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Newly Discovered: Previously Unknown Animal Species (Not Alleged Cryptids Or Species Believed Extinct)

'Blood-biting' predator identified
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-21220499

Researchers said the marine predator would have been suited to feeding on large-bodied prey

Prehistoric remains discovered more than a century ago have been identified as a new species of marine super-predator.

Researchers said the 165-million-year-old creature was distantly related to modern-day crocodiles.

Parts of its skeleton were found near Peterborough in the early 1900s and are held at Glasgow's Hunterian museum.

The species has been named as Tyrannoneustes lythrodectikos, meaning "blood-biting tyrant swimmer".

Scientists found that the partial skeleton - including a jawbone and teeth - belonged to a group of crocodiles that were similar to dolphins.

The animal's pointed, serrated teeth and large gaping jaw meant it would have been suited to feeding on large-bodied prey.

A team of experts led by the University of Edinburgh said it would help scientists better understand how marine reptiles were evolving about 165 million years ago.

'Missing link'
The researchers believe the species represents a missing link between marine crocodiles that fed on small prey, and others that were similar to modern-day killer whales, which fed on larger prey.

Their findings have been published in the Journal of Systematic Palaeontology.

Dr Mark Young of the University of Edinburgh's School of GeoSciences, said: "It is satisfying to be able to classify a specimen that has been unexamined for more than 100 years, and doubly so to find that this discovery improves our understanding of the evolution of marine reptiles."

Dr Neil Clark, palaeontology curator at the Hunterian, said little research had been done on the specimen since it was first listed in 1919.

He added: "It is comforting to know that new species can still be found in museums as new research is carried out on old collections.

"It is not just the new species that are important, but an increase in our understanding of how life evolved and the variety of life forms that existed 163 million years ago in the warm Jurassic seas around what is now Britain."
 
A new owl species from Indonesia is formally described
http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/21443913

New owl species Otus jolande, found in Lombok, Indonesia

A new species of owl discovered in Lombok, Indonesia, has been formally described by scientists.

The Rinjani Scops owl (Otus jolandae) was discovered by two separate researchers just days apart in September 2003.

The "common" owl is the first endemic bird species recorded on the island of Lombok.

The first study of the species, by an international team of scientists, is published in the journal PLoS One.

Lead researcher George Sangster, from Stockholm University's Department of Zoology in Stockholm, Sweden, described his first encounter with the new species.

"I found the new owl on 3 September 2003, and Ben King found it independently at a different location on 7 September 2003."

Continue reading the main story
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"I was on Lombok to collect sound recordings of the local population of a species of nightjar. On the first night I arrived on Lombok, we heard the vocalisations of an owl that [I was] not familiar with."

Coincidentally researcher Ben King, from the Ornithology Department, American Museum of Natural History in New York, USA, was in Lombok at the same time, recording the same nightjar species even though the researchers had never met.

Mr King commented, "My experience was similar to George's. While I was tape-recording the nightjar, I heard a song that sounded like an owl, but unlike any I'd heard in years of field work in Indonesia."

Initially Mr Sangster was not certain whether it was a previously known species from Java and Bali that for some reason had been overlooked on Lombok.

This explanation was quickly ruled out when he played back the sound recordings of the owl.

"When we first heard them, the owls were very vocal, and either involved in a duet (of male and female) or a duel (between two males).

Because we were not sure which species this was, we made recordings and played it back.

Owls are territorial, so when their sound is played back in their territory, the owl usually comes to investigates the 'intruder'."

The owls responded strongly to the recordings and approached the researchers, meaning they had a clear view of the owls.

This meant that the volcalisations were indeed the song,a crucial piece of information according to researchers.


Researchers attracted the owls by playing back sound recordings
The Rinjani Scops owls initially looked very similar to the Moluccan Scops owl, a species of owl that was reported to occur on Lombok.

However, their whistles sounded completely different from the "raven-like croak" of the Moluccan Scops Owl.

The researchers only realised that they had in fact discovered a new species when they checked the taxonomic literature and examined their recordings more closely.

Previously no endemic species of birds from the island of Lombok were known.

To verify their findings the scientists studied plumage differences in museums, took measurements of various body parts and analysed the songs.

They used playback in the field to determine which species are present on Lombok and Sumbawa, before using DNA data to compare all relevant species.

Further finds
Mr Sangster explained that there may be further undiscovered bird species in Indonesia.

"Several species have already been announced in the scientific literature but await formal description. There are probably several other species of Scops owls in Indonesia that remain overlooked, even if they are already named.

Until recently, many species of owls were included as 'subspecies' of highly variable, widespread species. Step-by-step, we are learning that this is not always correct, and that some of those are better considered as species."

Mr Sangster was most surprised by how common this new species was. The researchers found the owls at several locations and often heard multiple individuals calling from different directions.

He suggested how this discovery can have long-reaching implications for study.

"In the past, ornithologists and birdwatchers have largely ignored the island because, unlike Java, Bali, Flores and other islands in the region, no bird species were unique to it," he told BBC Nature.

"Our study underscores that even after 150 years of scientific study we still do not know all birds in the Indo-Malayan region. In fact, Indonesia is a treasure trove for taxonomists."

Join BBC Nature on Facebook and Twitter @BBCNature.
 
Spectacular forcepfly species discovered for the first time in South America
February 15th, 2013 in Biology / Plants & Animals

This picture shows the newly-discovered forcepfly Austromerope braziliensis. Credit: Dr. Renato Jose Pires Machado

Forcepflies are usually known as earwigflies, because the males have a large genital forceps that resembles the cerci of earwigs. A new species of forcepfly Meropeidae (Mecoptera) from Brazil was described, representing only the 3rd extant species described in this family and the 1st record of the family from the Neotropical region. The distribution and biogeography of the family are discussed and it is even proposed that Meropeidae originated before continental drift and then divided into two branches, northern and southern, with the breakup of the old supercontinent Pangea. The study was published in the open access journal ZooKeys.

This picture shows a close-up of the peculiar forceps of Austromerope. Credit: Dr. Renato Jose Pires Machado

Despite all previous collecting efforts in this area the species had never been recorded before. The specimen was collected in a private ranch near a forest fragment surrounded by farms in the Atlantic Forest biome, one of the most threatened in Brazil. It can be found in a variety of habitats, including woodland, Jarrah forest, and sand plain vegetation. What makes forcepflies special is the fact that little is known about their biology and the immature stages remain a mystery to scientists. The adults, who are nocturnal and seem to live on the ground, are also capable of stridulation, or the production of sound by rubbing certain body parts.

This picture shows another species of the rare forcepflies (Merope tuber). Credit: Dr. Renato Jose Pires Machado

"The discovery of this new relict species is an important signal to reinforce the conservation of Brazilian Atlantic Forest biome. Certainly there are many more mecopterans species yet to be discovered in these forests", said the lead author Dr Renato Machado from the Texas A & M University, College Station, USA.

More information: ZooKeys 269: 1–10. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.269.4240
Provided by Pensoft Publishers

"Spectacular forcepfly species discovered for the first time in South America." February 15th, 2013. http://phys.org/news/2013-02-spectacula ... erica.html
 
The discovery of a new genus of crustacean and 5 new species
February 15th, 2013 in Biology / Plants & Animals

One of the five new species found, Lauriea teresae. Credit: Enrique Marcpherson

Experts from the Centre for Advanced Studies of Blanes and the University of Barcelona (UB) collected and studied different crustacean specimens during recent expeditions to Madagascar, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, the Philippines and French Polynesia.

Using morphological and molecular data they have discovered five new species of crustaceans in the waters of these regions. They are genetically different but morphologically very similar and they also found a new genus, named Triodonthea. The five new species documented in the study belong to the Lauriea genus of the Galatheidae family, which is differentiated easily from other species of the group as it has very long setae and their legs end in a double spine.

"The Triodonthea is a new genus that it genetically very different from the Lauriea species despite being very morphologically similar. The morphological differences are small to our eyes but reflect great inequalities on a species level," as explained to SINC by Enrique Macpherson, researcher at the Centre for Advanced Studies of Blanes and co-author of the study along with Aymee Robainas-Barcia from the UB.

The description of any new genus is based on the fact that a certain species possesses characteristics that nearby species do not. The separation and ordering of species into genera and families consists of grouping species according to common characteristics using Linnaean Taxonomy, a modern-day biological classification system.

"These species (both from Lauriea as well as Sadayoshia) can be found in the Indian and Pacific Oceans but not in the American Pacific. They are generally in shallow water and mostly in areas of coral reef. Some are endemic, as they only live on an archipelago or in a very specific area, whereas others spread from Madagascar to the French Polynese," points out Macpherson.

This study forms part of previous work that began more than 20 years ago in 1976 with French and US expeditions across the entire Indian and Pacific Oceans. "We have explored the oceans to a depth of up to 5,000 m," ensures the researcher.

The expeditions collect samples from diving, nets, traps and dredges, etc. Animals are separated on board or in the laboratory and then sent to the experts of each taxonomic group. Macpherson specialises in this group of crustaceans: the squat lobsters.

Provided by Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT)

"The discovery of a new genus of crustacean and 5 new species." February 15th, 2013. http://phys.org/news/2013-02-discovery- ... ecies.html
 
Russia finds 'new bacteria' in Antarctic lake

Russian scientists believe they have found a wholly new type of bacteria in the mysterious subglacial Lake Vostok in Antarctica, the RIA Novosti news agency reported on Thursday.
The samples obtained from the underground lake in May 2012 contained a bacteria which bore no resemblance to existing types, said Sergei Bulat of the genetics laboratory at the Saint Petersburg Institute of Nuclear Physics.
"After putting aside all possible elements of contamination, DNA was found that did not coincide with any of the well-known types in the global database," he said.
"We are calling this life form unclassified and unidentified," he added.
The discovery comes from samples collected in an expedition in 2012 where a Russian team drilled down to the surface of Lake Vostok, which is believed to have been covered by ice for more than a million years but has kept its liquid state.
Lake Vostok is the largest subglacial lake in Antarctica and scientists have long wanted to study its eco-system. The Russian team last year drilled almost four kilometres (2.34 miles) to reach the lake and take the samples.
Bulat said that the interest surrounded one particular form of bacteria whose DNA was less than 86 percent similar to previously existing forms.
"In terms of work with DNA this is basically zero. A level of 90 percent usually means that the organism is unknown."
He said it was not even possible to find the genetic descendants of the bacteria.
"If this had been found on Mars everyone would have undoubtedly said there is life on Mars. But this is bacteria from Earth."
Bulat said that new samples of water would be taken from Lake Vostok during a new expedition in May.
"If we manage to find the same group of organisms in this water we can say for sure that we have found new life on Earth that exists in no database," Bulat said.

http://phys.org/news/2013-03-russia-bac ... -lake.html
 
Chester Zoo team on the hunt for new species in Nigeria
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21741911

Gashaka Gumti, known as a biodiversity hotspot, is the largest of Nigeria's seven national parks

A team from Chester Zoo is heading to a remote, mountainous region in Nigeria to assess what species live in an area where few surveys have been conducted.

They are set to carry out the first biodiversity assessment in the Gashaka Gumti National Park.

The area is said to be home to the last viable population of the endangered Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes ellioti).

The 12-strong team will travel out to Nigeria in late March for two weeks.

"Obviously it would be great to find a big, sexy bug or frog but it is hard to tell you how likely that will be because we do not know what is there," explained Chester Zoo director general Mark Pilgrim.

"But there is a good chance that there are a lot of things there that we currently do not know about.

"Whether it is a brightly coloured big thing or not, we will have to wait and see."

Biodiversity hotspot

The park, located in eastern Nigerian on the border with Cameroon, is the country's largest national park and is considered to be one of the continent's most important biodiversity hotspots.

Continue reading the main story
Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee

Scientific name: Pan troglodytes ellioti
Global population: 6,500 (estimated)
One of four subspecies of chimpanzee
Found predominantly in moist and dry forests
Omnivores - fruit comprises about half of their diet, but leaves, bark, and stems are also important
Mammals comprise a small but significant component of the diet of many populations
Chimpanzees form social communities of 5 to 150 animals
(Source: IUCN Red List of Threatened Species)

Dr Pilgrim said that the zoo had been funding the core support facilities a research field camp in the park for more than a decade, but was now becoming directly involved.

"The field camp was mainly set up to look at and protect the Nigerian chimpanzee, which is a sub-population of chimpanzee," Dr Pilgrim added.

The Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee is under threat.

Conservationists say that high levels of exploitation, loss of habitat and habitat degradation has led to the species experiencing a "significant population reduction" over the past 20-30 years.

The total population is estimated to be in the region of 6,500, with up to 1,500 found in the Gashaka Gumti National Park.

It is one of four subspecies of the primate, although some recent research suggest that the differences between the subspecies are too small to warrant such classifications.

The camp allows about 20 students each year to work on projects researching the area's population of primates, led by Prof Volker Sommer from University College London.

Dr Pilgrim told BBC News that the presence of the research projects was "what helps protect the forests".

"By having these strange foreigners wandering around, looking for primates is what keeps the forest safe," he observed.

As the zoo would become more involved in the field project, Dr Pilgrim said that it was also an opportunity to widen the focus of the research carried out from the camp.

"Of course, the flagship research remains the Nigerian chimpanzee, which is what makes the area so special and important.

"But because the zoo has wider expertise than that, we are taking out a range of experts to also look at the frogs, birds, small mammals etc because those areas have had very little in the way of surveys in the past."

"This is really the first biodiversity assessment of this forest."

Dr Pilgrim said that he hoped the data gathered during the the field trips will allow partnerships to be forged with scientists working in Nigerian universities.

"For example, it may be that we turn up a number of strange beetles that we do not have the expertise to identify," he suggested.

"This will be an intense, short trip but there will be more follow-up trips to get some really strong scientific papers out of the project."
 
I'm sure I heard something on the radio the other day about a new species of rat found that's as big as a dog. Google isn't finding it, though, I think it was in New Guinea? Although dogs come in all shapes and sizes, so a rat as big as a Chihuahua wouldn't be that impressive, whereas one as big as an Alsatian is more worrying.
 
gncxx said:
I'm sure I heard something on the radio the other day about a new species of rat found that's as big as a dog. Google isn't finding it, though, I think it was in New Guinea? Although dogs come in all shapes and sizes, so a rat as big as a Chihuahua wouldn't be that impressive, whereas one as big as an Alsatian is more worrying.

Here's a photo of it;

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/imag ... HcEMAasMpY

And that is the one in question, as I remember the scene from the documentary 'Lost land of the volcano'.
 
gncxx said:
I know it sounds inconceivable, but...
You keep using that word...

[EDIT] Just looked at the picture. Apart from the perspective, the lighting makes it look like a composite. (I don't think it is, I think it's just the flash and/or lights they used.)

It's clearly a rodent, but are we sure it's a rat?
 
It's funny but if anything it looks smaller in that shot than on the programme, but it's definitely genuine. Also the zoologists, one of whom is pictured, were sure that it was a rat rather than any other type of rodent.

There are loads of articles about this on the net just type in Lost Land of the volcano, which is the title of the documentary series that shows the animal being found, you can't say captured because it just wanders up to them and lets itself be handled.

In the episode I saw they also discovered a new cuscus species.
 
I remember it was a fascinating programme. As to whether the creatures is really a rat, there are many species of rat, in the genus rattus, but I think similar species in other genera are also often called rats. Whether this was a true rat or the programme makers just thought "giant rat discovered" was a more attention grabbing headline, I don't know.

EDIT http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bosavi_Woolly_Rat Seems the giant woolly rat is considered to be from a separate genus than true rats, so I suppose its pedantic description is as a rat-like rodent.
 
Well I feel cheap and used now, I'll never trust another zoologist again.
 
Was that a recent documentary? Because it was odd it made the news on Monday, it might be a new species of rat after all.
 
gncxx said:
Was that a recent documentary? Because it was odd it made the news on Monday, it might be a new species of rat after all.

No, it was last year some time, and the rat made headlines then too. Although it looks as though it was news this week too. http://m.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-21746237

oldrover said:
Well I feel cheap and used now, I'll never trust another zoologist again.

They're notorious cads!
 
The expedition was about four or five years ago I think. Thing is though these stories tend to crop up again as if new.
 
New species of crocodile newt identified in Vietnam
March 21st, 2013 in Biology / Plants & Animals

Tylototriton ziegleri. Credit: Tao Thien Nguyen

(Phys.org) —A new species of crocodile newt has been identified by a team of Japanese researchers—based on study of a specimen held at Japan's National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo and field study in Vietnam. The original specimen, the team writes in their article describing the find in the journal Current Herpetology, was found in the mountainous northern provinces of Vietnam's Ha Giang and Cao Bang.

A newt is a member of the salamander family (Salamandridae)—genus Tylototriton—though, not all salamanders are considered newts—one of their main differentiating characteristics is rougher skin. They are aquatic and have been found to live in North America, Asia and Europe. Crocodile newts are so named due to their similar appearance to crocodiles—they're much smaller of course, generally only stretching to a few inches long.

The new specimen was found at the museum in Japan, and its curator contacted Kanto Nishikawa, one of the researchers involved in the study. Initial observations indicated nothing out of the ordinary, but after closer inspection, the team realized that its morphology didn't conform to any known species. They subsequently performed genetic analysis which confirmed the newt as a new species: Tylototriton ziegleri— Ziegler's crocodile newt—after the prominent German researcher Thomas Ziegler, who has contributed greatly to the study and conservation of amphibians and reptiles in Vietnam.

The newt is deep black all over save for its orange tipped feet—average male length is estimated to be two to two and a half inches long—the females are slightly longer. Its body sports horny crocodile-looking scales along its length and its head resembles that of a horned toad. All told, the newt offers a very striking appearance.

Crocodile newts are prized by collectors and as a result, 3 of the 10 known species are considered endangered or near extinction, including this new discovery. Their range is limited and as humans move in, changing the terrain, their chances of survival are reduced. For this reason, the researchers suggest that the Ziegler's crocodile newt be added to the list of protected species as soon as possible to help it survive.

More information: A New Species of Tylototriton from Northern Vietnam (Amphibia: Urodela: Salamandridae), Current Herpetology 32(1):34-49. 2013 www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.5358/hsj.32.34

Abstract
A new species of the salamandrid genus Tylototriton is described from Ha Giang and Cao Bang provinces, northern Vietnam, based on molecular and morphological data. The new species differs morphologically from all known congeners in the combination of blackish body coloration; medium-sized body; distinctly rough skin; tubercular vertebral ridge; knob-like rib nodules; large eye; and low, narrow tail. The distribution pattern of species of Tylototriton in Vietnam is briefly discussed.
via Mongabay


© 2013 Phys.org
"New species of crocodile newt identified in Vietnam." March 21st, 2013. http://phys.org/news/2013-03-species-cr ... etnam.html
 
A Bit of Good Luck: A New Species of Burying Beetle from the Solomon Islands Archipelago
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/20 ... 104402.htm

This image shows the new species, Nicrophorus efferens. (Credit: Derek Sikes; CC-BY 3.0)

June 21, 2013 — Scientists discovered a new species of burying beetle, Nicrophorus efferens. Burying beetles are well known to most naturalists because of their large size, striking black and red colors, and interesting reproductive behaviors -- they bury small vertebrate carcasses which their offspring eat in an underground crypt, guarded by both parents.

The study was published in the open access journal Zookeys.

This new species, known from only 6 specimens collected in 1968, sat unrecognized as an undescribed species for over 40 years. "It was a bit of good luck that led to our realization these specimens belonged to an undescribed species. My student, Tonya, was visiting Hawaii for some R&R and decided to look over the burying beetles held by the Bishop Museum. Her PhD research was focused on the biogeography and evolution of a subgroup of these beetles and she identified these six specimens as very interesting and possibly new. The discovery of new species in old collections is a common occurrence and one of the many reasons why museums like the Bishop play a vital role in helping us understand life on this planet.," commented Dr. Sikes, University of Alaska Museum.

The second author, Tonya Mousseau, added, "Without my background and training in the taxonomy of beetles, particularly the burying beetles, this new species might never have been uncovered. This really reinforces the idea that classic training in taxonomy and systematics is absolutely necessary to discovering and understanding the biodiversity of earth."

As far as the authors of this new species know, no one has seen this species alive. "It's likely they bury small vertebrate carcasses, like their close relatives do, but if they have any different behaviors we'll have to wait for future studies to learn of them. "

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Pensoft Publishers. The original story is licensed under a Creative Commons License.
 
A new Anagnorisma moth species from the beautiful Binaloud Mountain Iran
July 17th, 2013 in Biology / Plants & Animals

A new Anagnorisma moth species from the beautiful Binaloud Mountain Iran
This image shows a female Anagnorisma chamrani. Credit: Mehdi Esfandiari

This image shows a female Anagnorisma chamrani. Credit: Mehdi Esfandiari
Researchers described a new species of Noctuidae moth from Iran which is the fifth described species of the genus Anagnorisma. The new species A. chamrani has its name in honour of Dr. Mostafa Chamran (1932-1981), an Iranian scientist and defence minister. The study was published in the open access journal Zookeys.

During an expedition at high altitude of above 2500 m of north-eastern Iran on a cold night in late summer 2012, a couple of undescribed specimens of Anagnorisma moths were collected. The specimens had been attracted to an ultraviolet light trap on the Binaloud Mountain near Mashhad city, the capital of the Khorasan-e-Razavi province of Iran. They have a wingspan of 34-35 mm. The new species was collected in a narrow river valley dominated by mountain sainfoin (Onobrychis cornuta), wild almond (Prunus (Amygdalus) scoparia), and downy brome (Bromus tectorum).

A. chamrani is the sister species of A. eucratides, which is only known from eastern Afghanistan at altitudes of 2050 to 2450 m of the Hindu Kush Mountains. A. eucratides is the most similar species to chamrani in the wing pattern, external and genitalia characteristics and it is also the closest geographically.

A new Anagnorisma moth species from the beautiful Binaloud Mountain Iran
This image shows the habitat of the new species in Binaloud Mountain near Mashhad city. Credit: Mehdi Esfandiari

A new Anagnorisma moth species from the beautiful Binaloud Mountain Iran

This image show a male representative of the new moth species Anagnorisma chamrani. Credit: Mehdi Esfandiari

Owlet moths (family Noctuidae) are a large worldwide group of more than 20,000 species of nocturnal lepidopterans, attracted to lights and mostly have dull protective coloration, although some exceptions occur. Most adults feed on fruits, sap, nectar, or other sweet fluids. The larvae vary considerably in size, and range from dull to colourful and from smooth to hairy. Many species feed on foliage and seeds, whereas others bore through stems and fruits. Larvae of some species are known as cutworms and live in the soil near the soil surface, and they bite off young plants just above ground level at night.

More information: ZooKeys 317: 17–25. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.317.5515
Provided by Pensoft Publishers

"A new Anagnorisma moth species from the beautiful Binaloud Mountain Iran." July 17th, 2013. http://phys.org/news/2013-07-anagnorism ... aloud.html
 
"'Cutest new animal' discovered: It's an olinguito!"
http://www.nbcnews.com/science/cute...5572?utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pulsenews

A new mammal species has been confirmed by scientists, and it's already melting hearts. The olinguito, described as a cross between a house cat and a teddy bear, is the first new carnivorous mammal identified in the Western Hemisphere in 35 years, and it's considered one of the cutest scientific finds in recent memory.

Researchers first spotted the critter on a trip to Ecuador in 2006. On their very first night out into the fig tree jungle near Otonga, they saw it, but it has taken seven years to determine, genetically, how distinct it really was from the other furry mammals it resembles.

About 10 years ago, researchers began suspecting that olinguitos did exist. While rooting through some museum drawers and cabinets at the National Museum, a mammal expert at the Smithsonian Zoo noticed that a collection of bones — labeled for a family of small, furry South American mammals called olingos — didn't completely match. These raccoon-like critters, which hail from the Andean forests, hadn't been too widely studied. So the scientist decided to have a closer look.

Indeed, some of the 16 skeletons in the olingo collection were smaller boned, had larger teeth and smaller skulls. On Thursday, Kristopher Helgen, Curator of Mammals at the Smithsonian National Museum of History, and his fellow scientists announced their discovery.

Helgen has a knack for spotting new finds in museum stashes. Previously, after sorting through museum specimens, he identified two new species of hog badger, and helped reveal that two of those species were threatened by human activity.

When Helgen and his team hit the foggy jungle of the Ecuadorian Andes in 2006 to look for this latest species, they still weren't sure what they would find.

"We didn't even know if it would be still alive, or if we could find it," Roland Kays, a member of that party, told NBC News. But when it was found, Kays said, "It was like, 'C'mon scientist guys, you've seen us long enough. Get our name out there.'"

"It's certainly the cutest new species described in a long time," Kays, director of the Biodiversity and Earth Observation Lab at North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences said. In addition to cat and teddy bear comparisons, "it has a bit of monkey and raccoon thrown in there too," said Kays.

Little did Helgen and company know, this little critter has been hiding in plain sight. For years, museum curators, zoo keepers and researchers mistook the olinguitos for their relatives, the known and named olingos.

Unlike the larger olingos, the new species has a smaller head, larger teeth, a blunter snout, and thicker, redder fur.

By their heritage and body type, the olinguitos are included as newest member of the order Carnivora, which includes civets, and cats, and bears, and hyenas. But this branch of the traditionally meat-loving order has has turned frugivore, and now lives off figs and other tree fruit, in addition to probably hunting small birds, lizards, and insects in the canopy.

Though solitary, it probably interacts with porcupines and kinkajous, some of the other night-time forest prowlers, Kays said.

The olinguito discovery, shows just "how special these Andean cloud forests are," Kays said. "There are these amazing frontiers in our world that haven't been explored ... tropical canopies holding these surprises."
 
It looks so generic that you'd expect it to have already been discovered centuries ago, then forgotten about.
 
The article says that they've been known for years, just misidentified as Olingos.
 
kamalktk said:
About 10 years ago, researchers began suspecting that olinguitos did exist. While rooting through some museum drawers and cabinets at the National Museum, a mammal expert at the Smithsonian Zoo noticed that a collection of bones — labeled for a family of small, furry South American mammals called olingos — didn't completely match. These raccoon-like critters, which hail from the Andean forests, hadn't been too widely studied. So the scientist decided to have a closer look.

Indeed, some of the 16 skeletons in the olingo collection were smaller boned, had larger teeth and smaller skulls. On Thursday, Kristopher Helgen, Curator of Mammals at the Smithsonian National Museum of History, and his fellow scientists announced their discovery.

Helgen has a knack for spotting new finds in museum stashes. Previously, after sorting through museum specimens, he identified two new species of hog badger, and helped reveal that two of those species were threatened by human activity.
I can see the above part of the olingo / olinguito story, being found encouraging by diehard proponents of the flesh-and-blood existence of the North American Bigfoot. A number of these folk contend that Bigfoot bones / skulls / teeth very probably exist, not on display, in the "back rooms" of various museums -- which have over the decades misidentified them, or set them aside in puzzlement, or forgotten that they have them. Hope springs eternal...
 
New Slime-Spitting Velvet Worm Species Discovered in Vietnam

:D

A new species of velvet worm has been discovered in the jungles of Vietnam. Unlike related velvet worms, however, this one has uniquely shaped hairs that cover its body, and it reaches a length of 2.5 inches long, said Ivo de Sena Oliveira, a researcher at the University of Leipzig, Germany, who described the species in Zoologischer Anzeiger.

The paper suggests that thousands of unknown species of velvet worms are just waiting to be found throughout the world's tropical rain forests. Oliveira's research suggests that in the Amazon rain forest alone, there may be a new species of velvet worm about every 15 miles.

Velvet worms are very difficult to find and are little known because they spend much of their lives hidden in moist areas in the soil, under rocks, or in rotting logs. They spend most of their time in this environments partially because their permeable skin makes them dry out quickly. The one time of the year that the Vietnamese species of velvet worm exits the soil is the rainy season.

The velvet worms' bodies are fluid-filled, covered in a thin skin and are kept rigid by pressurized liquid. This hydrostatic pressure is what allows them to walk, although very slowly, on fluid-filled, stubby legs that do not have any joints. The slowness, however, works to their advantage.

For hunting, the velvet worms sneak up on other insects or invertebrates. They hunt by spraying a net of glue onto their prey from two appendages on their backs. The "glue" material consists of a mix of proteins that impedes movement, so that the more the prey moves, the more it gets entangled. They usually choose to take down smaller creatures.

The new species of velvet work, Eoperipatus, totoros, is the first velvet worm to be described from Vietnam, noted study co-author Georg Mayer, who is also a researcher at the University of Leipzig.

The species was first found and listed in a 2010 report by Vietnamese researcher Thai Dran Bai, however this most current study is the first to describe the species in detail.[/b]

http://www.clevelandleader.com/node/21195
 
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