(01 of15)
Open Image ModalPotentially New species of frog discovered in Papua New Guinea (DNA analysis pending) Litoria sp. nov.Living 30 meters above the ground in the forest canopy, this large bright green frog was more often heard than seen in the Muller Range mountains, Papua New Guinea. At night males proclaimed their presence with loud, gutteral croaking sounds high above the camp much to the frustration of Rapid Assessment Program (RAP) team herpetologists Conservation International's Stephen Richards and Chris Dahl. Finally, RAP's local tree-climber proudly delivered a handsome male to them. It was the only individual seen during the RAP survey and almost certainly new to science.© CI/photo by Stephen Richards
(02 of15)
Open Image ModalNewly Discovered katydid in Papua New Guinea - Within the relatively small sample of 42 individuals of the leaf katydids (subfamily Phaneropterinae) in the Muller Range mountains, Rapid Assessment Program scientists Piotr Naskrecki and David Rentz found at least 20 new species! This group, which is restricted to the forest’s canopy, is very difficult to collect, and thus virtually unstudied. This pink-eyed Caedicia probably feeds on flowers of the forest’s tall trees.© Piotr Naskrecki/iLCP
(03 of15)
Open Image ModalNewly discovered frog in Papua New Guinea (PNG) - Platymantis sp. nov. Among the 20 new frogs discovered during Conservation International's two PNG Rapid Assessment Program surveys is a striking, yellow-spotted species of the genus Platymantis. This attractive frog was found only at the highest elevations surveyed in the Nakanai Mountains in April 2009. Males called from small bushes in Bamboo thickets so dense that it took many hours to cut a path just a few meters off the main trail in order to track down their soft calls. This new species belongs to a group of frogs that lay their eggs on land or in the trees where they hatch directly into little froglets, and they have no tadpole stage. This breeding strategy is of immense benefit to frogs in places like the Nakanai Mountains where, despite the high rainfall, surface-water is very scarce because it drains quickly underground to join streams and rivers that flow through underground caves.© CI/photo by Stephen Richards
(04 of15)
Open Image ModalNewly discovered mouse found in Papua New Guinea - An undescribed species of montane mouse documented during the Rapid Assessment Program biodiversity survey in the Nakanai Mountains, Papua New Guinea in April 2009. This beautiful long-tailed mouse was captured at the high elevation site (1590m above sea level). Although it resembles the prehensile-tailed tree mice of New Guinea this remarkable new species has no close relatives and represents an entirely new genus. The new mouse has rather narrow feet and forward-directed incisors that may be used for digging and carrying soil, suggesting that it might be a burrower and live most of its life at or near the forest floor. It is unusual in having a long, pure white tail tip that distinguishes it from all other mice in the area.© CI/photo by Stephen Richards
(05 of15)
Open Image ModalNewly Discovered frog in Papua New Guinea - Litoria sp. nov. A beautiful member of the Litoria genimaculata group, this frog has extremely variable colour patterns and distinct yellow spots in the groin. These colorful frogs were surprisingly difficult to spot during Conservation International's September 2009 assessment, in the lush foliage along small rain forest streams in the Muller Range mountains where they live. Males were most frequently spotted when they uttered a very soft ticking sound to attract females in the vicinity.© CI/photo by Stephen Richards
(06 of15)
Open Image ModalNewly Discovered katydid in Papua New Guinea- This new species of Mossula, found in the Muller Range of Papua New Guinea in September 2009, has a dark emerald coloration that Rapid Assessment Program expert, Piotr Naskrecki, had never observed in katydids.© Piotr Naskrecki/iLCP
(07 of15)
Open Image ModalNewly Discovered frog in Papua New Guinea - Batrachylodes sp. nov.This tiny frog, measuring just 2 cm long, was the most exciting herpetological discovery of the Nakanai Rapid Assessment Program (RAP) survey. It belongs to a group of frogs previously only known from the Solomon Islands, and its discovery in the wet montane forests of New Britain was a complete surprise. Unlike most of his relatives this little frog did not call at night, preferring to advertise for females late in the afternoon, particularly after the drenching tropical storms experienced on most days by the RAP team.© CI/photo by Stephen Richards
(08 of15)
Open Image ModalNewly Discovered spider in Papua New Guinea, A new species of Anelosimus from the Nakanai Mountains of New Britain, one of 4 new species of this genus, previously not documented from New Guinea, discovered in the two Rapid Assessment Program expeditions with Conservation International. The new species include both solitary and subsocial species that seem to have diversified within New Guinea.© Ingi Agnarsson
(09 of15)
Open Image ModalNewly Discovered frog in Papua New Guinea - Choerophryne sp. nov. Rapid Assessment Program (RAP) scientist Stephen Richards of Conservation International traced the soft scratching call of this tiny, long nosed frog into a steep muddy gully in New Guinea's remote Muller Range during a scientific expedition in September 2009. Small enough to sit comfortably on a thumb-nail and hidden from view under a tangle of roots in pouring rain this undescribed frog of the genus Choerophryne nearly eluded the RAP team altogether. Its position given away by one cricket-like call too many, this strange species subsequently turned out to be new to science.© Piotr Naskrecki, iLCP
(10 of15)
Open Image ModalNewly Discovered ant in Papua New Guinea - Strumigenys sp. nov.This new species represents the highest altitude ever recorded for an ant in New Guinea, from nearly 2900 m in the Muller Range. This ant species must have the ability to withstand both cold and wet conditions in the rainy season, as well as extremely hot and dry conditions in the dry season. Their ability to survive is at least partly behavioral - this high-altitude oddity is a slow moving ant that forms small colonies and has low metabolic requirements that allow them to survive on little food for long periods of time. The amazing trap-jaw mouthparts on this ant are specialized tools for catching small, soft bodied invertebrate prey. The jaws are held open at 180 degrees and snapped closed when tiny sensory hairs detect a prey item within range of capture.© Andrea Lucky
(11 of15)
Open Image ModalNewly Discovered katydid in Papua New Guinea - Mossula sp. nov. is one of five new species of this genus discovered during Conservation International's September 2009 Rapid Assessment Program survey of the Muller Range. It has an especially interesting defense mechanism – their hind legs are exceptionally large and spiny, and when threatened they hold them vertically above their head and try to jab you with the spines (very painful).© Piotr Naskrecki/iLCP
(12 of15)
Open Image ModalNewly discovered ant genus and species in Papua New Guinea- Only two individuals were found of this super spiny new ant species which represents an entirely new genus of ants.The workers were found in the canopy of a fallen tree at mid-elevation (1600m). Rapid Assessment Program entomologist Andrea Lucky suspects that this group of ants live up high in trees. This discovery shows that much remains to be learned about the arboreal ant fauna in the Muller Range. The ants that live in tree canopies are hard to reach, and therefore little studied. Because this species is unknown, and quite different from any other known genus of ants, Andrea and colleagues are currently using molecular phylogenetic techniques (DNA) to determine the placement of this ant species among its closest relatives.© Andrea Lucky
(13 of15)
Open Image ModalNewly Discovered Rhododendron in Papua New Guinea - Rhododendron sp. nov. - Rhododendrons are among the most avidly sought-after plants in the SE Asian and Melanesian regions because of their ornamental value. New Guinea is a well-known center of diversity for this group, and this is evidenced by the discovery of a spectacular white, large-flowered species from the subalpine zone during Conservation International’s 2009 Muller Range Rapid Assessment Program survey. The new Rhododendron was extremely abundant, and the discovery of such a conspicuous and locally-common plant suggests that further exploration of New Guinea’s poorly known environments will produce many additional surprises.© Wayne Takeuchi
(14 of15)
Open Image Modal(NOT new to science) This previously seen but still undescribed species endemic to Papua New Guinea was observed by Rapid Assessment Program(RAP) researchers in September 2009.This cute little Feather-tailed Possum, Distoechurus sp., was attracted to a light-trap put up by RAP entomologists to catch night-time insects at around 1600 meters elevation in the Muller Range mountains. It may have been attempting to catch and eat moths. This animal is only known from this site and a nearby mountain, where RAP mammalogist, Ken Aplin, found it in 1985. Genetic analysis carried out after the Muller Range RAP finally proved the distinctness of these populations from all others. It still does not have a name. The possum family Acrobatidae is an ancient one, with fossils known from the early Miocene of northern Australia, but their more recent history is a mystery. Nothing much is known about the ecology of Distoechurus but the structure of its tongue suggests a diet that includes nectar.© CI/photo by Stephen Richards
(15 of15)
Open Image Modal(NOT new to science) This is a previously seen but still undescribed species endemic to Papua New Guinea- observed by Rapid Assessment Program (RAP) researchers - This Tube-nosed Fruit Bat Nyctimene sp. from the Muller Range mountains does not yet have a name but has been found in other parts of New Guinea. It is likely restricted (endemic) to hill forests on the island. Fruit bats are important seed dispersers in tropical forests.© Piotr Naskrecki/iLCP