Discovery of 157 new species in the Greater Mekong region in Southeast Asia

Friday, December 21, 2018

As per the new report from the World Wildlife Fund, 157 new species were discovered in the Greater Mekong Region. Some of the species discovered are a bat which looks like Lance Bass; a gibbon named  Luke Skywalker, and a toad associated with Lord of the Rings ‘Middle Earth’.

The Skywalker Hoolock Gibbon was named after  ‘Star Wars’ character – role enacted by actor Mark Hamill. It is the 25th most endangered primate in the world and faces grave and imminent risk to its survival as many other small ape species in southern China and Southeast Asia due to habitat loss and hunting.

Much of the wildlife described in the new report ‘New Species on the Block’ is already at risk of population loss or even extinction. Deforestation, climate change, poaching and the illegal wildlife trade will accelerate the rate of their loss and extinction.

Stuart Chapman, WWF’s Asia-Pacific Regional Director for Conservation Impact, said “It doesn’t have to be this way. Ensuring that large reserves are designated for wildlife, along with increased efforts to close illegal wildlife trade markets, will go a long way to conserving the extraordinary wildlife diversity in the Mekong region.”

Three mammal, 23 fish, 14 amphibian, 26 reptile and 91 plant species were found in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam, in some of the region’s most impenetrable terrain – remote mountains, dense jungle areas, isolated rivers, and grassland.

Discovery of these species will give a boost to Southeast Asia tourism.

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