FIELD NATURAL HISTORY
BIO 120
Instructor: Karl Kleiner, PhD
Lecture: Monday and Wednesday, 3:00 in Campbell 232
Lab: Wednesday 120.103 8:00 AM – 10:45 AM in ESC 108
120.104 11:00 AM - 1:45 PM in ESC 108
On the 3 x 5 index card
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First Name, Last Name (Preferred to be called by)
Major
Hometown, State
Hobbies, what you do in your spare time.
What do you want to be if you grow up?
Prof. Kleiner’s Educational Background
B.S. Biology - Antioch College
M.F.S. - Yale School of Forestry and
Environmental Studies
Ph.D. Entomology – Penn. State University
How many known species are
there in the world?
Are there any new species left
to discover?
2004
Scientists announced in the journal Nature this May (2007) that they had
discovered 700 new species of organisms — including carnivorous
sponges and giant sea spiders — some 2,300 ft. to 19,700 ft. (700 m to
6,000 m) down in the Weddell Sea off Antarctica.
Scientists also reported the identification of 24 new species in an isolated
area of Suriname, where the exploration for bauxite, which is used to
make aluminum, led to the discovery of 12 dung beetles, an ant
species, six species of fish and five new frogs, including one with
fluorescent purple markings.
Other fauna finds include a legless amphibian near Goa, India;
• 11 new species of plants and animals in central Vietnam's tropical
"green" corridor;
• a new monkey in Uganda;
• a sucker-footed bat in Madagascar;
• a clouded leopard in Sumatra and Borneo,
• and a sea cucumber off the coast of Taiwan, nicknamed "Little
Strawberry."
New Species Declared: Clouded Leopard On Borneo And Sumatra
ScienceDaily (Mar. 15, 2007) — Scientists have discovered that the
clouded leopard found on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra is an
entirely new species of cat. The secretive rainforest animal was
originally thought to be the same species as the one found in mainland
Southeast Asia.
• New Species Declared:
Clouded Leopard On Borneo
And Sumatra
• ScienceDaily (Mar. 15, 2007)
— Scientists have discovered
that the clouded leopard found
on the islands of Borneo and
Sumatra is an entirely new
species of cat. The secretive
rainforest animal was originally
thought to be the same
species as the one found in
mainland Southeast Asia.
Bornean clouded leopard Neofelis diardi Kalimantan (Indonesian
Borneo), Indonesia. Bornean clouded leopard (neofelis diardi)
Kalimantan and Sumatra, Indonesia. (Credit: Image courtesy of
World Wildlife Fund)
Deep-sea sea cucumbers (left) and stalked feather stars (right). Not
new, but usually found at much greater ocean depths (800 meters
vs. 200 meters)
February 27, 2007 A potentially new species of shrimplike crustacean in
the genus Epimeria was found near Elephant Island in Antarctica.
"Lost World" Found in Indonesia
Is Trove of New Species
February 6, 2007
• “It really was like crossing some
sort of time warp into a place that
people hadn't been to," said Bruce
Beehler…”
•
“…the conservationists found a
trove of animals never before
documented, from a new species
of the honeyeater bird to more than
20 new species of frogs.”
•
"We were like kids in a candy
store," said Beehler, a bird expert
with Conservation International in
Washington, D.C. "Everywhere we
looked we saw amazing things we
had never seen before."
During a December 2005 expedition in Indonesia's Foja Mountains, a
researcher cradles a golden-mantled tree kangaroo, the first such tree
kangaroo ever spotted in Indonesia.
“The new finds include more than 1,200 varieties of decapods—ten-legged creatures
such as lobsters and crabs—and at least 4,000 types of mollusks, expedition leader
Phillipe Bouchet announced…”
Philippe Bouchet, of the French National Museum of Natural History, holds a new species of lobster called
"enoplometopus" during a press conference Monday at the Philippines National Museum in Manila.
“This is the first photograph ever taken of what scientists are calling New
Guinea's "lost" bird of paradise.
The bird—known as Berlepsch’s six-wired bird of paradise—had been collected
only once in the wild since its discovery more than a century ago. Its precise
home range was unknown until now.”
Within minutes of landing, the scientists encountered a bizarre, orange-faced
honeyeater bird. It proved to be a new bird species, the first discovered in New
Guinea since 1939.
In late 2005 scientists on the island of New Guinea took this first ever
photo of the golden-fronted bowerbird, a bird known to exist since the
1890s but whose precise home was unknown until the 1980s.
“Perhaps the most exciting discovery was a tiny frog less than 14 millimeters
(0.6 inch) long. The animal that was detected only when it produced a soft call
from among the leaves on the steepest part of the forest floor.”
ScienceDaily (Mar. 9, 2007) — Smithsonian scientists have discovered a
biodiversity bounty in the Eastern Pacific--approximately 50 percent of the
organisms found in some groups are new to science. The research team spent
11 days in the Eastern Pacific, a unique, understudied region off the coast of
Panama.
• Although they expected to
find new species, Collin
was surprised by the
sheer number of novel
marine organisms. "It's
hard to imagine, while
snorkeling around a
tropical island that's only a
three-hour flight from the
United States, that half
the animals you see are
unknown to science,"
Collin said.
This marine snail, Tylodina fungina, was collected in a
dredge sample with its host sponge. This species
feeds exclusively on a single species of sponge that
matches its yellow color exactly. Despite being
featured in field guides, very little is known about its
biology. (Credit: Antonia Baeza, Smithsonian Tropical
Research Institute)
Extreme New Species Discovered by Sea-Life Survey
The blind, white, crablike creature dubbed the "yeti crab" was just one of many
new sea creatures discovered this year by the international Census of Marine Life
ocean survey. The census is now in its sixth year and seeks to record all life, living
and extinct, in the oceans by 2010.
ScienceDaily (Jan. 3, 2008) — An online auction for naming rights to a
new owl butterfly species discovered from Mexico's Sonoran Desert
brought a winning bid of $40,800, with proceeds benefiting continued
research on Mexican butterflies.
The species' new common name
is the Minerva owl butterfly and
its scientific name is
Opsiphanes blythekitzmillerae,
named in honor of Margery
Minerva Blythe Kitzmiller of
Ohio on behalf of her five
grandchildren.
This male Opsiphanes butterfly was photographed
Sept. 2, 2000, in Sonora, Mexico. (Credit: Priscilla
Brodkin)
Microcebus lehilahytsara – Discovered August 2005.
Named for U.S. lemur expert Steve Goodman ("lehilahytsara" is
Malagasy for "good man").
•The new primate species brings the
total number of known lemur species
to 49—all of which occur naturally
only on Madagascar or the nearby
Comoros islands.
•Lemurs are the closest living
analogs to our ancient primate
ancestors who lived about 55 million
years ago
•One-third of lemure species are
extinct.
•Remaining species are under threat
from hunting and habitat
destruction.
New Genus Of Self-destructive Palm Found In Madagascar
ScienceDaily (Jan. 22, 2008) — A gigantic palm that flowers itself to death and
exists as part of an entirely unique genus has been discovered in Madagascar.
The mystery palm has a huge trunk which towers over 18m high and fan leaves
which are 5m in diameter -- among the largest known in flowering plants. This
is the most massive palm ever to be found in Madagascar.
"I could hardly believe my eyes
when I saw the images posted
on the web," he says. "The palm
appeared superficially like the
Talipot palm of Sri Lanka, but
that had never been recorded
for Madagascar. Clearly this
was going to be an extremely
exciting discovery and I just
couldn't wait to examine
specimens in detail.”
The leaves of Tahina spectabilis. (Credit: John
Dransfield)
New Sucker-footed Bat Discovered In Madagascar
ScienceDaily (Jan. 5, 2007) — Scientists have discovered a new species of bat
that has large flat adhesive organs, or suckers, attached to its thumbs and hind
feet. This is a remarkable find because the new bat belongs to a Family of bats
endemic to Madagascar--and one that was previously considered to include
only one rare species.
Bats are the last group of land
mammals on Madagascar that
have not been intensively
studied, Goodman said. "Until
a decade ago, these animals
remained largely understudied.
On the basis of recent surveys
and taxonomic research, about
one-third of the island's bat
species were unknown to
scientists until a few years ago,
and the majority of these are
new to science."
New species of sucker-footed bat (M. schliemanni) with
open wings: Ventral view of the holotype of Myzopoda
schliemanni obtained in the Parc National
d'Ankarafantsika in the western portion of Madagascar.
(Photo by Steven M. Goodman, Courtesy of The Field
Museum)
•
•
Science 20 May 2005:
Vol. 308. no. 5725, pp. 1161 - 1164
The Highland Mangabey Lophocebus kipunji: A New Species of
African Monkey
Trevor Jones,1* Carolyn L. Ehardt,2 Thomas M. Butynski,3 Tim R. B.
Davenport,4 Noah E. Mpunga,4 Sophy J. Machaga,4 Daniela W. De
Luca4 A distinct species of mangabey was independently found at two
sites 370 kilometers apart in southern Tanzania (Mount Rungwe and
Livingstone in the Southern Highlands and Ndundulu in the Udzungwa
Mountains). This new species is described here and given the name
"highland mangabey" Lophocebus kipunji sp. nov. We place this monkey in
Lophocebus, because it possesses noncontrasting black eyelids and is
arboreal. L. kipunji is distinguished from other mangabeys by the color of
its pelage; long, upright crest; off-white tail and ventrum; and loud call. This
find has implications for primate evolution, African biogeography, and forest
conservation.
Callicebus cupreus -“
Caquetá titi monkey”
Discovered – 2008
Where - Southern Caquetá,
Colombia
Discovering a new mammal is a
relatively rare occurrence; discovering a
new monkey is rarer still. In 2010, a
team of scientists ventured into the
Amazon jungle in southern Colombia
and documented, for the first time, the
Caqueta **** monkey, an adorable, tiny
primate notable for being one of the few
monogamous monkeys and for purring
like a cat. Primatologist Thomas Defler
led his team to the Colombia's Caqueta
province, which was too dangerous
(because of gang activity) to visit just a
few years ago. Sadly, just as we're
discovering the Caqueta cupreus
monkey, we're considering listing it as
an endangered species. It's estimated
that there are fewer than 250 living in
the wild.
Photo: ZUMA Press
Lepidoblepharis buschwaldii
Scaly-eyed gecko
Discovered Where – Ecuador
The scaly-eyed gecko is easily
the smallest newly discovered
species on our list and can
comfortably perch atop a pencil
eraser. This tiny gecko was found
in the rain forests of Ecuador in a
habitat that is quickly being
destroyed by logging and
farming. The mountainous
hillside where these creatures
live is known to be packed with
undiscovered species, but wildlife
is being threatened by
encroaching development and
climate change.
Photo: Dr. Paul Hamilton/Reptile & Amphibian Ecology International
Leiolepis ngovantrii:
Discovered – Vietnam
When - 2010
A new all-female lizard species discovered in
restaurants in Vietnam’s Ba Ria-Vung Tau
Province. Ngo Van Tri, a herpetologist with
the Vietnam Academy of Science and
Technology, found an establishment selling
live individuals of an unfamiliar variety and
called in for reinforcement from some of his
American colleagues. With the help of local
children in collecting specimens from the wild,
the trio of scientists were able to physically
distinguish this lizard from other species by
rows of enlarged scales on its legs and bony
plates under its toes. Later, DNA analysis
confirmed their finding of a genetically distinct
species.
No males exist at all— and apparently, they
don’t need to! These reptiles are able to
clone themselves, their embryos growing and
developing without ever having been fertilized
by a male. It’s a form of asexual reproduction
known as “parthogenesis”, and is exhibited in
approximately one percent of the world’s
lizard species. Girls just wanna have fun?
Photo credit: Lee Grismer
They say that, due to the lack of genetic
diversity resulting from the parthogenesis,
naturally-occurring hybrid species like
Leiolepis ngovantrii are inherently at a
higher risk for extinction. Though this new
lizard doesn’t seem to be rare now, their
genetic challenges could pose a problem
for its population. One of the researchers
says the Vietnamese have been eating
this lizard for a very long time, but one
must wonder how that might also affect
the population.
Discovered –
remotest parts of the Peruvian Amazon
When – 2010
New Amazonian Armored Catfish Species
Among the 69 species of freshwater fish
discovered in South America this year, was
one wood-eating armored catfish. The
Nature Conservancy’s Paulo Petrey made the
find at the confluence of the Purus and
Curanja Rivers. The fish has specialized
spoon-shaped teeth that enable it to eat wood
submerged in the water. Local indigenous
peoples do eat the fish, but because of the
fish’s mouth structure, it cannot be caught on
a traditional fishing line. Instead, the fish are
either netted or shot. As human expansion
and infrastructure development begin to
consume this region, threats will emerge to
this species’ existence, especially from
increased sedimentation.
They call the fish Ishgunmahuan — which in
their language basically means “large
armored catfish.” In Spanish, it’s “carachama
gigante.”
Photo via The Nature Conservancy
Myanmar Snub-Nosed Monkey
Rhinopithecus strykeri
Discovered When - 2010
A new species of snub-nosed monkey, which is so
snub-nosed that even rainfall sends it into a
sneezing frenzy, was discovered in Myanmar this
year. Scientists were alerted to the monkey by
hunters, and the first and only observed individual
of this new species was killed by local hunters and
eaten shortly after researchers examined it. They
are the first and only snub-nosed monkey found in
Myanmar.
Because of their respiratory issues caused by their
nasal structures (or lack thereof), these colobine
monkeys spend rainy days with their heads tucked
under their knees. The rain helps to make them an
easy target for hunters. Poaching and deforestation
has likely pushed this primate to the brink of
extinction and, based on interviews with hunters,
scientists estimate only around 300
remain. Scientists with Flora & Fauna International
believe this species to be ‘critically endangered’
by IUCN standards. Researchers have found them
in the wild, but have only been able to get
photographs of the dead one presented to them by
hunters.
The images (2012) were taken using camera
traps, triggered by infra-red sensors, placed in the
high, forested mountains of Burma's northerly
Kachin state, bordering China.
Photo credit: Ngwe Lwin
(Image:
FFI/BANCA/PRCF)
When - 2009
Ten newfound species of amphibians — including a frog
with spiky skin and three varieties of frogs with
transparent skin — have been discovered in the
mountains of Colombia. The new species were found
on a recent expedition led by herpetologists from
Conservation International and ornithologists from the
Ecotrópico Foundation in Colombia's mountainous
Tacarcuna area of the Darien, near the border with
Panama.
Over a period of three weeks, the scientists identified
approximately 60 species of amphibians, 20 reptiles
and almost 120 species of birds, many of them
apparently found nowhere else in the world.
When - 2010
An expedition to the coastal rainforests of western
Ecuador has discovered 30 new species of frog and a
slug-sucking snake.
The team of scientists, who work for Reptile and
Amphibian Ecology International, also identified four
new species of stick insect, three species of lungless
salamanders, a tiny, scaly-eyed gecko known as
Lepidoblepharis buschwaldii and a bushmaster – the
longest viper in the world.
Most of the new animals were discovered in the
forests of Cerro Pata de Pájaro, a mountain
overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Its cloud forests are
particularly fecund: 14 of the 30 new species of frog
discovered were found in a patch of cloud forest just a
couple of miles wide, according to the press release.
Glass Frog from Ecuador
Photograph by Paul S. Hamilton, RAEI
Now the bad news.
Not that humans had anything to do with it.
Bison skull pile - 1870
(Photo by Dan Crosbie courtesy
Canadian Ice Service)
The arrows point to unusual white noses in a cluster of bats in a New
York cave during the winter in 2006. The white is apparently caused by
a fungus and may be related to an unusual number of bat deaths. Read
below for more information. (Photo by Nancy Heaslip)
(AP) ALBANY, N.Y. — Scientists studying white nose
syndrome in bats estimate the fungal ailment has killed at
least 5.7 million bats in 16 states and Canada, providing
alarming new numbers about the scope of its decimation.
White nose is caused by a fungus that prompts bats to
wake from their winter hibernation and die after they fly
into the cold air in a doomed search for insects. First
detected in a cave west of Albany in 2006, white nose
has spread to 16 states from the Northeast to the South
and as far west as Kentucky. It also has been detected in
four Canadian provinces.
Save the whales!
Collect the whole set. Why?
Ziconotide is the synthetic equivalent of w-cono-peptide
MVIIA, a 25-amino-acid polybasic peptide present in the
venom of Conus magus, a marine snail.
The synthetic form has been found to ease the pain in
cancer and AIDS patients who have not found relief from
morphine or other conventional painkillers.
http://grimwade.biochem.unimelb.edu.au/cone/fish2.mov
http://grimwade.biochem.unimelb.edu.au/cone/envenom.html