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Species Discovery

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Species Discovery Diversity of Life Nobody actually knows! Estimates range between 3 and 100 million different species Latest prediction: = 8.7 million How many ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Species Discovery


1
Species Discovery
2
Diversity of Life
3
How many species on Earth?
  • Nobody actually knows!
  • Estimates range between 3 and 100 million
    different species
  • Latest prediction
  • 8.7 million

Mr Burns beaked toad (Rhinella sp.
nov.) Discovered 2010
4
How many species have we discovered so far?
  • 1.75 million species have
  • been classified by scientists
  • This means that over 80
  • still need to be described!
  • Only around 12 of the total
  • number of animals in the world
  • have been described by scientists. Why?

Caquetá titi monkey (Discovered 2008)
5
What is a newly discovered species?
  • A species that is completely new to science.

OR
Long-nosed tree frog (Discovered 2011)
  • A species previously described which is found to
    be a different species .

Giant manta ray
Reef manta ray
6
Why are newly discovered species important?
  • Human well-being depends on biodiversity and
    healthy ecosystems.
  • Provide medicines, food and materials
  • Regulate climate, purify air and water
  • Pollination and nutrient cycling
  • Beauty of the natural world
  • New species could mean discovering new services
    that are useful to humans in future.
  • Knowledge of new species helps scientists fill in
    evolutionary gaps.

7
Naming a new species
  • Scientists need to be certain the new species has
    not already been described, and that its
    characteristics are unique.
  • Species are ordered into groups that share common
    features and a common ancestor i.e. they are
    related.
  • This process of grouping species so that they may
    be classified and named is called taxonomy, and
    scientists who do this are called taxonomists.

8
Classifying species
  • What is classification?
  • Organising living things into groups
  • Anatomy (how it looks)
  • Genetics (the sequence of its genes)
  • E.g. Horseshoe crab
  • Anatomically it looks like a crab.
  • Genetically it is more closely related to
    spiders!

9
Classifying species
  • Trying to describe and name each of the millions
    of species individually is too hard!
  • Scientists group species based on shared
    characteristics.
  • Carl Linnaeus classification system for sorting
    species into groups
  • First step put species into one of the 5
    kingdoms
  • Protoctists Prokaryotes Fungi Plants and
    Animals

10
Kingdom
Phylum
Phylum
Kingdom
Class
Class
Class
Class
Phylum
Order
Order
Order
Order
Order
Order
Order
Order
Class
Etc.
Order
Family
Genus
Species
Fiji crested iguana (Brachylophus vitiensis)
Fiji banded iguana (Brachylophus fasciatus)
Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis)
Kingdom Animals Phylum Chordata
Genus Brachylophus
Genus Giraffa
11
Class Activity 1Identifying newly discovered
amphibians
  • You are a scientist that has discovered 9 new
    amphibians. Now you just need to work out which
    species they are!
  • Look at the photographs and use the
    classification key to help you find out the
    species names.
  • Write the names of each species underneath the
    photograph on your worksheet.

12
Class Activity 2Make your own classification key
  • You have been given pictures of 6 newly
    discovered species.
  • Look closely at each species and identify their
    key features what makes them different from the
    other species in your pictures?
  • Construct your own dichotomous key that would
    allow another person to be able to identify each
    species.

13
Discovering a new species
  • Most undiscovered species are likely to be small
    and obscure.
  • However, we are also still finding big species,
    e.g. mammals, birds amphibians.
  • New species are discovered in the field and in
    collections, e.g. museum specimens.

Goodmans mouse lemur (Discovered 2006)
14
Finding new species in the field
Pitfall trap
Camera trap
UV light trap
15
Where to Look?
  • It is impossible to look everywhere due to time
    and money constraints.
  • Scientists have to choose areas where the
    probability of finding new species is higher.
  • These are generally poorly explored tropical
    areas, but rich in biodiversity.

16
Case Studies
  • In 2010, Conservation International launched an
    expedition to search for amphibian species that
    have not been seen in over 10 years.
  • 126 scientific researchers in 21 countries,
    across 5 continents.
  • A number of species, some not seen in 20 years,
    were rediscovered.
  • As well as rediscovering species presumed
    extinct, the scientists found a number of
    potentially new species, for example the beaked
    toad (Rhinella sp. nov.)

Beaked toad (Rhinella sp. nov.)
17
Case Studies
3 new butterfly species
Potential new insect species
Unexplored Biodiversity rich
Mount Mabu, Mozambique
New species of pygmy chameleon (Rhampholeon sp.)
New viper snake species
18
Case Studies
  • New species of giant rat discovered in rainforest
    of New Guinea (Mallomys sp.)

19
Newly discovered species on ARKive
  • Kipunji (Rungwecebus kipunji)
  • Leaf chameleon (Brookesia micra)

Psychedelic frog fish (Histiophryne psychedelica)
Pitcher plant (Nepenthes holdenii)
20
Design your own expedition
You are a scientist, planning an expedition which
aims to discover exciting species that are
completely new to science. As you will be
travelling to a country which is one of the
remotest and least explored places on earth, you
need to secure enough funding to cover most of
the major costs of the expedition. Your task is
to write an expedition proposal to present to
grant-giving organisations. Youll need to use
all your powers of persuasion to convince funding
committees that your project is important and
deserves their help, so make sure you make you
follow the proposal guidelines carefully. Having
a detailed, thoroughly researched and
well-planned proposal could mean the difference
between being able to go on your expedition or
not!
Read the project briefing notes you have been
given carefully!
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