Posted 29 Oct 2009

A total of 850 new invertebrates have been discovered by researchers in Australia’s arid outback regions, it has been reported.

Following a four-year project conducted about 100 miles north-west of Alice Springs, a team of researchers, including Steve Cooper of the South Australian Museum in Adelaide, discovered the creatures, reports National Geographic.

Among them is a subterranean snail in the Hydrobiidae family, as well as crustaceans, spiders and worms.

Up until the project was carried out, the majority of the country’s drier regions had not been studied, as their underground springs and microcaverns were though to be incapable of harbouring life, Mr Cooper stated.

He told the magazine: "We are only just beginning to discover in Australia that groundwater is not just an inert entity, but is the host of many diverse ecosystems with an extraordinary array of previously unknown species."

Another hot spot for the discovery of new species this autumn is Vietnam’s Mekong River, in which researchers from the WWF Greater Mekong Programme reportedly found 163 new species.

Category: Australasia