200 New Frog Species Discovered

Remember when we talked about how scientists were still discovering new animals? Well those industrious squints have been at it again.

It was a pretty good week for animal lovers as scientists in Madagascar discovered around 200 new species of frogs .

It has long been known that the island in the Indian Ocean, just off the southeastern coast of Africa, may be home to quite a few unknown species of animals. It’s the fourth-largest island in the world and is already known for its collection of unique and exotic animals such as ring-tailed lemur and poisonous frogs .

Conservationists believe that 216 of the 217 previously known species of amphibians are native to Madagascar. In fact over 80 per cent of the mammals that live on the island aren’t found anywhere else on the planet.

The research team, in conjunction with the Spanish Scientific Research Council, found between 129 and 221 new species of frogs and they are hoping to find even more. However,
the destruction of rain forests in Madagascar is among the highest in the world as about 80 per cent of it has been affected due to human needs and logging.

The loss of this habitat is devastating, and species may be going extinct before we have even discovered them.

Recent political upheaval has put wildlife conservation efforts in jeopardy, and it is a true testament to the staff and volunteers who continue to work to save both the animals and the habitat that they don't let the greed or violence of humans put them off their mission to protect the wildlife of the island, both known and unknown.