&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328574/original/file-20200417-192749-u4u68x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=771&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328574/original/file-20200417-192749-u4u68x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=771&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328574/original/file-20200417-192749-u4u68x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=771&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>Maratus azureus</em>.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<ul>
<li><strong><em>Maratus constellatus</em>:</strong> “Starry” in Latin, referring to the markings on the male’s abdomen which look like a starry night sky.</li>
</ul>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328573/original/file-20200417-192693-5qzp25.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328573/original/file-20200417-192693-5qzp25.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328573/original/file-20200417-192693-5qzp25.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=602&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328573/original/file-20200417-192693-5qzp25.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=602&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328573/original/file-20200417-192693-5qzp25.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=602&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328573/original/file-20200417-192693-5qzp25.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=756&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328573/original/file-20200417-192693-5qzp25.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=756&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328573/original/file-20200417-192693-5qzp25.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=756&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>Maratus constellatus</em>.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<ul>
<li><strong><em>Maratus inaquosus</em>:</strong> “Dry” or “arid” in Latin, for the dry landscape in Little Desert National Park this species was found in.</li>
</ul>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328595/original/file-20200417-192709-11ql6xj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328595/original/file-20200417-192709-11ql6xj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328595/original/file-20200417-192709-11ql6xj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=689&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328595/original/file-20200417-192709-11ql6xj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=689&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328595/original/file-20200417-192709-11ql6xj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=689&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328595/original/file-20200417-192709-11ql6xj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=866&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328595/original/file-20200417-192709-11ql6xj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=866&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328595/original/file-20200417-192709-11ql6xj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=866&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>Maratus inaquosus</em></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<ul>
<li><strong><em>Maratus laurenae</em>:</strong> Named in honour of my partner, Lauren Marcianti, who has supported my research with enthusiasm over the past few years.</li>
</ul>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328596/original/file-20200417-192725-1hpepf0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328596/original/file-20200417-192725-1hpepf0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328596/original/file-20200417-192725-1hpepf0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328596/original/file-20200417-192725-1hpepf0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328596/original/file-20200417-192725-1hpepf0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328596/original/file-20200417-192725-1hpepf0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1031&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328596/original/file-20200417-192725-1hpepf0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1031&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328596/original/file-20200417-192725-1hpepf0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1031&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>Maratus laurenae</em></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<ul>
<li><strong><em>Maratus noggerup</em>:</strong> Named after the location where this species was found: Noggerup, Western Australia.</li>
</ul>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328597/original/file-20200417-192709-1csx3dg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328597/original/file-20200417-192709-1csx3dg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328597/original/file-20200417-192709-1csx3dg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=543&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328597/original/file-20200417-192709-1csx3dg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=543&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328597/original/file-20200417-192709-1csx3dg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=543&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328597/original/file-20200417-192709-1csx3dg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=682&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328597/original/file-20200417-192709-1csx3dg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=682&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328597/original/file-20200417-192709-1csx3dg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=682&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>Maratus noggerup</em></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<ul>
<li><strong><em>Maratus suae</em>:</strong> Named in honour of photographer Su RamMohan who discovered this species and provided useful information about their locations in Western Australia.</li>
</ul>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328598/original/file-20200417-192709-18ou4xv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328598/original/file-20200417-192709-18ou4xv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328598/original/file-20200417-192709-18ou4xv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=761&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328598/original/file-20200417-192709-18ou4xv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=761&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328598/original/file-20200417-192709-18ou4xv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=761&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328598/original/file-20200417-192709-18ou4xv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=956&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328598/original/file-20200417-192709-18ou4xv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=956&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328598/original/file-20200417-192709-18ou4xv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=956&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>Maratus suae</em></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<ul>
<li><strong><em>Maratus volpei</em>:</strong> Named in honour of photographer Nick Volpe who discovered and collected specimens of this species to be examined in my paper.</li>
</ul>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328599/original/file-20200417-192693-yhlri1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328599/original/file-20200417-192693-yhlri1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/328599/original/file-20200417-192693-yhlri1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=774&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328599/original/file-20200417-192693-yhlri1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=774&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328599/original/file-20200417-192693-yhlri1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=774&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328599/original/file-20200417-192693-yhlri1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=972&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328599/original/file-20200417-192693-yhlri1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=972&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/328599/original/file-20200417-192693-yhlri1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=972&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>Maratus volpei</em></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nick Volpe</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>These names allow us to communicate important information about these animals to other scientists, as well as to build legislation around them in the case there are risks to their conservation status. </p>
<p>I plan on visiting some more remote parts of Australia in hopes of finding more new peacock spider species. I strongly suspect there’s more work to be done, and more peacock spiders to discover.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135201/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Joseph Schubert receives funding by way of employment from Museums Victoria.</span></em></p>“I arrived in Perth and bought a foam mattress for the back of my car – my bed for half of the trip. I stocked up on tinned food, and I headed north in search of these tiny eight-legged gems.”Joseph Schubert, Entomology/Arachnology Registration Officer, Museums Victoria Research InstituteLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1340672020-03-18T18:05:42Z2020-03-18T18:05:42ZWe’ve just discovered two new shark species – but they may already be threatened by fishing<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321329/original/file-20200318-1942-12qjqmq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=37%2C29%2C4955%2C1684&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">One of the newly discovered sixgilled sawshark species (_Pliotrema kajae_).</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Simon Weigmann</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Finding a species that’s entirely new to science is always exciting, and so we were delighted to be a part of <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0228791">the discovery of two new sixgill sawsharks</a> (called <em>Pliotrema kajae</em> and <em>Pliotrema annae</em>) off the coast of East Africa.</p>
<p>We know very little about sawsharks. Until now, only one sixgill species (<em>Pliotrema warreni</em>) was recognised. But we know sawsharks are carnivores, living on a diet of fish, crustaceans and squid. They use their serrated snouts to kill their prey and, with quick side-to-side slashes, break them up into bite-sized chunks. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321317/original/file-20200318-37382-1kvg3zk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321317/original/file-20200318-37382-1kvg3zk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321317/original/file-20200318-37382-1kvg3zk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321317/original/file-20200318-37382-1kvg3zk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321317/original/file-20200318-37382-1kvg3zk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321317/original/file-20200318-37382-1kvg3zk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321317/original/file-20200318-37382-1kvg3zk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321317/original/file-20200318-37382-1kvg3zk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The serrated snout of a sixgill sawshark (<em>Pliotrema annae</em>).</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ellen Barrowclift-Mahon/Marine MEGAfauna Lab/Newcastle University.</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Sawsharks look similar to sawfish (which are actually rays), but they are much smaller. Sawsharks grow to around 1.5 metres in length, compared to 7 metres for a sawfish and they also have barbels (fish “whiskers”), which sawfish lack. Sawsharks have gills on the side of their heads, whereas sawfish have them on the underside of their bodies. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321354/original/file-20200318-1953-1i2ndk3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321354/original/file-20200318-1953-1i2ndk3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321354/original/file-20200318-1953-1i2ndk3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321354/original/file-20200318-1953-1i2ndk3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321354/original/file-20200318-1953-1i2ndk3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321354/original/file-20200318-1953-1i2ndk3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321354/original/file-20200318-1953-1i2ndk3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321354/original/file-20200318-1953-1i2ndk3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A sixgill sawshark (<em>Pliotrema annae</em>) turned on its side, showing gills and barbels.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ellen Barrowclift-Mahon</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Together with our colleagues, we discovered these two new sawsharks while researching small-scale fisheries that were operating off the coasts of Madagascar and Zanzibar. While the discovery of these extraordinary and interesting sharks is a wonder in itself, it also highlights how much is still unknown about biodiversity in coastal waters around the world, and how vulnerable it may be to poorly monitored and managed fisheries.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321322/original/file-20200318-37441-1xec9fr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321322/original/file-20200318-37441-1xec9fr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=549&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321322/original/file-20200318-37441-1xec9fr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=549&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321322/original/file-20200318-37441-1xec9fr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=549&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321322/original/file-20200318-37441-1xec9fr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=690&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321322/original/file-20200318-37441-1xec9fr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=690&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321322/original/file-20200318-37441-1xec9fr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=690&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The three known species of sixgill sawshark. The two new species flank the original known species. From left to right: <em>Pliotrema kajae</em>, <em>Pliotrema warreni</em> (juvenile female) and <em>Pliotrema annae</em> (presumed adult female).</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Simon Weigmann</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Fishing in the dark</h2>
<p>Despite what their name might suggest, small-scale fisheries employ around 95% of the world’s fishers and are an <a href="https://theconversation.com/local-communities-play-outsized-but-overlooked-role-in-global-fisheries-123143">incredibly important source of food and money</a>, particularly in tropical developing countries. These fisheries usually operate close to the coast in some of the world’s most important biodiversity hotspots, such as coral reefs, mangrove forests and seagrass beds. </p>
<p>For most small-scale fisheries, there is very little information available about their fishing effort – that is, how many fishers there are, and where, when and how they fish, as well as exactly what they catch. Without this, it’s very difficult for governments to develop management programmes that can ensure sustainable fishing and protect the ecosystems and livelihoods of the fishers and the communities that depend on them.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321316/original/file-20200318-37397-yjxu6s.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321316/original/file-20200318-37397-yjxu6s.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321316/original/file-20200318-37397-yjxu6s.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321316/original/file-20200318-37397-yjxu6s.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321316/original/file-20200318-37397-yjxu6s.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321316/original/file-20200318-37397-yjxu6s.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321316/original/file-20200318-37397-yjxu6s.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Small-scale fishers of Zanzibar attending their driftnets.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Per Berggren/Marine MEGAfauna Lab/Newcastle University</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While the small-scale fisheries of East Africa and the nearby islands are not well documented, we do know that there are at least <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s11160-017-9494-x">half a million small-scale fishers using upwards of 150,000 boats</a>. That’s a lot of fishing. While each fisher and boat may not catch that many fish each day, with so many operating, it really starts to add up. Many use nets – either driftnets floating at the surface or gillnets, which are anchored close to the sea floor. Both are cheap but not very selective with what they catch. Some use longlines, which are effective at catching big fish, including sharks and rays.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/sharks-one-in-four-habitats-in-remote-open-ocean-threatened-by-longline-fishing-120849">Sharks: one in four habitats in remote open ocean threatened by longline fishing</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In 2019, our team reported that catch records <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2018.12.024">were massively underreporting the number of sharks and rays caught</a> in East Africa and the nearby islands. With the discovery of two new species here – a global hotspot for shark and ray biodiversity – the need to properly assess the impact of small-scale fisheries on marine life is even more urgent.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321319/original/file-20200318-37401-19jg3xr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321319/original/file-20200318-37401-19jg3xr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321319/original/file-20200318-37401-19jg3xr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=207&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321319/original/file-20200318-37401-19jg3xr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=207&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321319/original/file-20200318-37401-19jg3xr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=207&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321319/original/file-20200318-37401-19jg3xr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=260&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321319/original/file-20200318-37401-19jg3xr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=260&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321319/original/file-20200318-37401-19jg3xr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=260&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"><em>Pliotrema kajae</em>, as it might look swimming in the subtropical waters of the western Indian Ocean.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Simon Weigmann</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>How many other unidentified sharks and other species are commonly caught in these fisheries? There is a real risk of species going extinct before they’re even discovered. </p>
<p>Efforts to monitor and manage fisheries in this region, and globally, must be expanded to prevent biodiversity loss and to develop sustainable fisheries. There are simple methods available that can work on small boats where monitoring is currently absent, including using cameras to document what’s caught. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321356/original/file-20200318-1972-n0x8np.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321356/original/file-20200318-1972-n0x8np.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321356/original/file-20200318-1972-n0x8np.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321356/original/file-20200318-1972-n0x8np.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321356/original/file-20200318-1972-n0x8np.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321356/original/file-20200318-1972-n0x8np.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321356/original/file-20200318-1972-n0x8np.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A selection of landed fish – including sharks, tuna and swordfish.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Per Berggren</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The discovery of two new sixgill sawsharks also demonstrates the value of scientists working with local communities. Without the participation of fishers we may never have found these animals. From simple assessments all the way through to developing methods to alter catches and manage fisheries, it’s our goal to make fisheries sustainable and preserve the long-term future of species like these sawsharks, the ecosystems they live in and the communities that rely on them for generations to come.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134067/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Per Berggren receives funding from the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association (Grant Number MASMA/CP/2014/01).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andrew Temple receives funding from the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association (Grant Number MASMA/CP/2014/01).</span></em></p>Scientists thought there was only one sixgill sawshark species – until now.Per Berggren, Marine MEGAfauna Lab, Newcastle UniversityAndrew Temple, Postdoctoral Research Associate in Marine Biology, Newcastle UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1285462019-12-11T02:33:48Z2019-12-11T02:33:48ZHappy 6ft: ancient penguins were as tall as people. We’ve discovered the species that started the downsizing trend<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306004/original/file-20191210-95153-yrojtr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C2074%2C3000&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The newly discovered _Kupoupou stilwelli_ would have once swam in the waters around Chatham Island near New Zealand.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Illustration by Jacob Blokland</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>A new species of extinct penguin has been discovered. It’s helping us bridge the gap between modern penguins and their counterparts from the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/Paleocene-Epoch">Paleocene epoch</a> - the 10-million-year period following dinosaur extinction.</p>
<p>The world’s oldest known penguins existed only a few million years after the mass-extinction event that wiped out the dinosaurs – <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-birds-survived-the-dinosaur-killing-asteroid-97021">except for birds</a>, the only dinosaurs that didn’t go extinct.</p>
<p>Some of these earliest penguins had <a href="http://nzbirdsonline.org.nz/species/mannerings-penguin">longer legs</a> than their living relatives. And some species, including the colossal <em>Kumimanu biceae</em>, would have rivalled the size of you or I. </p>
<p>Published in the journal Palaeontologia Electronica, our <a href="https://palaeo-electronica.org/content/2019/2773-chatham-island-penguins">research</a> describes a unique, archaic penguin species that lived alongside these giant early species, between 62.5 and 60 million years ago.</p>
<p>Unlike its huge counterparts, <em>Kupoupou stilwelli</em> was only about the size of a modern <a href="http://nzbirdsonline.org.nz/species/king-penguin">king penguin</a>. It also had leg bone proportions akin to living penguins. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/new-zealand-discovery-of-fossilised-monster-bird-bones-reveals-a-colossal-ancient-penguin-89028">New Zealand discovery of fossilised 'monster bird' bones reveals a colossal, ancient penguin</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Agile ancient divers</h2>
<p>Penguins today are well-adapted for a largely aquatic lifestyle. </p>
<p>They’re specialised for flying seamlessly through water – a medium 800 times denser than air. Modern penguins have dense bones to counteract buoyancy, and flat, wide, flipper-like wings with stiffened joints which powerfully propel them underwater.</p>
<p>The oldest penguins we know of had already begun to fly down this watery path.</p>
<p><em>Kupoupou</em> was no exception. Although its flattened wing bones weren’t as wide or stiff as its modern relatives, CT scans of <em>Kupoupou</em> bones reveal they were dense, too. </p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306018/original/file-20191210-95125-ftapa9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306018/original/file-20191210-95125-ftapa9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306018/original/file-20191210-95125-ftapa9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=856&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306018/original/file-20191210-95125-ftapa9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=856&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306018/original/file-20191210-95125-ftapa9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=856&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306018/original/file-20191210-95125-ftapa9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1076&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306018/original/file-20191210-95125-ftapa9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1076&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306018/original/file-20191210-95125-ftapa9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1076&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">An artistic interpretation of <em>Kupoupou stilwelli</em>, swimming in the seas around what would one day be known as Chatham Island.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jacob Blokland / Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Importantly, <em>Kupoupou</em> is the first <em>non-giant</em> penguin species discovered to have relatively short legs, similar to penguins today. </p>
<p>Modern penguins use their short hind limbs for waddling on land. But in water, these short legs allow a hydrodynamic shape that maximises swimming efficiency and helps the bird steer. </p>
<p>It could be <em>Kupoupou</em> used its legs in a similar way, and was likely a good swimmer.</p>
<p>These short legs coincide with the <em>Kupoupou’s</em> stout and short tarsometatarsus (a foot bone unique to birds, made out of fused elements), which is distinctly different from the <a href="http://nzbirdsonline.org.nz/species/mannerings-penguin">longer bones found in the feet of other</a> similar-sized Paleocene species.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/when-mammals-took-to-water-they-needed-a-few-tricks-to-eat-their-underwater-prey-73770">When mammals took to water they needed a few tricks to eat their underwater prey</a>
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</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Other giant penguins alive at that time had shorter legs like <em>Kupoupou</em>, and their greater mass possibly allowed them to forage even deeper in the aquatic realm.</p>
<p>What makes <em>Kupoupou</em> unique is that it’s the oldest species known to resemble living penguins in <em>both</em> size and leg proportions. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306104/original/file-20191210-95120-oxf7a4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306104/original/file-20191210-95120-oxf7a4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306104/original/file-20191210-95120-oxf7a4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=435&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306104/original/file-20191210-95120-oxf7a4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=435&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306104/original/file-20191210-95120-oxf7a4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=435&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306104/original/file-20191210-95120-oxf7a4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=546&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306104/original/file-20191210-95120-oxf7a4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=546&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306104/original/file-20191210-95120-oxf7a4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=546&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">The general evolutionary position of early penguins, including <em>Kupoupou</em>, compared to modern penguins and their closest living relatives, tubenosed birds (such as albatrosses and shearwaters). The right-hand images illustrate differences in wing and foot (tarsometatarsus) bone proportions between typical tubenoses, <em>Kupoupou</em>, and modern penguins. The bones are not to scale.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jacob Blokland / Author provided</span></span>
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</figure>
<h2>How we made our discovery</h2>
<p>In 2003, Monash University Associate Professor Jeffrey Stilwell discovered a variety of fossils on coastal platforms at Chatham Island, a landmass 800km east of New Zealand’s South Island. </p>
<p>An assortment of fossils were <a href="https://www.nzgeo.com/stories/the-lost-world-of-rekohu-unlocking-ancient-secrets-of-the-chatham-islands/">collected during expeditions</a> over the next several years, ranging from isolated bones to partial skeletons encased within hard rock. Some of this material appeared to belong to long-extinct penguins.</p>
<p>Exposed and isolated bones could be studied directly. However, for bones of single individuals surrounded by hard rock, CT scanning was required to virtually reveal what lay inside.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306015/original/file-20191210-95130-1mnnqey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306015/original/file-20191210-95130-1mnnqey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306015/original/file-20191210-95130-1mnnqey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=358&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306015/original/file-20191210-95130-1mnnqey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=358&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306015/original/file-20191210-95130-1mnnqey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=358&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306015/original/file-20191210-95130-1mnnqey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306015/original/file-20191210-95130-1mnnqey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306015/original/file-20191210-95130-1mnnqey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">CT scanning helped us virtually model bone material that lay within hard rock.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jacob Blokland / Author provided</span></span>
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<p>Using these methods, we were able to identify at least two species of ancient penguin from Chatham Island. </p>
<p>The newly named species, <em>Kupoupou stilwelli</em>, was represented by multiple specimens consisting of numerous wing and leg elements. “Kupoupou” means diving bird in Te Re Moriori, while “stilwelli” honours Stilwell, who organised and led the parties involved in the fossil collections. </p>
<p>By today’s standards <em>Kupoupou</em> was large (although likely not exceeding one metre). That said, it was <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn25990-extinct-mega-penguin-was-tallest-and-heaviest-ever/">certainly dwarfed</a> by many other fossil penguins from throughout the entire fossil record, with the oldest being around the same age of <em>Kupoupou</em> and the <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/2/120227-new-giant-penguins-species-science-ksepka-new-zealand/">youngest</a> living about 25-million-years ago. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/old-bones-reveal-new-evidence-about-the-role-of-islands-in-penguin-evolution-110959">Old bones reveal new evidence about the role of islands in penguin evolution</a>
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<p>However, because we do not have the full skeleton for <em>Kupoupou</em>, and because penguin fossils are often of different proportions to the bones of living penguins, exact size estimates for these ancient birds must be taken with caution.</p>
<p>Other bones revealed <em>Kupoupou</em> lived alongside at least one other penguin on Chatham Island, which is slightly larger and more robust. However, these fossils were not named as a new species because the skeleton was too incomplete. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306045/original/file-20191210-95173-44uza9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306045/original/file-20191210-95173-44uza9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306045/original/file-20191210-95173-44uza9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=292&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306045/original/file-20191210-95173-44uza9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=292&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306045/original/file-20191210-95173-44uza9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=292&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306045/original/file-20191210-95173-44uza9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=367&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306045/original/file-20191210-95173-44uza9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=367&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306045/original/file-20191210-95173-44uza9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=367&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">An artistic rendition of early Chatham Island penguins upon a coastal outcrop.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jacob Blokland / Author provided</span></span>
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</figure>
<h2>Another piece of the penguin puzzle</h2>
<p>The ancestors of penguins rapidly radiated into empty oceans following the mass-extinction that wiped out the dinosaurs.</p>
<p>These Chatham Island fossils add to the already large diversity of penguins that lived only a few million years after this event, all of which – apart from <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0016699505000768"><em>Crossvallia unienwillia</em> </a> – were from New Zealand. </p>
<p>This massive diversity in the eastern region of New Zealand’s South Island adds to the hypothesis that penguins first evolved in this region. </p>
<p>It also <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00114-017-1441-0">supports the idea</a> that penguins branched from the lineage leading to their closest living relatives, such as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Procellariiformes">albatrosses and petrels</a>, before dinosaurs went extinct.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/128546/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jacob Blokland receives funding from The Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship.
</span></em></p>This newly discovered species is the oldest one known to resemble today’s penguins in both size and leg proportions, unlike its giant co-habitants at the time.Jacob C. Blokland, Palaeontology PhD Candidate and Casual Academic, Flinders UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1207532019-08-23T03:15:22Z2019-08-23T03:15:22ZCatastrophic Queensland floods killed 600,000 cattle and devastated native species<p>In February, about <a href="http://www.agriculture.gov.au/abares/research-topics/agricultural-commodities/jun-2019/beef">600,000 cattle were killed</a> by catastrophic flooding across north Queensland’s Carpentaria Gulf plains. </p>
<p>The flood waters rose suddenly, forming a wall of water up to 70km wide. Record depths were reached along 500km of the Flinders River, submerging 25,000 square kilometres of country. Cattle were stranded. Many drowned. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/queenslands-floods-are-so-huge-the-only-way-to-track-them-is-from-space-111083">Queensland's floods are so huge the only way to track them is from space</a>
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<p>Even though cattleman Harry Batt lost 70% of his herd, he was <a href="https://www.thecourier.com.au/story/5906068/queensland-floods-decimate-native-wildlife/?cs=10229">more concerned about the wildlife</a>. He said, “all the kangaroos, and bloody little marsupial mice and birds, they couldn’t handle it”.</p>
<p>Harry was right to be concerned. As our research, published today in <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/aec.12803">Austral Ecology</a>, reveals, floods sweeping Australia’s plains have disrupted native species for millions of years. Now, as climate change drives <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10584-016-1689-y">more intense flooding</a>, we will see this effect intensify. </p>
<h2>Flooding causes major disruptions to gene flow</h2>
<p>February’s flood came ten years to the day after a <a href="http://www.bom.gov.au/qld/flood/fld_reports/gulf_floods_jan_mar_2009.pdf">far bigger flood</a> on the adjoining river systems that submerged an area larger than Ireland. It was this flood that first drew our attention to the plight of native species. </p>
<p>Noel was asked by <a href="https://mynortherngulf.org/">Northern Gulf Resource Management Group</a> to survey wildlife in areas affected by the 2009 flood. Over the following four years, he found almost no ground-dwelling reptiles, despite them occurring elsewhere in the region. They appeared to have been washed away or drowned. </p>
<p>Biologists have long known that many species’ ranges are interrupted by the <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1071/MU9870158">Gulf Plains</a>. Hence, these floodplains are considered one of Australia’s most important biogeographic barriers: the Carpentarian Gap. </p>
<p>Many closely related species with a common ancestor are separated by this Gap, including the Golden-shouldered Parrot of Cape York Peninsula and the Hooded Parrot of the Northern Territory. They are thought to have separated around <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1463-6409.2012.00561.x">7 million years ago</a>.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/south-east-queensland-is-droughtier-and-floodier-than-we-thought-97860">South-East Queensland is droughtier and floodier than we thought</a>
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<p>The Gap also separates many other species, including birds, mammals, reptiles and butterflies, at the subspecies or genetic level. Even more species found on either side are just absent from the Gulf Plains. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/285075/original/file-20190722-134095-gtpfir.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/285075/original/file-20190722-134095-gtpfir.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/285075/original/file-20190722-134095-gtpfir.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/285075/original/file-20190722-134095-gtpfir.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/285075/original/file-20190722-134095-gtpfir.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/285075/original/file-20190722-134095-gtpfir.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=750&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/285075/original/file-20190722-134095-gtpfir.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=750&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/285075/original/file-20190722-134095-gtpfir.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=750&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Huge flooding across the Gulf Plains, including the Norman and Flinders Rivers, in February 2009.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://worldview.earthdata.nasa.gov%20under%20Info/About">NASA Worldview</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
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<h2>Flood impacts are immense and under-appreciated</h2>
<p>When biologists first tried to find a reason for these patterns, they only considered aridity. They proposed <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1071/MU9870158">Australia’s arid zone expanded</a> to the Gulf of Carpentaria during ice ages.</p>
<p>There is no evidence for this, but the misunderstanding is completely understandable. </p>
<p>Any dry-season visitor to the Gulf Plains will find a dry, inhospitable environment with few trees or shrubs for shade, cracked clay soils, and lots of flies. European explorers described the region as “God-forsaken”. </p>
<p>But it can be quite a different place in the wet season. </p>
<p>Rains in the Gulf are caused by the summer monsoonal troughs or cyclones. About once a decade, these generate massive downpours. <a href="http://www.bom.gov.au/qld/flood/fld_history/index.shtml">Historical records</a> show at least 14 major floods since 1870. </p>
<p>So, to us, it seemed <em>floods</em> rather than aridity could be the cause of the odd distributions of plants and animals. </p>
<p>We set out to see whether Noel’s findings could have been caused by flooding or whether other factors such as soil, vegetation or climate were more important. </p>
<p>We also wanted to know what other effects floods might have on the region’s ecosystem. Could floods, by eliminating trees and shrubs, be responsible for the hostile appearance of the region? Could ground-dwelling reptiles and birds be underrepresented, not just at Noel’s sites, but on floodplains across the area? </p>
<p>To find out, we divided the area into floodplains and higher-altitude land, and generated 10,000 random sites across the Gulf Plains. We extracted soil, vegetation and rainfall data from national information sources, and examined the patterns.</p>
<p>We found trees and shrubs were significantly less common on floodplains than on land above the flood zone, regardless of soil or rainfall, and tree cover was further reduced on cracking clays. We concluded the plain’s open, hostile appearance is caused by a combination of soils and flooding. </p>
<p>We then examined all gecko, skink and bird records from the <a href="https://www.ala.org.au/">Atlas of Living Australia</a>. </p>
<p>We found ground-living reptiles and birds were much less common on the floodplains, regardless of vegetation or soil. As expected, reptiles were more sensitive to flooding than birds, which can fly to safety during floods. </p>
<p>Finally, we found the sites affected by the 2009 flood had significantly fewer geckos and skinks than other sites across the Gulf Plains. </p>
<h2>Increased flooding from climate change could have major consequences</h2>
<p>Our findings have evolutionary significance that extends into the future. Repeated disruption of species across their distributions affects gene flow and ultimately produces new species. If <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10584-016-1689-y">floods become more frequent</a>, as expected under climate change, so might the rates at which new species form. </p>
<p>They also have serious land management implications. Climate change planning emphasises conserving river corridors as safe refuges from arid conditions. However, periodic scouring of many of the nation’s floodplains – expected to increase under climate change – means that this approach needs rethinking. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/townsville-floods-show-cities-that-dont-adapt-to-risks-face-disaster-112607">Townsville floods show cities that don't adapt to risks face disaster</a>
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<p>We conclude that on the most arid occupied continent on Earth, unpredictable floods may cause the most disruption to the Australian plant and animal life.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/120753/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Noel D Preece received funding from Northern Gulf Resource Management Group. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Gabriel Crowley does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Six months after huge floods swept Queensland we can start to appreciate the huge effect they had on native species.Gabriel Crowley, Adjunct Principal Research Fellow, James Cook UniversityNoel D. Preece, Adjunct Asssociate Professor, James Cook UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1149092019-04-28T20:16:05Z2019-04-28T20:16:05ZHow many species on Earth? Why that’s a simple question but hard to answer<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/270354/original/file-20190423-15194-1hz5xme.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C216%2C5233%2C3252&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">How many species still to name? That's a good question.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock/ju see</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>You’d think it would be a simple piece of biological accounting – how many distinct species make up life on Earth?</p>
<p>But the answer may come as a bit of a shock.</p>
<p>We simply don’t know. </p>
<p>We know more accurately the number of books in the US Library of Congress than we know even the order or magnitude – millions and billions and so on – of species living on our planet, <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.1001130" title="Why Worry about How Many Species and Their Loss?">wrote the Australian-born ecologist Robert May</a>.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/trapdoor-spider-species-that-stay-local-put-themselves-at-risk-114588">Trapdoor spider species that stay local put themselves at risk</a>
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<p>Current estimates for the number of species on Earth range between <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/339/6118/413" title="Can We Name Earth's Species Before They Go Extinct?">5.3 million</a> and <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/05/160502161058.htm" title="Earth may be home to one trillion species">1 trillion</a>.</p>
<p>That’s a massive degree of uncertainty. It’s like getting a bank statement that says you have between $5.30 and $1 million in your account.</p>
<p>So why don’t we know the answer to this fundamental question?</p>
<h2>It’s hard to count life</h2>
<p>Part of the problem is that we cannot simply count the number of life forms. Many live in inaccessible habitats (such as the deep sea), are too small to see, are hard to find, or live inside other living things.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">New species are discovered on almost every dive, says David Attenborough.</span></figcaption>
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<p>So, instead of counting, scientists try to estimate the total number of species by looking for patterns in biodiversity. </p>
<p>In the early 1980s, the American entomologist Terry Erwin <a href="https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/6e7f/a29129b9f65ea6db02a97b155a2edd62c048.pdf" title=" Beetles and other insects of tropical forest canopies at Manaus, Brazil, sampled by insecticidal fogging">famously</a> estimated the number of species on Earth by spraying pesticides into the canopy of tropical rainforest trees in Panama. <a href="https://repository.si.edu/handle/10088/4383" title="Tropical forests: Their richness in Coleoptera and other arthropod species">At least 1,200 species</a> of beetle fell to the ground, of which 163 lived only on a single tree species.</p>
<p>Assuming that each tree species had a similar number of beetles, and given that beetles make up about <a href="https://australianmuseum.net.au/learn/animals/insects/beetles-order-coleoptera/">40% of insects (the largest animal group)</a>, Erwin arrived at a controversial estimate of 30 million species on Earth.</p>
<p>Many scientists believe the 30 million number is far too high. Later estimates arrived at figures under 10 million.</p>
<p>In 2011, scientists used a technique based on patterns in the number of species at each level of biological classification to arrive at a much lower prediction of about <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/333/6046/1083" title="8.7 Million: A New Estimate for All the Complex Species on Earth">8.7 million species</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/271121/original/file-20190426-121233-1y7l2qo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/271121/original/file-20190426-121233-1y7l2qo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/271121/original/file-20190426-121233-1y7l2qo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271121/original/file-20190426-121233-1y7l2qo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271121/original/file-20190426-121233-1y7l2qo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271121/original/file-20190426-121233-1y7l2qo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271121/original/file-20190426-121233-1y7l2qo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271121/original/file-20190426-121233-1y7l2qo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A jewel beetle, one of the more colourful species of insect alive today.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock/Suttipon Thanarakpong</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>All creatures great and very, very small</h2>
<p>But most estimates of global biodiversity overlook microorganisms such as bacteria because many of these organisms can only be identified to species level by sequencing their DNA.</p>
<p>As a result the true diversity of microorganisms may have been underestimated.</p>
<p>After compiling and analysing a database of DNA sequences from 5 million microbe species from 35,000 sites around the world, researchers concluded that there are a staggering <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/05/160502161058.htm" title="Earth may be home to one trillion species">1 trillion species on Earth</a>. That’s more species than the estimated <a href="https://www.space.com/25959-how-many-stars-are-in-the-milky-way.html">number of stars in the Milky Way galaxy</a>.</p>
<p>But, like previous estimates, this one relies on patterns in biodiversity, and not everyone agrees these should be applied to microorganisms.</p>
<p>It’s not just the microorganisms that have been overlooked in estimates of global biodiversity. We’ve also ignored the many life forms that live <em>inside</em> other life forms. </p>
<p>Most – and possibly all – insect species are the victim of at least one or more <a href="https://bmcecol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12898-018-0176-x" title="Quantifying the unquantifiable: why Hymenoptera, not Coleoptera, is the most speciose animal order">species of parasitic wasp</a>. These lay their eggs in or on a host species (think of the movie Aliens, if the aliens had wings). Researchers <a href="http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20150522-the-wasps-that-rule-the-world">suggest</a> that the insect group containing wasps may be the largest group of animals on the planet. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YhUhkvlY23k?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">A parasitic wasp finds a host for her young.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What do we mean by species?</h2>
<p>A more fundamental problem with counting species comes down to a somewhat philosophical issue: biologists do not agree on what the term “species” actually <em>means</em>.</p>
<p>The well-known biological species concept states that two organisms belong to the same species if they can interbreed and produce fertile offspring. But since this concept relies on mating, it cannot be used to define species of asexual organisms such as many microorganisms as well as <a href="https://gizmodo.com/these-asexual-animals-don-t-need-love-on-valentine-s-da-1822975640">some reptiles, birds and fish</a>.</p>
<p>It also ignores the fact that many living things we consider separate species can and do interbreed. For example, dogs, coyotes and wolves <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/coywolves-are-taking-over-eastern-north-america-180957141/">readily interbreed</a>, yet are usually considered to be separate species. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/271133/original/file-20190426-121241-1gjv9yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/271133/original/file-20190426-121241-1gjv9yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/271133/original/file-20190426-121241-1gjv9yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271133/original/file-20190426-121241-1gjv9yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271133/original/file-20190426-121241-1gjv9yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271133/original/file-20190426-121241-1gjv9yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271133/original/file-20190426-121241-1gjv9yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271133/original/file-20190426-121241-1gjv9yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Three six-to-seven-month-old hybrids between a male western gray wolf and a female western coyote resulting from artificial insemination.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0088861">PLOS One (L. David Mech et al)</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Other popular species definitions rely on how similar individuals are to one another (if it looks like a duck, it is a duck), their shared evolutionary history, or their shared ecological requirements.</p>
<p>Yet none of these definitions are entirely satisfactory, and none work for all life forms.</p>
<p>There are at <a href="https://www.biotaxa.org/Zootaxa/article/view/zootaxa.2765.1.5" title="Philosophically speaking, how many species concepts are there?">least 50 different definitions of a species</a> to choose from. Whether or not a scientist chooses to designate a newly found life form as a new species or not can come down to their philosophical stance about the nature of a species.</p>
<h2>The cost of species loss</h2>
<p>Our ignorance about the true biodiversity on our planet has real consequence. Each species is a <a href="https://theconversation.com/natures-hidden-wealth-is-conservations-missed-opportunity-54948">potential treasure trove of solutions to</a> problems including <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4966551/" title="The discovery of artemisinin and Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine">cures for disease</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/learning-new-tricks-from-sea-sponges-natures-most-unlikely-civil-engineers-80373">inspirations for new technologies</a>, sources of new materials and providers of key ecosystem services.</p>
<p>Yet we are living in an age of mass extinction with reports of <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2019-02-12/insect-species-in-decline-and-facing-extinction/10804094">catastrophic insect declines</a>, <a href="https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/extinction-countdown/large-ocean-fish-could-be-gone-by-2050-study-says/">wide-scale depopulation of our oceans</a> and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/sep/29/earth-lost-50-wildlife-in-40-years-wwf">the loss of more than 50% of wildlife</a> within the span of a single human life.</p>
<p>Our current rate of biodiversity loss means we are almost certainly losing species faster than we are naming them. We are effectively burning a library without knowing the names or the contents of the books we are losing.</p>
<p>So while our estimate of the number of species on the planet remains frustratingly imprecise, the one thing we do know is that we have probably named and described only a tiny percentage of living things.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/squid-team-finds-high-species-diversity-off-kermadec-islands-part-of-stalled-marine-reserve-proposal-110893">Squid team finds high species diversity off Kermadec Islands, part of stalled marine reserve proposal</a>
</strong>
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<p>New species are turning up all the time, at a rate of roughly 18,000 species <a href="https://www.esf.edu/species/">each year</a>. For example, researchers in Los Angeles found <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/la-is-buzzing-with-30-new-fly-species/">30 new species</a> of scuttle fly living in urban parks, while researchers also in the US discovered <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/12/1-458-bacteria-species-new-to-science-found-in-our-belly-buttons/266360/">more than 1,400 new species of bacteria</a> living in the belly buttons of university students. </p>
<p>Even if we take the more conservative estimate of 8.7 million species of life on Earth, then we have only described and named about 25% of life forms on the planet. If the 1 trillion figure is correct, then we have done an abysmally poor job, with 99.99% of species still awaiting description. </p>
<p>It’s clear our planet is absolutely teeming with life, even if we cannot yet put a number to the multitudes. The question now is how much of that awe-inspiring diversity we choose to save.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/114909/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tanya Latty receives funding from the Australian Research Council, AgriFutures Australia and the Branco Weiss Society in Science foundation. She is affiliated with the Australian Entomological Society.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Timothy Lee has previously received funding from the Australian Biological Resources Study, the Australian Lepidoptera Research Endowment and Sugar Research Australia. He is a member of the Australian Entomological Society.</span></em></p>New species are being discovered all the time, which only adds to the problem of knowing how many there are on the planet today. It also helps to know what we mean by species.Tanya Latty, Senior Lecturer, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of SydneyTimothy Lee, Associate Lecturer in Life and Environmental Sciences, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1139462019-03-28T11:55:16Z2019-03-28T11:55:16ZMeet the mini frogs of Madagascar – the new species we’ve discovered<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/266293/original/file-20190328-139356-1es1hv5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">An adult male "Mini mum", one of the world’s smallest frogs, rests on a fingernail with room to spare.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Dr Andolalao Rakotoarison</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Miniaturised frogs form a fascinating but poorly understood group of amphibians. They have been exceptionally prone to taxonomic underestimation because when frogs evolve small body size they start to look remarkably similar – so it is easy to underestimate how diverse they really are. </p>
<p>As part of my PhD I have been studying frogs and reptiles on Madagascar, an island in the Indian Ocean that’s a little larger than mainland France. It has more than 350 frog species, giving it possibly the highest frog diversity per square kilometre of any country in the world. And many of these frogs are very small. </p>
<p>We have added to the knowledge of these tiny species by <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0213314">describing</a> five new species as belonging to the group of frogs commonly referred to as “narrow-mouthed” frogs. The largest of them could sit happily on your thumbnail. The smallest is just longer than a grain of rice. </p>
<p>We’ve dubbed three of the new species as “<em>Mini</em>” – a group that is wholly new to science. When a whole group or “genus” like this is new to science, it needs a name, so that information about it can be accumulated with a fixed anchor. We also wanted to have a bit of fun. And so, we named the species <em>Mini mum</em>, <em>Mini scule</em>, and <em>Mini ature</em>. Adults of the two smallest species – <em>Mini mum</em> and <em>Mini scule</em> – are 8–11 mm, and even the largest member of the genus, <em>Mini ature</em>, at 15 mm, could sit on your thumbnail with room to spare.</p>
<p>The other two new species, <em>Rhombophryne proportionalis</em> and <em>Anodonthyla eximia</em>, are also just 11–12 mm, and are much smaller than their closest relatives.</p>
<p>The frogs we identified belong to three different groups that are not closely related to one another, and they have independently evolved to be much smaller in body size. </p>
<p>Our findings tell us that the evolution of body size in Madagascar’s miniature frogs has been more dynamic than previously understood. And future studies will hopefully shed light on the interplay between the ecology and evolution of these remarkably diverse frogs.</p>
<h2>Tiny frogs</h2>
<p>The “narrow-mouthed” frog species is part of a highly diverse family found on every continent except Antarctica and Europe. But the frogs we found on the island belong to the subfamily <em>Cophylinae</em> which is endemic to Madagascar. The subfamily has a particularly large diversity of miniaturised species which, based on their small size, were historically attributed to the single genus <em>Stumpffa</em>. </p>
<p>Although most narrow-mouthed frogs are small to moderately large, many are tiny, including the smallest frog in the world, <em>Paedophryne amauensis</em> from Papua New Guinea. It’s adult body size is 7.7 mm. That’s about the length of your average Tic Tac sweet.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/266295/original/file-20190328-139364-1nmr8vc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/266295/original/file-20190328-139364-1nmr8vc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/266295/original/file-20190328-139364-1nmr8vc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/266295/original/file-20190328-139364-1nmr8vc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/266295/original/file-20190328-139364-1nmr8vc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/266295/original/file-20190328-139364-1nmr8vc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/266295/original/file-20190328-139364-1nmr8vc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Mini mum lives in the leaf litter in the fragmented lowland forest along Madagascar’s east coast.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Andolalao Rakotoarison</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>What’s remarkable is that the smallest frogs have evolved to become tiny again and again, often several times within a single region, as highlighted in this new study. This means there must be some kind of advantage to being a tiny frog or something that allows tiny frogs to survive, thrive, and diversify.</p>
<h2>What we found</h2>
<p><em>Mini mum</em> is from Manombo in eastern Madagascar. It is one of the smallest frogs in the world, reaching an adult body size of 9.7 mm in males and 11.3 mm in females. It could sit on a thumbtack.</p>
<p><em>Mini scule</em> from Sainte Luce in southeastern Madagascar is slightly larger and has teeth in its upper jaw. </p>
<p><em>Mini ature</em> from Andohahela in southeast Madagascar is larger than its relatives but is similar in build. </p>
<p><em>Rhombophryne proportionalis</em> from Tsaratanana in northern Madagascar is unique among Madagascar’s miniaturised frogs because it’s a proportional dwarf, meaning it has the proportions of a large frog, but is only about 12 mm long. This is very unusual among tiny frogs, which usually have large eyes, big heads, and other characters that are “baby-like”; so-called “paedomorphisms”.</p>
<p><em>Anodonthyla eximia</em> from Ranomafana in eastern Madagascar is distinctly smaller than any other <em>Anodonthyla</em> species. It lives on the ground, providing evidence that miniaturisation and terrestriality may have an evolutionary link. Maybe getting really small makes it hard to stay up in the trees. </p>
<h2>Finding frogs</h2>
<p>Finding tiny frogs in the leaf litter is hard work. We often spend months in the forest, under very difficult conditions, trying to find frogs and reptiles. Because of their size, the tiny frogs are exceptionally hard to find so the trick is to listen for their calls, and then track them. </p>
<p>But calling males often sit one or two leaves deep and stop calling at the slightest disturbance. When you eventually find a frog, you record its call and then try to catch it – a very tough exercise. </p>
<p>Then there are other challenges. Cyclones often batter Madagascar’s eastern coast in the December–March rainy season, which can make searching even more difficult. We found <em>Anodonthyla eximia</em> in the early morning after a terrible night, when a cyclone swept away most of the camp. Miserable conditions for biologists can make great conditions for frogs. </p>
<p>Madagascar is a treasure trove of biodiversity. We already know hundreds of species of reptiles and amphibians from the island and, because we have DNA information on a lot of species that are not yet named, we also have a sense for how much we <em>don’t</em> know about that diversity. </p>
<p>It is one of the best places in the world to study reptiles and amphibians and their evolutionary processes. But we are aware that we’re working in a very tight time frame. Madagascar’s forests <a href="https://rainforests.mongabay.com/deforestation/archive/Madagascar.htm">are dwindling</a> at an astounding rate. It is one of the poorest countries, and with growing populations, the forests bear the brunt of human needs. Conservation work in the country is intensifying, but there is still a long way to go before we can consider species like <em>Mini mum</em> and <em>Mini scule</em> safe for the foreseeable future.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/113946/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mark D. Scherz does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The largest of these frogs could sit happily on your thumbnail. The smallest is just longer than a grain of rice.Mark D. Scherz, PhD candidate, Technical University BraunschweigLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1012282018-09-11T21:39:05Z2018-09-11T21:39:05ZHow naming poison frogs helps fight their illegal trade<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/232507/original/file-20180817-165958-1oju4dz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=609%2C994%2C2984%2C1790&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Oophaga andresii is one of the newly described species of Harlequin poison frog.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jose Andrés</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Dart frogs from the rainforests of Central and South America make their powerful poison by eating toxic bugs. Their bold colours warn predators: “Do not eat me or you will regret it.” </p>
<p>Orange, yellow and blue hues on deep black or light-brown frogs form patterns similar to those of wasps and bumblebees. These designs vary greatly, and frogs found in different parts of the jungle, sometimes only a few kilometres apart, do not look alike. </p>
<p>For many years, the scientists studying these frogs didn’t know if their different colours meant they were different species or variations of the same one. If they were different species, how likely was it that each would remain alive in the near future? And once the species were named, did we even have the legal instruments to protect them? </p>
<p>With wild populations of poison frogs quickly declining, we have been trying to answer these questions to help protect these captivating animals. </p>
<h2>What makes a species?</h2>
<p>The concept of species is a human construct, and species boundaries are often more ambiguous than most of us assume. </p>
<p>For instance, the Florida panther, once thought to be a unique species based on its physical and ecological distinctiveness, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/jhered/91.3.186">is now considered an isolated population of the North American cougar</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/235870/original/file-20180911-144458-3pzzni.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/235870/original/file-20180911-144458-3pzzni.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235870/original/file-20180911-144458-3pzzni.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235870/original/file-20180911-144458-3pzzni.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235870/original/file-20180911-144458-3pzzni.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=529&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235870/original/file-20180911-144458-3pzzni.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=529&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235870/original/file-20180911-144458-3pzzni.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=529&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A North American cougar and three cubs in Florida.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(David Shinkle, Conservancy of Southwest Florida)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Defining a species is far from trivial. For many biologists, species are groups of organisms that can breed with each other to produce fertile offspring. But nature can be more complex than that. </p>
<p>As temperatures rise in the Canadian Arctic, polar bears are forced to go on land where they sometimes encounter — and mate with — grizzly bears. By the above definition of a species, grizzly-polar bear hybrids (sometimes called pizzly or a grolar bears) should not exist. But they do. </p>
<p>As proof, a strange-looking bear was shot on Victoria Island (Kitlineq) in 2010 at the boundary between Nunavut and the Northwest Territories. Genetic analyses confirmed that <a href="http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2010/05/03/scientists-hunter-kills-first-hybrid-polar-grizzly-bear-offspring/">the father of the dead bear was a grizzly and that his mother was a grizzly-polar bear hybrid</a>. </p>
<h2>Big data steps in</h2>
<p>The ability to read genes led scientists to believe that we can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2008.0081">rely on their genetic differences to draw lines between species</a>. But that is not always straightforward, either. </p>
<p>Recent analyses of the human genome has shown that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1706426114">modern humans have not only Neanderthal genes but genes of the mysterious Denisovans</a>, a third hominid species whose fossils have only been found in a single remote cave in the mountains of Siberia. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/ancient-teenager-the-first-known-person-with-parents-of-two-different-species-101965">Ancient teenager the first known person with parents of two different species</a>
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<p>So, are these hominids three separate species? </p>
<p>There is an emerging consensus among scientists that species can be delimited by considering the individuals’ physical features, their genes and the environment in which they live. </p>
<p>In the era of “big data,” biologists are now combining ecological data gathered by satellites, such as temperature variation and rainfall patterns, with millions of genetic sequences and complex morphological measurements to separate one species from another. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/235860/original/file-20180911-144470-1dhqu4n.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/235860/original/file-20180911-144470-1dhqu4n.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235860/original/file-20180911-144470-1dhqu4n.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235860/original/file-20180911-144470-1dhqu4n.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235860/original/file-20180911-144470-1dhqu4n.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235860/original/file-20180911-144470-1dhqu4n.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235860/original/file-20180911-144470-1dhqu4n.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Individuals of the same species can have very different colours.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Andrés Posso-Terranova</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This approach hasn’t yet been applied to these three hominids. But at frog level, we used this approach to find that <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/mec.14803">there are in fact five species of Harlequin poison frogs — not two</a>. </p>
<h2>War is peace for poison frogs</h2>
<p>The consequences of how we choose to define a species aren’t only a matter for science. Taxonomists (the scientists who specialize in describing species) don’t work in a neutral socio-political or legal environment. </p>
<p>Historically, the export of wildlife has represented an additional source of income in rural communities across the world. In Colombia, poison dart frogs have been heavily trafficked from the rainforests of the Pacific coast to Europe, North America and Japan, where they are sold to collectors for up to US$2,000 per breeding pair. (The estimate comes from illegal websites on the dark web.) </p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/235868/original/file-20180911-144482-6gi2r0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/235868/original/file-20180911-144482-6gi2r0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235868/original/file-20180911-144482-6gi2r0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235868/original/file-20180911-144482-6gi2r0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235868/original/file-20180911-144482-6gi2r0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235868/original/file-20180911-144482-6gi2r0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235868/original/file-20180911-144482-6gi2r0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">An inspector from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service checks a dried frog shipment.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsnortheast/6103514711">(USFWS/Bill Butcher)</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>For the past 50 years, the <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/cobi.12902">Colombian civil war has paradoxically acted as a de facto buffer</a> protecting the localities where some of these frogs exist. As peace between the Colombian government and the guerrillas settles in, the populations of Harlequin poison frogs are increasingly exposed to illegal trafficking, and the proposed land reforms are likely to result in a rapid increase of agriculture and extractive industries.</p>
<h2>New name, new trophy</h2>
<p>The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (<a href="https://www.cites.org/sites/default/files/eng/disc/CITES-Convention-EN.pdf">CITES</a>), adopted in March 1973, regulates the worldwide trade of wildlife, and its goal is to ensure that international commerce does not threaten the survival of plants and animals. </p>
<p>However, only scientifically recognized species can be fully protected by this treaty. </p>
<p>Officials estimate that more than 59,000 wild animals are illegally smuggled each year from Colombia. Some of the newly identified Harlequin poison frogs are considered the “holy grail” for frog aficionados because of their striking appearance. </p>
<p>Because, as a whole, Colombian Harlequin poison frogs are still abundant, they are labelled as a “least concern species” in both CITES and the government’s conservation list. But our new study reveals that within this mixed bag of frogs, the newly discovered species are already in trouble as smugglers drive populations to extinction to meet the demands of the pet market.</p>
<p>Identifying and naming new species is a double-edged sword. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/235857/original/file-20180911-144479-v43eu0.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/235857/original/file-20180911-144479-v43eu0.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235857/original/file-20180911-144479-v43eu0.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235857/original/file-20180911-144479-v43eu0.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235857/original/file-20180911-144479-v43eu0.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235857/original/file-20180911-144479-v43eu0.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235857/original/file-20180911-144479-v43eu0.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Oophaga histrionica, known as bulleye by collectors.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Andrés Posso-Terranova</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>On the one hand, we cannot legally protect what is not identified. On the other hand, naming new species might create shiny new trophies for collectors. </p>
<p>There are other effective methods for preserving species that have little to do with taxonomy. Governments can enact protections and legal regulations that limit or prohibit the development of productive or extractive activities in certain sites such as national parks. However, poaching and trafficking inside these areas still threaten sought-after animals and plants. </p>
<p>It can also be argued that by splitting and re-delineating already named organisms, we are artificially increasing Earth’s biodiversity. The question is, what should we fear more, species “inflation” or the lack of tools to protect nature? In our view, changes to these species lists are necessary to reflect the current state of our scientific knowledge of biodiversity and to improve conservation.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/101228/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jose Andres receives funding from NSERC. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andres Posso-Terranova does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>With their jewel-like colours, Colombia’s poison frogs are coveted by collectors. Does naming their species help protect them or make them a target for trophy hunters?Jose Andres, Associate Professor, University of SaskatchewanAndres Posso-Terranova, PhD, University of SaskatchewanLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.