Researchers discover 20 new species of frogs, snakes and more in the Bolivian Andes Dec 17, 2020, 09:03 PM
facebook
email
The Chironius scurrulus snake was among the species identified during a recent assessment of the Bolivian Andes.
Courtesy of Trond Larsen of Conservation International/Handout via REUTERS
A team of 17 researchers spent two weeks in the Bolivian Andes assessing the ecosystem.
They found 20 new species never before identified in science.
The effort was part of Conservation International s Rapid Response Program to quickly research ecosystems in need of protection.
Scientists who explored an ecosystem high in the Bolivian Andes discovered 20 new species that had never been identified before, according to Conservation International, which ran the expedition.
A scientific expedition to La Paz, Bolivia, discovered the cloud forest in the Bolivian Andes was hiding 20 species previously unknown to science. Among the bumper crop of new species are the mountain fer-de-lance viper, the Bolivian flag snake, the lilliputian frog, as well as four shiny new butterfly species. Co-led by Trond Larsen, director of Conservation International’s Rapid Assessment Program (RAP) and Claudia Cortez, head of Conservation and Wildlife Management for the Municipal Government of La Paz, the research saw 17 scientists trek to the Chawi Grande, a locality belonging to the Hualylipaya community of La Paz, an area considered the heart of the region and known as the Zongo Valley.
Courtesy of Trond Larsen of Conservation International/Handout via REUTERS
A team of 17 researchers spent two weeks in the Bolivian Andes assessing the ecosystem.
They found 20 new species never before identified in science.
The effort was part of Conservation International s Rapid Response Program to quickly research ecosystems in need of protection.
Scientists who explored an ecosystem high in the Bolivian Andes discovered 20 new species that had never been identified before, according to Conservation International, which ran the expedition.
A team led by biologist Trond Larsen hiked for two weeks through Bolivia s Zongo Valley, a region masked by clouds more than 10,000 feet above sea level, to assess the ecosystem.
Previously thought extinct, the devil-eyed frog is also found after over 20 years
A tiny frog measuring just 0.3 of an inch (10mm) long – less than the diameter of a 5p coin – is among the discoveries in a pristine section of the Andes mountain range in Bolivia.
The lilliputian frog may be the smallest amphibian in the Andes and among the smallest amphibian in the world, researchers say.
ADVERTISEMENT
The creature was found during an expedition led by US non-profit organisation Conservation International in the Zongo Valley near the city of La Paz in the South American country.
Researchers found a total of 20 species that were entirely new to science – including a mountain viper, a Bolivian flag snake , four orchids and four butterflies.