Scientists surveying a nature reserve in South Africa have discovered 18 previously unrecorded species of invertebrates, including spiders, snails, millipedes, earthworms and centipedes.
The trove of creatures was uncovered in eight days by researchers and volunteers working for the environmental charity Earthwatch at the Mkhambathi nature reserve on the spectacular Wild Coast on the Eastern Cape.
However, scientists warned that planned developments in the area could threaten the ecosystem and deny them the chance to identify further species.
Jan Venter, an ecologist working for Eastern Cape Parks, which manages the reserve, said that the 75km² area had previously attracted only ad hoc surveys and butterfly collectors.
“To get so many species in one survey shows the importance of the reserve. It’s a very special area, conservation-wise. If we do another survey, we’ll find just as many,” Venter said.
The team suspects that another 18 species might be discovered.
The number of identified species on the planet — 2 million so far — could represent only 2 percent of all those that exist. South Africa, one of the most biodiverse countries in the world, and its neighbors are prime locations for adding to the species catalogue.
Michelle Hamer, a scientist at the South African National Biodiversity Institute, said: “These discoveries are important because they highlight just how little we know about our biodiversity, even in a relatively well-studied country like South Africa ... many of the species we collected seem to be unique to a small area in or around Mkhambathi.”
The area has been earmarked for a toll road and titanium mining by an Australian company, though the development is said to be on hold because of the recession.
“There is also a lot of pressure to develop tourism infrastructure inside the reserve,” Hamer said. “This means that many of these species could have disappeared before even being discovered. If we understand the importance of the area in terms of its invertebrate fauna, then we can try to protect it.”
“Will it make a difference ... if these species go extinct? We don’t know for sure, but we do know that every species that is removed ... results in some weakening of the ecosystem,” Hamer said.
A report highlighting the data on the invertebrates at Mkhambathi was presented to Eastern Cape Parks scientists for use in conservation management.
A fire caused by a burst gas pipe yesterday spread to several homes and sent a fireball soaring into the sky outside Malaysia’s largest city, injuring more than 100 people. The towering inferno near a gas station in Putra Heights outside Kuala Lumpur was visible for kilometers and lasted for several hours. It happened during a public holiday as Muslims, who are the majority in Malaysia, celebrate the second day of Eid al-Fitr. National oil company Petronas said the fire started at one of its gas pipelines at 8:10am and the affected pipeline was later isolated. Disaster management officials said shutting the
DITCH TACTICS: Kenyan officers were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch suspected to have been deliberately dug by Haitian gang members A Kenyan policeman deployed in Haiti has gone missing after violent gangs attacked a group of officers on a rescue mission, a UN-backed multinational security mission said in a statement yesterday. The Kenyan officers on Tuesday were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch “suspected to have been deliberately dug by gangs,” the statement said, adding that “specialized teams have been deployed” to search for the missing officer. Local media outlets in Haiti reported that the officer had been killed and videos of a lifeless man clothed in Kenyan uniform were shared on social media. Gang violence has left
US Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday accused Denmark of not having done enough to protect Greenland, when he visited the strategically placed and resource-rich Danish territory coveted by US President Donald Trump. Vance made his comment during a trip to the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, a visit viewed by Copenhagen and Nuuk as a provocation. “Our message to Denmark is very simple: You have not done a good job by the people of Greenland,” Vance told a news conference. “You have under-invested in the people of Greenland, and you have under-invested in the security architecture of this
Japan unveiled a plan on Thursday to evacuate around 120,000 residents and tourists from its southern islets near Taiwan within six days in the event of an “emergency”. The plan was put together as “the security situation surrounding our nation grows severe” and with an “emergency” in mind, the government’s crisis management office said. Exactly what that emergency might be was left unspecified in the plan but it envisages the evacuation of around 120,000 people in five Japanese islets close to Taiwan. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has stepped up military pressure in recent years, including
RSS