26 October 2010
A bald parrot, a pink river dolphin, a new species of anaconda and a tiny blind catfish that lives in waters deep underground. These are just some of more than 1,200 new species discovered in the Amazon over the last decade. They’re described in our new report, Amazon Alive!, released today.
On average, scientists have found a new plant or animal species every three days for the last 10 years – and that’s not including insects, where the discoveries are almost too many to count.
The report confirms the Amazon as one of the most diverse places on Earth, and is a timely reminder of the urgent need to protect it. World governments are discussing new ways to protect species and habitats in the Amazon and elsewhere at the UN biodiversity summit in Nagoya, Japan, this week.
Watch our slideshow of some of the new species:
(You can click the arrows at the bottom right of frame to expand images)
Discoveries
The new species described in the report are made up of 637 plants, 257 fish, 216 amphibians, 55 reptiles, 16 birds and 39 mammals.
They include:
- a 4m-long anaconda – the first new species of anaconda identified since 1936
- an extraordinary fire-and-water frog – it has a pattern of flames on its head and contrasting water-patterned legs
- a parrot with a bald head and an astonishing spectrum of feather colours
- a tiger-striped tarantula living in Acre, Brazil, home of the Sky Rainforest Rescue project
- a new species of pink river dolphin, found only in Bolivia
- a blind, bright red catfish that lives mainly in underground waters. The tiny fish has been caught in buckets when people take water from wells.
“This report clearly shows the incredible diversity of life in the Amazon, and what we could lose if we don’t act now,” says Francisco Ruiz, who leads our Living Amazon initiative.
During the last 50 years, nearly a fifth of the Amazon rainforest has been destroyed. And it’s still being cleared rapidly to meet growing global demand for meat and other products such as biofuels.
“Urgent action is required to help shift to a sustainable model of development in the Amazon,” says Sarah Hutchison, who leads our work on forests in the region. “Even from here in the UK there are things we can do to help promote a sustainable forest economy in the Amazon.”
One way you can help is by supporting Sky Rainforest Rescue. The project aims to save a billion trees in the Amazon by helping local people earn a better living looking after the forest than they would from chopping it down.
