"Flying frog" and world's smallest deer discovered in Eastern Himalayas.Byline: ANI Washington, August 11 (ANI): Scientists have discovered over 350 new species including the world's smallest deer, a "flying frog flying frog n. Either of two arboreal frogs (Rhacophorus reinwardtii or R. nigropalmatus) of southeast Asia, having toes connected by broad webbing and capable of making long, gliding leaps. " and a 100 million-year old gecko gecko (gĕk`ō), small or medium-sized lizard of the family Gekkonidae. The more than 300 species are distributed throughout the warm regions of the world, mostly in the Old World. Despite folklore to the contrary, their bite is not poisonous. in the Eastern Himalayas. The new species include 244 plants, 16 amphibians amphibians members of the animal class Amphibia. Includes frogs, toads, newts, salamanders and cecilians all capable of living on land or in water. , 16 reptiles, 14 fish, 2 birds, 2 mammals and at least 60 new invertebrates. A decade of research carried out by scientists in remote mountain areas endangered by rising global temperatures brought exciting discoveries such as a bright green frog green frog Rana clamitans. that uses its red and long webbed feet to glide in the air. One of the most significant findings was not exactly "new" in the classic sense. A 100-million year-old gecko, the oldest fossil gecko species known to science, was discovered in an amber mine in the Hukawng Valley The Hukawng Valley is an isolated valley in Burma, roughly 5,586 square miles (14468 km) in area. It is located in Tanaing Township in the Myitkyina District of Kachin State in the northernmost part of the country. in the northern Myanmar. The report mentions the miniature muntjac muntjac: see deer. muntjac or barking deer Any of about seven species of solitary, nocturnal deer, native to Asia and introduced into England and France, that constitute the genus Muntiacus (family Cervidae). , also called the "leaf deer," which is the world's oldest and smallest deer species. Scientists initially believed the small creature found in the world's largest mountain range was a juvenile of another species, but DNA tests confirmed the light brown animal with innocent dark eyes was a distinct and new species. The Eastern Himalayas harbor a staggering 10,000 plant species, 300 mammal species, 977 bird species, 176 reptiles, 105 amphibians and 269 types of freshwater fish. The region also has the highest density of Bengal tigers in the world and is the last bastion of the charismatic greater one-horned rhino. "The good news of this explosion in species discoveries is tempered by the increasing threats to the Himalayas' cultural and biological diversity," said Jon Miceler, Director of WWF's Eastern Himalayas Program. "This rugged and remarkable landscape is already seeing direct, measurable impacts from climate change and risks being lost forever," he added. Historically, the rugged and largely inaccessible landscape of the Eastern Himalayas has made biological surveys in the region extremely difficult. As a result, wildlife has remained poorly surveyed and there are large areas that are still biologically unexplored. Today further species continue to be unearthed Unearthed is the name of a Triple J project to find and "dig up" (hence the name) hidden talent in regional Australia. Unearthed has had three incarnations - they first visited each region of Australia where Triple J had a transmitter - 41 regions in all. and many more species of amphibians, reptiles and fish are currently in the process of being officially named by scientists. (ANI) Copyright 2009 Asian News International The Asian News International (ANI) agency provides multimedia news to China and 50 bureaus in India. It covers virtually all of South Asia since its foundation and presently claims, on its official website, to be the leading South Asia-wide news agency. (ANI) - All Rights Reserved. Provided by Syndigate.info an Albawaba.com company |
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