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A species bonanza from Borneo

In a major find, 52 new species discovered on island

NEW FINDS: The catfish, Glyptothorax exodon, from two angles.

GENEVA: Scientists have discovered at least 52 new species of animals and plants on the southeast Asian island of Borneo. WWF International said on Tuesday that the new discoveries, made between July 2005 and September 2006, include 30 fish species, two tree frogs and plant species. One of the fish species is a miniature, the world's second-smallest vertebrate.

The tree frog, Rhacophorus gadingensis.

"The more we look, the more we find," said Stuart Chapman, WWF International coordinator for the "Heart of Borneo," a 220,000-sq km rain forest in the centre of the island where several of the species were found. "These discoveries reaffirm Borneo's position as one of the most important centres of biodiversity in the world."

Among the creatures that were new to science were six Siamese fighting fish, whose unique colours and markings distinguish them from close relatives, and a catfish with protruding teeth and an adhesive belly with miniature suction cups enabling it to stick to smooth stones and maintain its position facing into the current of Indonesia's turbulent Kapuas river system. The catfish, which can be identified by its colour pattern, is named Glyptothorax exodon — a reference to the teeth that can be seen even when its mouth is closed.

The Siamese fighting fish, Betta uberis.

While those species were spotted in Indonesian waters, the 8.8 mm-long Paedocypris micromegethes was discovered in Malaysia's backwater streams and peat swamp forests. The creature, which gets its name from the Greek words for children and small in size, is tinier than all other vertebrae species except for its slightly more minuscule cousin, a 7.9-mm fish found on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, according to WWF.

The discoveries highlight the need to conserve the habitat and species of Borneo, where the rainforest continues to be threatened. — AP

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