New Species Found in "Lost World": Pinocchio Frog, More

New Species of Bee-like Bat

Photograph by Tim Laman, National Geographic

Like most of the Lost World's mammals, this new species of blossom bat is nocturnal. Unlike most other New Guinean bats of the supersize flying fox family, the new bat is only about as big as an average North American bat. (See a picture of a "nonexistent," recently discovered flying fox species.)

The blossom bat is also "kind of like the hummingbird of the bat world," said biologist Kristofer Helgen, curator of mammals at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C.

"It uses a really long tongue to lap up nectar and of course gets pollen on it as it moves from flower to flower, so it's also a pollinator—a bit like a bumblebee," Helgen added.

(Read a full account of the latest Foja Mountains expedition in the June 2010 National Geographic magazine.)

Published May 17, 2010

"Pinocchio" Frog

Photograph by Tim Laman, National Geographic

This Pinocchio-like tree frog species was discovered by fortunate accident when it ventured into a Foja Mountains camp kitchen and perched on a bag of rice, where herpetologist Paul Oliver of Australia's University of Adelaide spotted it. Oliver was unable to find another of these frogs, and suspects that they stay mostly in the treetops.

The male frog's nose, the scientists were surprised to discover, points upward when the animal's calling and hangs flaccid when it's not. "Exactly what it is for, no one really knows for sure," Oliver said.

(Learn how to save frogs.)

Published May 17, 2010

World's Smallest Wallaby

Photograph by Tim Laman, National Geographic

A hunting party of Foja woodsmen—who also helped guide the scientists—returned to camp with this rabbit-size wallaby. Others were spotted moving in the forest.

Not only is the new species the world's smallest wallaby, but "in the family of the true kangaroos"—Macropodidae—"it might be the smallest one of all," the natural history museum's Helgen said.

Also during the 2008 Indonesian expedition, a camera trap snapped the first ever pictures of a wild golden-mantled tree kangaroo in action.

Hunters have threatened the tree kangaroo's survival elsewhere on New Guinea, where the species' scarcity has lent it nearly mythic status (see a golden-mantled tree kangaroo picture from the previous Foja Mountains expedition).

Published May 17, 2010

Lost World Tree Mouse

Photograph by Tim Laman, National Geographic

This tiny tree mouse, likely a new species, is one of a host of mouse and rat species that call the Foja Mountains home.

"This one in particular is a species that moves through the forest on networks of tree branches and vines," said Helgen, who discovered the animal. "It essentially uses them almost like a highway in the forest. It hardly ever has to go down and touch the ground."

Published May 17, 2010

Bent-toed Gecko in Lost World

Photograph by Tim Laman, National Geographic

A pass of the flashlight revealed this new species of bent-toed gecko by its orange eyeshine.

Many of these geckos were seen in the trees, but a few were also grabbed on the ground for study.

"Interestingly the local guides, who were forest people and afraid of very little, refused to touch the geckos and would not catch them," added the University of Adelaide's Oliver. "I could not work out why they feared them."

As for the gecko, it was likely a bit perplexed by the appearance of an artificial light.

"People have lived in New Guinea for probably 50,000 years, and they live almost everywhere across the island," the natural history museum's Helgen said. "But these mountains are unique. There are no roads, no tracks, no people—and almost no human impact."

(Download "Lost World" animal wallpapers.)

Published May 17, 2010

Lost World on the Wing

Photograph by Tim Laman, National Geographic

Indonesian entomologist Hari Sutrisno attracts droves of moths with low tech and little effort at 5,577-foot-high (1,700-meter-high) Bog Camp. More than two dozen different moths and butterflies collected on the expedition may prove to be new species. (See up-close moth pictures.)

Named for a watery clearing that provided the sole helicopter landing zone in the Foja Mountains' impenetrable rain forests, Bog Camp was one of three outposts at varying altitudes used during the 2008 Foja Mountains expedition.

Published May 17, 2010

Foja Mountains

Photograph by Tim Laman, National Geographic

Very few people have set foot in these precipitous mountains, where knife-edge ridges and vertical cliffs rise to 7,200 feet (2,200 meters).

The Foja Mountains' topography and almost impenetrable forest cover make travel so difficult that even after the second, 2008 expedition, the Lost World remains largely unexplored—with potentially many more new species awaiting discovery.

Conservation International (CI) expedition leaders say they hope the current round of new species discoveries will encourage Indonesia to boost protection of the region—currently a national wildlife refuge—while it's still pristine.

"“Places like these," said CI senior research scientist and expedition member Bruce Beehler in a statement, "represent a healthy future for all of us and show that it is not too late to stop the current species extinction crisis."

More: See "Extinction Crisis Worsens; 'Dow Jones' Approach Touted >>

Published May 17, 2010