Credit: Pensoft Publishers
You might think that Europe is so well-studied that no large animal remains undiscovered. Today, however, a new species of Montenegrin giant keel slug has been announced for open access. Biodiversity Data Magazine. The animal, as large as a medium-sized carrot, was discovered on a public science expedition and described jointly by its participants.
The international team of citizen scientists from Italy, the Netherlands, Serbia, South Africa and the United States found the slug in July 2019 while exploring the spectacular Tara Canyon, the deepest gorge in Europe, with inflatable bass. The brownish-gray animals, with a sharp crest on their backs, and 20 cm long when fully stretched, hid under rocky overhangs in the narrowest part of the ravine.
At first, the newly discovered slugs seemed superficially indistinguishable from the black keel slug as ash (Limax cinereoniger), which also lives in the Tara Canyon. The team had to use a portable DNA lab to find out that there is a 10% difference between the two slugs in the so-called DNA barcode. In addition, when they dissected some, they also found differences in the reproductive organs. This was enough to decide that a new species had been discovered, and they named it Limax pseudocinereoniger to indicate its resemblance to L. cinereoniger.
The field trip was led by Taxon Expeditions, which organizes real science expeditions for the general public, with the aim of making scientific discoveries. Rick de Vries, an Amsterdam web editor and illustrator who found the first copy of L. pseudocinereoniger, says, “It’s an incredible thrill to have an animal in your hands and know that it’s still unknown to science.”
Zoologist Iva Njunjić, one of the authors of the article, believes that more unknown species are likely to be found in the Tara Canyon and Durmitor National Park, of which it is a part. “Using a combination of DNA analysis and anatomy will likely reveal more species that are identical on the outside but actually belong to different species,” he says.
In 2023, Taxon Expeditions plans to bring a new team of citizen scientists to Montenegro with the mission of discovering new species and documenting hidden biodiversity.
Citizen scientists discover a beetle-sized beetle in Borneo More information: Menno Schilthuizen et al, A new giant keel slug of the Balkan genus Limax, described by citizen scientists, Biodiversity Data Magazine (2022). DOI: 10.3897 / BDJ.10.e69685 Provided by Pensoft Publishers
Citation: Scientists from three continents help discover a new giant slug in Europe (2022, June 22) recovered on June 23, 2022
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