126 new species identified in Mekong region in 2011 – Including Beelzebub bat

Extraordinary new species discoveries in the Greater Mekong

December 2012. A new bat named after its devilish appearance, a subterranean blind fish, a ruby-eyed pit viper, and a frog that sings like a bird are among the 126 species newly identified by scientists in the Greater Mekong region in 2011, and described in a new WWF report, Extra Terrestrial.

Bats
Among the ten species highlighted in the report is the aptly named Beelzebub's tube-nosed bat, a diminutive but demonic-looking creature known only from Vietnam. Beelzebub's bat, like two other tube-nosed bats discovered in 2011, depends on tropical forest for its survival and is especially vulnerable to deforestation. In just four decades, 30 per cent of the Greater Mekong's forests have disappeared.

"While the 2011 discoveries affirm the Mekong as a region of astonishing biodiversity, many new species are already struggling to survive in shrinking habitats," said Nick Cox, Manager of WWF-Greater Mekong's Species Programme. "Only by investing in nature conservation, especially protected areas, and developing greener economies, will we see these new species protected and keep alive the hope of finding other intriguing species in years to come."

Walking fish
A new ‘walking' catfish species (Clarias gracilentus), discovered in freshwater streams on the Vietnamese island of Phu Quoc, can move across land using its pectoral fins to stay upright while it wiggles forward with snake-like movements. And a dazzling miniature fish (Boraras naevus), just 2cm in length, was found in southern Thailand and named after the large dark blotch on its golden body (naevus is Latin for blemish).

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