Scientists Discover 27 New Species in Densely Populated Area Packed with ‘Mystery’ Animals

• An expedition with Conservation International’s Rapid Assessment Program did a species survey of Peru’s Alto Mayo Landscape in 2024

• The expedition recorded over 2,000 species during its 38-day survey

• Of the creatures recorded, 27 are species that are new to science

A scientific expedition focused on conserving the known animals of Peru’s Alto Mayo Landscape discovered 27 new species needing protection.

In 2024, Conservation International’s Rapid Assessment Program (RAP) launched a 38-day survey of the Alto Mayo Landscape — “a complex mosaic of ecosystems and communities, including Indigenous territories, towns, and cities” stretching from the Andes to the Amazon, according to the organization.

Trond Larsen, Ph.D, the expedition’s scientific lead, tells PEOPLE that the mission was “to assess and monitor biodiversity and ecosystem health” in this area.

Trond is a “conservation ecologist, but also an explorer and naturalist at heart.” He is also the senior director of biodiversity and ecosystem science at Conservation International and the lead of the organization’s Rapid Assessment Program.

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“For more than a decade, Conservation International has worked with the Awajún people and local communities in Alto Mayo to reduce deforestation by supporting sustainable livelihoods, such as selling medicinal teas and vanilla, and sustainable agriculture with cocoa and coffee beans,” Trond explains of the collaboration that led to his recent expedition.

“These efforts are now culminating in a vision for establishing a conservation corridor across the Alto Mayo landscape that connects the more degraded areas with existing protected areas,” he adds. “This will help to maintain Alto Mayo’s unique biodiversity while also ensuring people continue to receive the benefits from nature that they depend upon.”

Before constructing this corridor, Conservation International needs to know “where the most important species live, especially those that are new to science, rare, or threatened with extinction.”

Trond’s expedition went to the Alto Mayo Landscape to fill these “knowledge gaps” so that the corridor can develop a land-use plan that supports biodiversity conservation, agricultural sustainability, and habitat connectivity across the broader region.

During the expedition’s five-week survey, scientists recorded over 2,000 species, a “shocking” number for a “human-dominated” area of the Peruvian rainforest. Even more unexpected, out of the hundreds of species documented, 27 were new to science, including four new mammals, eight fish, three amphibians, and ten butterfly species. Additionally, “48 species are potentially new to science pending further research, and at least 49 species are threatened with extinction,” according to Trond.

“Our team was very surprised at the extraordinarily high levels of biodiversity we encountered, particularly the number of species that are new to science. While the discovery of new invertebrates, such as insects, is quite common, the discovery of so many vertebrate animals, including new mammals, amphibians, and fishes, was shocking,” the expedition lead shares.

The conservation ecologist admits he has a favorite among the newly discovered species.

“My personal favorite, and also the most unusual, is the blob-headed fish,” Trond says.

The creature is a type of armored catfish, set apart from other armored catfish by the “large, bulbous speckled ‘blob’ extending from the end of its head.”

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Other new species to science found during the expedition include a new type of bat, amphibious mouse, climbing salamander, and squirrel.

“While this fish is familiar to the local Indigenous Awajun people, it is completely new to scientists, and the function of this bizarre blob-like structure remains a mystery,” Trond adds.

“The scientific experts are continuing to study the newly discovered species in more detail, and eventually, each species will be formally ‘described’ and named, with the details published in a scientific journal,” he says of what’s next for the new animals.

Conservation International is working with the regional government and local communities to restore the areas of the Alto Mayo Landscape that are crucial to the animals recorded by the expedition.

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According to Trond, the Alto Mayo Landscape is the most “highly populated and human-influenced” landscape in which RAP has worked.

The “shocking and unexpected” discovery of so many new species and the overall “tremendous diversity” of the Alto Mayo Landscape shows RAP and Conservation International that populated areas “largely ignored” by scientists can still be teeming with natural life.

Trond’s next RAP expedition will occur in northeastern Bolivia in the first half of 2025. To learn more about Conservation International and how the organization protects nature, visit www.conservation.org.

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