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The State University of New York’s College of Environmental Science and Forestry has recently released their annual and highly-anticipated list of top ten new species proving once again that there is a lot about wild life that we, as humans, do not know about. Unfortunately, our carelessness might prove fatal for those incredibly rare species as they might go extinct before we even got a chance to study them. Experts name and classify about 18,000 new species each year. Sadly, about 20,000 species also go extinct every year.
This year, the ESF wants to highlight the need to preserve biodiversity. This tradition started back in 2008, when they put together a list of 10 newly-discovered species and proved how incredible wild life actually is. Since then, ever May 23, a new list is released, in honor of Carolus Linnaeus, the Swedish botanist who invented the taxonomy system. Experts still use it today to classify animals in various genus and species. The new list includes a large number of incredible species, among them being a tree that can grow over 130 feet. Also, a single-celled creature that doesn’t fit into any known group of organisms and which was discovered in an aquarium.
ESF’s top ten list of new species for 2018
Among the stars of this year’s list is also a beetle that has the capacity to disguise itself as part of an ant. Also, a marsupial lion that once lived in Australia. According to ESF president Quentin Wheeler, the problem is that many of these species might disappear forever and we will never have any idea they existed. This is why experts need to find, classify, and name them as soon as possible.
It’s interesting that each of these species has found a way to survive through thick and thin. It would be a shame to let them go without a warning or without trying to help them.
Image source: pxhere
