Hundreds of unknown species were discovered in 2023

 Hundreds of unknown species were discovered around the world in 2023

Nearly 1,000 new species were discovered in 2023 by scientists at London’s Natural History Museum and the California Academy of Sciences, proving that Earth is still home to many unexplored wonders. The discoveries were made during a year that marks the 50th anniversary of the US Endangered Species Act, which offers protections for threatened plants and animals and has helped save hundreds of species, according to Scott Sampson, California Academy of Sciences executive director. “Yet a million more species remain imperilled due to human-driven activities like habitat destruction, climate change, and pollution,” Sampson said. “We must document the Earth’s living diversity so that we can work to protect it, and the California Academy of Sciences is honoured to take part in this critical global effort.” The diverse list of 968 new species includes previously unknown dinosaurs and extinct creatures, beetles, moths, sea slugs, geckos, fish, frogs, spiders, plants, fungi, worms and a legless skink.

The incredible discoveries and scientific feats of 2023 prove just how far curiosity and wonder can take humanity. Archaeological findings allowed researchers to take intriguing steps into the past and reveal more about our mysterious ancestors and creatures who roamed the planet before humans. At the same time, technological advancements enabled scientists to make daring leaps forward in how we understand the vast expanse of the universe and our little cosmic neighbourhood within it. Each week brought new marvels and insights, along with dozens of pinch-me moments and awe-inspiring views of the cosmos once invisible to the human eye. In this golden age of scientific discovery, we never take the ability to solve mysteries and gain new knowledge for granted so we can better understand how to protect this extraordinary world.

Pest controlling-wasps

Scientists will likely recall 2023 as the year of the wasp. Of the 815 new species described by Natural History Museum researchers this year, 619 of them were different types of pollinating, predatory and parasitic wasps. The extraordinary number of discoveries was boosted by the work of Dr. John Noyes and Christer Hansson, scientific associates at the Natural History Museum, who are conducting ongoing research to uncover bees, ants and wasps in Costa Rica. Dalek nationi is a new species of wasp from Costa Rica named after the Daleks from the British TV series "Doctor Who". “It is important to keep describing new species because many will have a profound influence on their environment and without knowing what to call them, we cannot convey any information about them,” Noyes said. Some of the new wasp species showcase a variety of metallic hues, including blue, purple and orange. And while wasps may seem like nuisances armed with stingers, the insects help control populations of pests that can plague agricultural crops. “In the past 60 years or so, three species have been incredibly important. One in preventing the possible starvation of up to 300 million people in Africa, a second preventing the rainforest from destruction in Thailand, and another the collapse of the economy of Togo,” Noyes said.

Nearly 1,000 new species were found across the globe in 2023, adding significantly to the tree of life and illuminating how much biodiversity is waiting to be found on Earth. Researchers at the California Academy of Sciences and London’s Natural History Museum uncovered hundreds of creatures and plants from the bottom of the ocean to an isolated peak in Angola. The majority of newfound species were insects — including metallic-hued wasps named after “Doctor Who” characters that help eliminate agricultural pests. And scientists found unusual creatures such as a rare type of silent frog and a gecko that shoots goo out of its tail. As the climate crisis continues, scientists are racing to identify species in an attempt to protect them before they disappear.

Puzzling plants

Scientists from the National Polytechnic Institute in Durango, Mexico, worked with Academy of Sciences researchers to study a rare succulent in the Sierra Madre Occidental mountain range. The plant, which grows out of the side of cliffs, has long been known to the local O’dam Indigenous community. The O’dam people refer to the plant with bald leaves and stems as da’npakal, which means bald, naked or slippery in their language. Pachyphytum odam is a succulent that grows out of steep cliffsides.  Researchers have named the succulent Pachyphytum odam to maintain the connection between the plant and the community living on the land where it grows.

Meanwhile, scientists solved a case of mistaken identity for a flowering plant in Costa Rica. For more than 150 years, the plant was thought to belong to a similar but separate species in Mexico. The newly identified plant, Stenostephanus purpureus, is different from a plant called Stenostephanus silvaticus found in Mexico. The flowers are different colours, and the Costa Rican plant is missing a flat petal often called a landing pad for butterflies and other insects as they collect pollen. Instead, hummingbirds likely pollinated Stenostephanus purpureus. “I never questioned the identification of the Costa Rican specimens, not until I did a side-by-side comparison with images of living plants from Mexico,” said Academy of Sciences researcher Ricardo Kriebel. “The differences between the two are subtle when you’re working with dead, dry specimens from collections.”

Legless lizard

A new species of legless lizard was found slithering along the slopes of Serra da Neve, the second-tallest mountain in Angola. Legless lizards, known as skinks, resemble snakes, hiding among leaves on the forest floor to hunt for insects and other small prey. Skinks differ from snakes in that they have external ear openings and movable eyelids. While most skinks are uniform in colour, the newly described Acontias mukwando has a pink ring around its neck. Serra da Neve provides a unique ecosystem to the unusual plants and animals that only are found living on the isolated peak. The mountain is on the northern edge of the Namib Desert and has a cool, humid environment. “Each new species we describe from this mountain — and others like it — is evidence that places like these deserve some sort of conservation consideration,” Academy of Sciences research associate Aaron Bauer said. “We’re still finding new species on these isolated ‘islands,’ which tells us it’s not too late for protection.”

Past Discoveries

Natural History Museum researchers identified four new species of extinct birds by studying fossils, including those that lived during the time of dinosaurs. One of the most intriguing discoveries of the year was Kumimanu fordycei, the largest penguin that ever existed on Earth. The flightless birds lived 60 million years ago and weighed an estimated 330 pounds (150 kilograms).

A previously unknown type of armoured dinosaur species was also found on the Isle of Wight. Known as Dinosaur Island, the Isle of Wight is considered one of the best places to find dinosaur fossils in the UK.

The ankylosaur, which lived on the island 140 million years ago, was named Vectipelta barretti in honour of Natural History Museum professor Paul Barrett.

“Paul is incredibly influential in our discipline,” said Dr. Susannah Maidment, a paleontologist at the museum who studied the new species. “He is incredibly high profile and has contributed an enormous amount to the field. But he’s also had an absolutely enormous influence on all of our careers, and we wanted to thank him for that. So we decided to name a small, slow-moving, spikey organism after him.”

Researchers also named an ancient fungus after beloved children’s book author and illustrator Beatrix Potter. The 400-million-year-old Potteromyces asteroxylicola, found infecting the roots of fossilized plants, is the earliest known disease-causing fungus. 

The field of study sounds like the basis of “Jurassic Park,” but scientists are using it to raise awareness of the rise of once dormant viruses as the climate crisis causes permafrost to thaw for the first time in centuries. Resurrection biology is also being used in the search for pharmaceutical solutions by studying the genetic proteins of our ancient ancestors. DNA of living animals today contains all the information about their ancestors (in the) past, so it’s like a time capsule.