• HOME
  • NEWS
    • BIOENGINEERING
    • SCIENCE NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • FORUM
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • CONTACT US
Monday, August 15, 2022
BIOENGINEER.ORG
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • NEWS
    • BIOENGINEERING
    • SCIENCE NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • FORUM
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • CONTACT US
  • HOME
  • NEWS
    • BIOENGINEERING
    • SCIENCE NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • FORUM
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • CONTACT US
No Result
View All Result
Bioengineer.org
No Result
View All Result
Home NEWS Science News Biology

New major discovery in the animal kingdom

Bioengineer by Bioengineer
December 16, 2021
in Biology
0
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on RedditShare on Telegram

Researchers recently made a major discovery ­­– 14 new species of shrews, which is the largest number of new mammals described in a scientific paper since 1931. After a decade-long journey taking inventory of Indonesian shrews living on the island of Sulawesi, a group of scientists led by Louisiana State University mammologist Jake Esselstyn has identified 14 new endemic species.

Fourteen new shrews discovered

Credit: Jake Esselstyn, LSU

Researchers recently made a major discovery ­­– 14 new species of shrews, which is the largest number of new mammals described in a scientific paper since 1931. After a decade-long journey taking inventory of Indonesian shrews living on the island of Sulawesi, a group of scientists led by Louisiana State University mammologist Jake Esselstyn has identified 14 new endemic species.

The findings are detailed in the recently published paper, “Fourteen New, Endemic Species of Shrew (Genus Crocidura) from Sulawesi Reveal a Spectacular Island Radiation,” in a new issue of the Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History.

Joining Esselstyn’s research journey was current LSU doctoral student Heru Handika and LSU alumnus Mark Swanson, along with Anang Achmadi from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences in Cibinong, Indonesia; Thomas Giarla from Siena College in Loudonville, N.Y.; and Kevin Rowe from Museums Victoria in Melbourne, Australia.

“It’s an exciting discovery, but was frustrating at times,” said Esselstyn, curator of mammals at the LSU Museum of Natural Science and associate professor in the Department of Biological Sciences. “Usually, we discover one new species at a time, and there is a big thrill that comes from it. But in this case, it was overwhelming because for the first several years, we couldn’t figure out how many species there were.”

A clearer picture began to emerge once the research team examined an extensive collection of genetic and morphological data from new specimens they collected between 2010 and 2018, combined with old specimens collected in 1916. In total, the group examined nearly 1,400 specimens, and they recognized 21 species on Sulawesi, including the 14 new species. The known diversity of shrews on Sulawesi is now three times more than is known from any other island.

Shrews are a diverse group of mammals—461 species have been identified so far—and they have a nearly global distribution. These small insectivorous animals are closer relatives to hedgehogs and moles than to any other mammals.

This discovery is a major milestone in Esselstyn’s research. He first became interested in testing ecological and evolutionary hypotheses that might explain shrew diversity in Indonesia when he was a graduate student at the University of Kansas. After finishing his degree, Esselstyn and Achmadi began capturing shrews on the island in 2010, and they soon realized there were too many undocumented species to test those ideas.

Now that he feels he has a handle on the shrew diversity of the island, Esselstyn is interested in exploring the geographic, geological and biological factors that have contributed to Sulawesi’s extraordinary biodiversity.

“Taxonomy serves as the foundation of so much biological research and conservation effort. When we don’t know how many species there are or where they live, our capacity to understand and preserve life is severely limited. It’s essential that we document and name that diversity,” Esselstyn said. “If we can make discoveries of this many new species in relatively well-known groups like mammals, imagine what the undocumented diversity is like in less conspicuous organisms.”



Journal

Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History

DOI

10.1206/0003-0090.454.1.1

Method of Research

Survey

Subject of Research

Animal tissue samples

Article Title

Fourteen New, Endemic Species of Shrew (Genus Crocidura) from Sulawesi Reveal a Spectacular Island Radiation

Article Publication Date

15-Dec-2021

Share12Tweet7Share2ShareShareShare1

Related Posts

Image

Weird and wonderful world of fungi shaped by evolutionary bursts, study finds

August 15, 2022
Genius dog

Gifted dogs are more playful

August 15, 2022

Scientists develop gel made from spider silk proteins for biomedical applications

August 15, 2022

DREADDful mimicry

August 15, 2022

POPULAR NEWS

  • Picture of the horse specimen.

    Ancient DNA clarifies the early history of American colonial horses

    56 shares
    Share 22 Tweet 14
  • Fatigue, headache among top lingering symptoms months after COVID

    40 shares
    Share 16 Tweet 10
  • Ill-fated ‘Into the Wild’ adventurer was victim of unfortunate timing, Oregon State study suggests

    39 shares
    Share 16 Tweet 10
  • Skin: An additional tool for the versatile elephant trunk

    38 shares
    Share 15 Tweet 10

About

We bring you the latest biotechnology news from best research centers and universities around the world. Check our website.

Follow us

Tags

VirologyZoology/Veterinary ScienceViolence/CriminalsUrogenital SystemVehiclesVaccineUniversity of WashingtonVaccinesVirusUrbanizationWeaponryWeather/Storms

Recent Posts

  • Sugar chain on cell surface directs cancer cells to die
  • Colorful solar panels could make the technology more attractive
  • Nuclear war would cause a global famine and kill billions, Rutgers-led study finds
  • Irreversible declines in freshwater storage projected in parts of Asia by 2060
  • Contact Us

© 2019 Bioengineer.org - Biotechnology news by Science Magazine - Scienmag.

No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
    • Home Page 2
  • News
  • National
  • Business
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Science

© 2019 Bioengineer.org - Biotechnology news by Science Magazine - Scienmag.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In