Myanmar’s ghost monkey among the new species found in the Mekong region Environmental News
[ad_1]
Popa langur has been found on the steep slopes of an extinct volcano in Myanmar among the 224 new species listed by the World Wildlife Fund.
There is a monkey with ghostly white circles around its eyes among the 224 new species listed in the latest update of the WWF World Wildlife Fund. Greater Mekong region.
The conservation group’s report highlights the need to protect the region’s rich biodiversity and habitat, which includes Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Myanmar.
The listed species were found in 2020, but last year’s report was delayed.
The monkey is called Popa langur because it lives on the slopes of the extinct Mt Popa volcano in Myanmar. It was the only new mammal found.
There are also dozens of newly identified reptiles, frogs and newts, fish and 155 plant species found in Laos, including the only known juicy bamboo species.
The Mekong region is a biodiversity hotspot, home to tigers, Asian elephants, the saola, a rare animal also known as the Asian accord, and thousands of other species.
In Vietnam, researchers also found a brightly colored horned frog on Mount Ky Quan San on a peak at an altitude of more than 2,000 meters (6,500 feet).
Including this latest list, scientists have identified more than 3,000 new species in the region since 1997, the WWF said.
Long stern It was identified based on the genetic pairing of recently collected bones from specimens from the British Museum of Natural History collected more than a century ago, according to the report. The two main distinguishing features were the wide white rings around the eyes and the mustache facing the front.
WWF, working with Fauna and Flora International, captured images of monkeys using camera traps in 2018. The FFI reported the discovery last year.
Under threat
New species alert! ⁇
In 2020, a team of scientists discovered 224 species in the Greater Mekong region ????
These include the horned frog and the serpent of Mount Ky Quan San ???????????? #MekongNewSpecies
More information here: https://t.co/fHTfvURRUD pic.twitter.com/ALjWhkvSst
– WWF UK (@wwf_uk) January 27, 2022
The monkey is a candidate for listing on the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as an endangered species, the report said, with only 200-250 survivors believed to rarely survive. spot.
Emphasizing the need for this work, More than 38,000 of the 138,000 species monitored by the IUCN are at risk of extinction.
A new type of begonia with red flowers and berry-shaped fruits was also found in the highlands of Myanmar, where illegal mining and logging have become an increasingly serious threat in the country, which is in the midst of a political upheaval after the military took over. almost a year ago.
Although it invades humans in tropical forests and other wilderness areas, much of the Great Mekong is still little explored and dozens of new species are found each year – a glimmer of hope as many species become extinct.
Not all new species are found in deep forests. One of the new plant species is a ginger plant called “chinchilla stink” because of its pungent odor, similar to that of large beetles, used to make a type of pasta served with Thai chilli rice, the report said.
It was found in northeastern Thailand, in a vegetable store.
[ad_2]
Source link
