10 Most Bizarre Recently Discovered Species!

hi it's katrina from enormous bats harboring deadly diseases to a wasp that hunts other wasps here are 10 recently discovered creatures 10. hammer headed bat in 2018 images surfaced online of a seemingly humongous bat with a distinctive strangely shaped head leading internet users the world over to wonder if it was even a real creature in the first place the question became so pervasive it even gained the attention of snopes and earned a place in the fact-checking site's official archives the answer is yes the animal in question is a megabat called the hammer-headed bat it is widely distributed throughout equatorial africa and is a type of fruit bat that loves eating bananas figs and mangoes the hammer-headed bat is the largest african bat species with a wingspan of over three feet males are noticeably larger than females a phenomenon known as sexual dimorphism in the animal kingdom and they use their gigantic noses to make honking sounds to attract females in nigeria and the democratic republic of the congo it's considered more of a pest since it eats crops and makes so much noise the frightening thing about this bat is that it can kill you it is one of three species of african fruit bat thought to be asymptomatically infected with the ebola virus yikes definitely don't go and try to cuddle it if you see one more than half of the outbreaks of ebola zaire the deadliest strain of the ebola virus occur in the drc and the surrounding areas of the congo jungle scientists know quite a bit about the virus but it is still quite the mystery of where it hangs out when not infecting people and how humans get it virologist vincent munster says we know everything about its replication cycle but freaking nothing about where it comes from and how it causes outbreaks he is part of a team catching these hammerhead bats in the congo the hot spot for the virus and these fruit bats seem to be the reservoir of the ebola virus it doesn't harm them and the virus is able to lay in wait until someone comes along and eats them or somehow they are able to infect a primate which then will also die ebola is the biggest threat to gorillas apart from poaching but no one knows how it gets from fruit bats to primates but the hammer-headed bat itself is very important to the ecosystem and is not trying to come and get you number nine a new mosasaur while this big guy hasn't been around for a very long time we didn't know that it ever existed until recently so it is new to us gaviali miamis almagri bensist is a new genus and species of mosasaur or marine reptile that scientists discovered in morocco and a phosphate mine known for its abundance of mosasaur fossils and occasionally a dinosaur or two the creature which is described in a recently published study in the journal of systematic paleontology existed between 72 and 66 million years ago during the late cretaceous period its skull measures over three feet long like modern day gariols a type of crocodilian the species had a long narrow snout and interlocking teeth its long snout indicates that it was adapted to eating a certain type of prey bony fast swimming fish lead study author katie strong says that this discovery of this new creature adds a layer of clarity to a diverse picture seemingly overcrowded with mega predators all competing for food space and resources the long snout shows that it ate something specific within the ecosystem which is how so many large predators were able to survive at the same time everybody ate one specific thing evidence suggests that all mososaurs were specialized in some way when it came to hunting specific prey in some cases including that of the newly discovered g almagrivensis these adaptive features were more prominent not all of the adaptations are this dramatic but overall they were all slightly different number 8. joker spider earlier this year researchers discovered a new velvet spider species in iran they took one look and said it reminded them of the face paint of the joker from the iconic batman series spider researchers ali reza zamani and yuri marusik described the joker spider in a recently published paper in the journal arthropoda selecta the joker spider constitutes the first velvet arachnid species ever spotted outside the mediterranean according to rachel funnel of ifl science as most velvet spiders are found in eurasia and parts of africa after seeing a photo of alfinixi on social media zamini set out on a quest to find a specimen for himself he captured one in 2016 but lost it on his way back to the lab whoops wonder where he lost it an online plea to other specialists urging them to collect any specimens they possibly could led to the accumulation of examples of both the species in question as well as numerous other undiscovered velvet spiders from iran's albors province only two male alpha nixi specimens have been found so far the cryptic female remains undiscovered zamani told the daily mail spiders of the laridia genus generally live underground with males emerging from their burrows for a three-week period between october and november annually meaning it could prove difficult for experts to find female specimens could it happen of course it just might take some time and patience and now for number seven but first want to say a big thank you to toxin 9701 and don't mind me for subscribing and supporting this channel some people have told us that youtube has unsubscribed them so if you are new here or a returning subscriber be sure to check that subscribe button number seven an early sea creature last year a team led by virginia tech paleontologist shu hai chao formerly described ilingia spiciformis the first known species to roam the sea floor and to have a segmented body additionally it was the first creature to have identifiable front and back ends to its body and symmetrical left and right sides features that nearly all of today's animals possess but back in the day things were different a 550 million year old fossil capturing the prehistoric species movement was found in china's yangtze gorges region ciao and his team used the fossil in their study noting that the creature made the tracks immediately before it died it was just moving around and it died suddenly he explained in a nature interview despite the species being formally described there are things about it that researchers admittedly don't know including what category of life it belonged to with some speculating that it was in the same group as earthworms just the same the study helped experts learn important new things about evolution for one ysbc farmers constitutes the earliest known evidence of certain evolutionary traits that scientists previously thought may have first appeared later on in history the trail it left behind in the fossils suggests that it may have been capable of burrowing and therefore may have been one of the first animals that had legs still it remains quite the enigma number 6. wakanda fish in mid-2019 scuba divers discovered a new fish species which they named cerilabrus wakanda after the fictional kingdom in marvel's black panther movie according to new scientists the fish measuring just 2.4 inches long has dark purple fins and a yellow head it was discovered nearly 200 feet below the water's surface among the coral reefs east of zanzibar tanzania much like the fictional place the species is named after the seemingly elusive wakanda fish was found in the isolated and unexplored reefs that are too deep to access via conventional diving methods researchers were required to use special equipment to reach the depths at which the species lives dna analysis confirmed that the newly discovered fish is genetically unique unfortunately the recent findings also debunk the previously held theory that reefs located within the twilight zone depths protect wildlife from the effects of humans sadly the wakanda fish and its plant and animal companions are no safer than any other creatures from our destructive activities number 5. dragon snakeheads in a recent rare discovery scientists have identified a new family of fish called dragon snake heads which live in the underground waters of the western ghats a biodiversity hot spot in southern india known as living fossils these creatures are thought to have existed for at least 100 million years since they diverged from their closest relative despite their age the fish flew under the scientific community's radar until last year but how the reason people seldom spot dragon snakeheads is because they typically only surface when heavy rains cause flooding ichthyologist ralph brits the leader and author of a study on the fish explained in a national geographic interview that it's uncommon to discover a new taxonomic family given their tendency to be expansive and diverse to give you an idea he cited the hominidae family which includes us humans as well as an array of other primates including orangutans gorillas and chimpanzees the newly discovered fish family which goes by the scientific name enigma khanna consists of two known species one of them a gollum or the gollum snakehead is named after of course the lord of the rings character these strange looking fish have long eel-like bodies and in the words of smithsonian ichthyologist david johnson a whole series of primitive characteristics dragon snakeheads are less specialized than snakehead fish outside the enigmacana family with fewer ribs and a smaller swim bladder they also lack a body part that enables other fish to breathe air called a suprabranchial organ unlike most subterranean fish which are usually white and eyeless dragon snakeheads have eyes and pigmentation the new discovery ironically points to some yet unanswered questions about living fossil species including why they possess features that other creatures have lost over time and why they have evolved so little unlike some of their relatives number four a millipede when tess moody a staff member at cauca interpretive center in ravenel south carolina noticed a millipede specimen that she couldn't identify in 2018 she photographed it and took to the internet for help entomologists were also stumped prompting dr jackson means of virginia tech to contact moody suggesting that the creature represented an unknown species the pair returned to khaka numerous times in search of another specimen but did not find one until june of this year only then were they able to confirm that the millipede in question was of an unidentified species in a recent interview with the post and courier charleston county parks and recreation commission coordinator keith mccullough elaborated on the excitement of moody's find stating it is incredibly rare to discover a new species in this thoroughly explored region moody was given naming rights to the millipede which is a member of the pleuroloma genus her decision on what to call the creature has yet to be announced what would you call a new insect would you name it after yourself or where you're from let me know in the comments below number three a new wasp species scott egan an evolutionary biologist and associate professor of biosciences at rice university discovered a new gall wasp species that may be a parasite of a parasite he found the creature near his lab in the houston texas area and first hatched the species in 2014. egan specializes in the study of gall wasps which emit biochemicals that program live oak trees to produce a tumor-like growth called a gall which protects their eggs and feeds their larvae the species in question alar hoga scalifolia is one of four newly discovered alor hoga species that egan and his colleagues describe in a recent study published in the journal insect systematics and diversity engalifolia lays its eggs in the galls of other wasps they are using the gall as a resource said egan and we're still not certain how but i think they're attacking herbivorous caterpillars that are feeding on the gall tissue and the wasp larvae are eating those caterpillars after they hatch the newly identified species is one of just a handful of alor hoga species that have ever been found in the u.s meanwhile over 50 such species have been identified in mexico and central america egan's discovery of a galifolia was part of an ongoing objective to study the enemies of another gall wasp species nearly every day those involved in the operation collect study and catalog the contents of thousands of galls according to egan more research is necessary to determine the exact nature of the new species activities within gauls that is one very specific research study right there number 2. african wading mice african wading mice are swamp and river dwelling rodents found in the tropical forests of east africa that are much larger than average mice equipped with long feet and whiskers they hunt for prey in the shallow waters of their habitat basically they are mice that crawl around in the water when african wading mice were first discovered they were classified as one species called columbus goslingi consisting of two subspecies but this initial assessment was wrong according to a new study published in the zoological journal of the linean society which identifies four separate species of african wading mice these little guys are important to the ecosystem so even if you don't like mice there are people out there who do care a lot about them in an interview with new scientists biologist tom jarla explained that the sea gosling species was known all the way from liberia to kenya which is an insanely wide distribution for a really small animal giarlo was part of an international team of researchers who confirmed their suspicions that there are more species of african wading mice than originally thought based on dna analysis they argue that the previously identified sigos lingi subspecies is its own species which they call c einstein trouty the team also identified two other species see wologizi named after the wologizi mountains of liberia and si lu mumbai named in honor of the first prime minister of the democratic republic of the congo patrice lumumba all four species share common characteristics such as kangaroo-like feet waterproof fur and large brains in considering these similarities it's understandable that it took scientists as long as it did for them to confirm that there is more than one african wading mouth species but time is of the essence when it comes to describing new species especially in east africa where habitat destruction and climate change severely threatened wildlife according to researcher julian curbis peter hans who spoke with zme science in fact it is this exact fear that prompted the study in the first place scientists want to study and identify the animals that are there before they are gone for good number one two-fingered dinosaur paleontologists working in mongolia recently discovered the fossilized remains of a previously unknown oviraptorosaur genus and species officially named oksoko avarson the long extinct omnivorous dinosaur roamed the earth approximately 68 million years ago during the late cretaceous period researchers described the fascinating find in a paper published in the online journal royal society open science the newly unearthed specimen measured two meters long and had a blunt toothless beak each of its short feathery arms were equipped with two fierce talons unlike its oviraptorosaur relatives who have three functioning fingers this distinction indicates that oviraptorosaurs evolved to adapt to their circumstances and surroundings the remarkably well-preserved fossils provided the first evidence of digit loss in the three-fingered family of dinosaurs known as oviraptors explained study author and university of edinburgh paleontologist gregory funston the discovery that oviraptorosaurs could evolve forelimb adaptations suggest that the group could alter their diets and lifestyles and enabled them to diversify and multiply in addition to the fossilized adult specimen the researchers found four young oksoko avarson dinosaurs in a nest together offering insight into the species social behavior based on these findings it is evident that juveniles wandered together this coupled with the discoveries presenting researchers with the first opportunity to study the evolution of them make the study especially remarkable thanks for watching which creature was your favorite would you like to learn about more recently discovered species let me know in the comments below and while you're at it be sure to subscribe see you next time bye

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Keywords: origins explained, most bizarre recently discovered species, recently discovered species, new species, animal species, most bizarre species, strange species, newly discovered species, newly discovered, recent discoveries, recently discovered, new animal species, new creature species, new creatures, unknown creatures, bizarre creatures, strange creatures, weird creatures, new, species, bizarre, discoveries, strange, mysterious, amazing, animals

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Length: 17min 0sec (1020 seconds)

Published: Sat Dec 05 2020