(Dec. 17) -- A rat believed to be extinct for 11 million years, a spider
> with a foot-long legspan, and a hot pink cyanide-producing "dragon
> millipede" are among the thousand newly discovered species in the largely
> unexplored Mekong Delta region.
>
> The region, including parts of Vietnam and five other countries, is home = to
> 1,068 new species found between 1997 and 2007, according to a World Wildl= ife
> Fund report released this week.
>
> Some of the creatures were not lurking in fertile floodplains or tropical > foliage.
> A scientist visiting an outdoor restaurant was startled to see a Laotian
> rock rat among the nearby wildlife. The hairy, nocturnal, thick-tailed ra= t,
> which resembles a squirrel, had been thought for centuries to be extinct. >
> "There is a certain amount of shock because our scientists will sometimes
> see something that doesn't fit anything they know," said Dekila Chungyalp= a,
> Director of the Fund's Mekong Program. "They run through a catalogue of
> wildlife in their brain, asking themselves, 'Have I seen this?'"
> Perhaps a more startling discovery than the rat was a bright green pit vi= per
> scientists spotted slithering through the rafters of a restaurant in Khao
> Yai National Park in Thailand.
> The Fund dubbed the Mekong a "biological treasure trove." The organizatio= n's
> report "First Contact in the Greater Mekong" says 519 plants, 279 fish, 8= 8
> frogs, 88 spiders, 46 lizards, 22 snakes, 15 mammals, four birds, four
> turtles, two salamanders and a toad were found.
> Scientists are still trying to determine if they have uncovered thousands= of
> new invertebrate species.
What is "Clobal Warming?"
Thanks for bringing us this article, though. It shows how important preservation of wetlands is. We don't even know all of the millions of creatures that are out there.
Jeff