Scientists in a remote area of the Peruvian Amazon rainforest have found almost two dozen new species, including an ugly blob-headed fish and an amphibious mouse with webbed paws.
According to a recent report published in Conservation International’s Rapid Assessment Program Bulletin of Biological Assessment, at least 27 species that are new to science were first documented during an excursion to the highly forested northwest Alto Mayo region of Peru in 2022.
According to the paper, 48 more species that may be new to science but need more research were found with the new species.
According to the report, the RAP team found remarkably high levels of biodiversity overall, which far surpassed their expectations given that the majority of the study sites were close to towns and communities. The findings also underscored the significance of conservation and research initiatives in human-dominated landscapes.
Along with the amphibious mouse and the odd-looking catfish, scientists also found a new bat, a variety of fish, butterflies, and amphibians, a squirrel that is only distantly related to other squirrels that science has identified, and another kind of mouse with stiff, prickly fur.
According to Trond Larsen, the head of Conservation International’s Rapid Assessment Program and one of the report’s authors, “even though this is the first report in which scientists have described these species, the indigenous groups in the area who assisted scientists in their work have extensive knowledge about many of them.”
Working so closely with the Awajun people was just amazing. Larsen told Reuters that they have a wealth of traditional knowledge about the plants, animals, and woods that they coexist with.
Larsen added that the report published by Conservation International also emphasizes the need to do more to protest endangered species, even though he and his team were naturally excited about discovering the previously undiscovered species. One of the squirrels was cute and gorgeous, with a chestnut-brown color and a quick growth rate.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature, the world’s authority on the subject, listed 49 species as endangered in the show, including two kinds of critically endangered monkeys, according to the RAP article.
According to the authors of the report, over-exploitation (such as illicit hunting and fishing), deforestation, and expanding agriculture are some of the human activities that have contributed to the decline of many of the rare species listed in the report.
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