<
https://theconversation.com/mozambique-sky-island-expeditions-found-4-new-species-of-chameleon-already-at-risk-from-forest-loss-279908>
"Tropical rainforests are known for their unique biodiversity, with species
found nowhere else on Earth. But nearly 30% of tropical rainforest has been
destroyed or has become seriously degraded since 1990. Many of these forests
have not been fully explored for their biodiversity. This means that the world
may be losing species before they are even discovered by modern science.
In Africa, forest loss is rapid; about 25% of the continent’s tropical forest
has been lost since 1990, against a backdrop of incomplete knowledge of where
the biodiversity is located.
Greatly lagging in this respect are the “sky islands” of northern Mozambique:
isolated granite mountains that rise sharply out of the savanna plains. They
were left standing when softer rock around them gradually eroded, and can be as
high as 3,000 metres elevation. Because they rise so steeply, the sky islands
attract clouds and rainfall, feeding moisture to the tropical rainforests on
their slopes within an otherwise arid terrain. Isolation has allowed unique
species to evolve on each mountain, such as geckos, rodents, fishes, crabs,
frogs, butterflies and bats.
From 2014 to 2018, a research team led by fellow herpetologist Werner Conradie
and myself explored these sky island forests to catalogue the species of
reptiles found there. We found that each sky island forest is home to a
previously unknown species of chameleon within the genus
Nadzikambia
(forest-dwelling “sylvan chameleons”).
Unfortunately, these chameleons are already at risk of extinction due to the
heavy slash-and-burn clearing of the forests, the only place they can call
home.
We’ve described these new species, choosing four names to highlight pioneering
women scientists whose work inspired us to strive towards new discoveries, but
also to call attention to the losses of their forest habitat."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
