A new report from the conservation organization WWF said that some 1,060 new species have been found on or near the island of New Guinea between 1998 and 2008.
The report titled Final Frontier: Newly Discovered Species of New Guinea (1998-2008) said the animals discovered are 580 invertebrates, 134 amphibians, two birds and 71 fish, including an extremely rare 2.5m river shark.
The island of New Guinea, earth's largest tropical island, covers less than one percent of the earth's landmass. It shelters six to eight percent of the world's biological species, more than two thirds of which are found nowhere else on earth.
If you look at New Guinea in terms of biological diversity, it is much more like a continent than an island, Neil Stronach, program representative for WWF Western Melanesia, said in a statement.
Scientists found an average of two new species each week from 1998 [to] 2008-nearly unheard of in this day and age, Stronach added.
Check some of them here.
Blue-Eyed Spotted Cuscus: Found in 2004 on Indonesian New Guinea, the blue-eyed spotted cuscus (Spilocuscus wilsoni) is a small possum.Tim Flannery, WWF"Striking" Damselfish: Found in 1999, the "striking" blue fish lives in the pristine Coral Triangle, a region that supports the most diverse marine ecosystems on Earth.G.R. Allen, WWFFleshy-Flowered Orchid: The fleshy-flowered orchid (Cadetia kutubu) is one of eight new orchid species found in New Guinea's Kikori region during the decade-long survey.Wayne Harris, WWFSnub-Fin Dolphin: Snub-Fin was found in 2005 in the waters south of New Guinea.Guido J. Parra, WWFGiant Bent-Toed Gecko: Giant bent-toed gecko was discovered in 2001 in Indonesia.Paul Ritchie, WWF"Magnificent" Orchid: The "magnificent" pink orchid Dendrobium limpidum was formally named in 2003.Bob Bower, B2 Photography/WWFRainbow Fish: Seven new species of rainbow fish, including Chilatherina alleni (pictured) were found in New Guinea during the ten-year period.G.R. Allen, WWFWith a a "mesmerizing pattern of turquoise and blue," the monitor lizard Varanus macraei was discovered on the island of Batanta, off the Peninsula of Papua, in 2001.Lutz Obelgonner, WWFIn 2005, the wattled smoky honeyeater was found during a Conservation International expedition into the mist-shrouded Foja Mountains of Indonesia's Papua Province.Bruce Beehler, WWF