Photography & Digital Art,AnimalsDEC 10, 2019

Scientists Have Discovered 71 New Species In 2019 And Here's How 25 Of Them Look

Mantas Kačerauskas and Jonas Grinevičius

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We’ve mapped the world, discovered all the continents (though Atlantis remains elusive), and sometimes it feels like there’s nothing new to find on our little blue planet. But Earth is still full of mysteries and surprises!

Scientists find new plant and animal species nearly every day and it proves that there are still adventures to be had in the deep corners of the world. So if you’ve ever harbored ambitions of being an Indiana Jones-esque scientist, your dream can still come true. In 2019, more than a dozen researchers from the California Academy of Sciences added a stunning 71 new species to our family tree.

Among these freshly found species are 17 fish, 15 geckos, 8 flowering plants, 6 sea slugs, 5 arachnids, 4 eels, 3 ants, 3 skinks, 2 skates, 2 wasps, 2 mosses, 2 corals, and 2 lizards. They were found across 5 continents and 3 oceans. And while we applaud the fact that there are more species of gecko on Planet Earth, we’re worried about there being more species of wasp, too.

We’ve included some of the very best photos of these new species, so scroll down, upvotes your favorites, and let everyone know in the comments what you thought about each one. And be sure to read Bored Panda’s interview with a representative of the California Academy of Sciences below.

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#1 Siphamia Arnazae

The cat-eyed cardinalfish, is a new species of cardinalfish from Papua New Guinea

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108points

#2 Cirrhilabrus Wakanda

The Vibranium fairy wrasse (Cirrhilabrus wakanda) is a species of fairy wrasse from the Western Indian Ocean

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92points

#3 Cordylus Phonolithos

Cordylus phonolithos is a new species of girdled lizard from southwestern Angola

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82points

According to a representative of the California Academy of Sciences, this year’s list of new species was “a little lower” than usual, but “full of mighty finds.”

“Since 2010, Academy scientists have described 1,375 species—quite a number! Here are numbers from previous years this decade:

2010 (113 [new species])

2011 (140)

2012 (189)

2013 (91)

2014 (221)

2015 (103)

2016 (133)

2017 (85)

2018 (229)

2019 (71).”

#4 Tomiyamichthys Emilyae

Tomiyamichthys emilyae is a new species of shrimpgoby (Gobiidae) from North Sulawesi, Indonesia

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77points

#5 Chromoplexaura Cordellbankensis

Chromoplexaura cordellbankensis is a new species of deep-sea coral, first spotted by Williams 50 miles northwest of San Francisco in the Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary

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71points

#6 Nucras Aurantiaca

Nucras aurantiaca is a wall lizard found in South Africa

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69points

The Academy representative told Bored Panda that “it takes years of training, collaboration with colleagues and local residents in a given region, and species expertise for scientists to properly identify and collect species in the wild.”

“As with many species—like twilight zone reef fish and insects—there is sometimes only a tiny window of a few seconds for a scientist to act quickly and collect a specimen in the wild. It can take years of training and support to help that scientist make important, well-informed, split-second decisions in the field!”

#7 Janolus Tricellarioides

Janolus Tricellarioides is a sea slug found in the Philippines

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65points

#8 Ecsenius Springeri

Ecsenius springeri is a new species of blenny

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64points

#9 Justicia Alanae

Justicia alanae is a new species of flowering plant from Mexico

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56points

Classifying new species isn’t without its obstacles and things like lack of funding or training can seriously hinder us from solving life’s mysteries. “It's especially hard to secure funding for maintaining collections staff, taking adequate care of specimens, and training/retaining new scientists with the expertise to confirm that a new species discovery is truly new to science.”