New Snapper Species Discovered in Brazil
New Snapper Species Discovered in Brazil
mongabay.com
March 9, 2007
A new species of snapper was discovered off the coast of Brazil. The popular game fish had long been mistaken for a more common species, according to scientists with Conservation International (CI) and Environmental Defense. The description of the Lutjanus alexandrei snapper is published in the journal Zootaxa.
“This discovery that a large, popular fish is a species new to science shows how little we know about the oceans that surround us,” said Rodrigo Moura of Conservation International. “It looks like other snapper species found in the Caribbean and eastern United States, as well as the dog snapper caught by fishermen here in Brazil, but it is a distinct species with different markings and color.”
Photos by Kenyon Lindeman of Environmental Defense. |
The new species is named for 18th-century naturalist Alexandre Rodrigues. It is found in a wide range of habitats — coral reefs, rocky shores, coastal lagoons with brackish water, and mangroves — from Maranhão to Bahia, Brazil. Young lives among mangrove roots and move into deeper areas as adults.
“Several species spend some of their lives in these different yet connected habitats,” Lindeman said. “That’s why it’s so important to develop integrated conservation strategies that include mangroves, deep reefs and other interdependent ecosystems.”
CI says the discovery shows the need for more comprehensive marine research of Brazil’s reefs.
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Photos of newly discovered species in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest. Brazil has announced the creation of a Amapá State Forest, a 5.7 million acre Amazon protected area larger than the state of New Jersey. According to Conservation International (CI), a conservation group involved with the creation of the state forest, “the designation protects a crucial section of the Amapá Biodiversity Corridor of northern Brazil, which includes some of the most pristine remaining Amazon forest” and is home to some twenty three newly discovered species.
Two unknown ‘dragon’ species discovered in Brazil. Two previously unknown species of lizard that are said to resemble miniature ground-dwelling dragons have been found in the threatened cerrado region of Brazil. The species, Stenocercus squarrosus and Stenocercus quinarius are described in the current issue of the South American Journal of Herpetology.
This article is based on a news release from CI
