New amphibian family find for India (Opera, function, virtually)

[Brian.Pearson]

"We studied the molecules (DNA) and the morphology, both internal and external, to identify the species," he told BBC News.


When the analysis was complete, the researchers found they had not only a new species on their hands, but the first representative of a hitherto unknown family.

[DanielWayne]

I enjoyed the article. Actually when I was a kid I loved to read about reptiles and amphibians, and I tried to catch any that I could find outside, much to the dismay of my family. I knew what caecilians were, so it was cool to real an article about them.

[Stumbler.]

That's cool! It's nice that we are still making new discoveries like this in the world.

The amphibians might look a bit creepy or wormy-looking for those that are scared of worms/snakes though.

[jtur88]

New species of frogs are being discovered by the dozen in India, mostly in vanishing habitats:

Dozen New Tree Frogs Discovered In Rapidly Vanishing Habitat In India

India has about twice as many known species of amphibians as North America.

[Brian.Pearson]

It would be nice if we could preserve a bunch of these fauna and flora before they disappear.

[jtur88]

Originally Posted by Brian.Pearson

It would be nice if we could preserve a bunch of these fauna and flora before they disappear.

Why? A million years from now, after the planet has rid itself of Humans, the biosphere will be nicely speciated, with every niche filled with successful and functioning organisms, some with cute big-eyed babies (see Neoteny). Most will be quite different from those species that exist today. No impartial observer of the planet then will even suspect that anything had ever gone so horribly wrong.

Preserving species is a luxury, that is the first to be jettisoned when faced with competitive priorities. Imagine an endangered snail in the Euphrates. Do you think Operation Desert Storm or Shock And Awe would have worked around it to preserve its habitat? Do the Sudanese care if the firewood they cook with is from an endangered species of tree?

The reason they are endangered today is because they have a virtually zero chance of survival in the present world, no matter what humans do to preserve them for a decade or two. They have simply failed to evolve their own survival strategy in the face of the competition.

[Brian.Pearson]

Hmm, well you have a point. Still, there could be some utility in many of these critters, finding and killing invasive species. Hopefully, they, themselves, don't end up being invasive.