Nature & Environment
New species of lizard discovered in Australia
By
T.K. RandallOctober 30, 2012 ·
8 comments
Image Credit: CC 3.0 Christian Hauzar
A completely new lizard species has been found just outside of Perth in Western Australia.
The coastal plains skink is around two inches in length and survives in the sand dunes just outside of one of Australia's busiest cities. It was identified during research in to biological diversity in the area. "To find something as yet undetected, so close to one of the country's largest cities, demonstrates how much we've still got to discover," said ecologist Geoffrey Kay.
News of the find however it bittersweet as the new species is already at risk of being wiped out by encroaching urban sprawl. "Only a few of these lizards have ever been found in the wild, so while we know numbers are low, we are not sure of the exact size of the remaining population," said Kay.
Southwestern Australia is recognised as one of the top 25 biodiversity hot spots in the world, alongside places such as Madagascar, the tropical jungles of West Africa, and Brazil's Cerrado.
Source:
Telegraph |
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