Photographic evidence has ended speculation regarding the validity of reported recent sightings of a squirrel-like rabbit in the Forest of Dean, England.

Currently the only known photograph of the potentially new mammal species nicknamed the ‘squabbit’ © E. Walsh

Scientists have confirmed the existence of an unidentified but potentially new mammal species in the Forest of Dean, England. Reported sightings of a strange-looking grey squirrel over the past three months have raised nothing more than eyebrows. However, recent photographic evidence and further sightings have put an end to speculation, confirming the existence of a small rodent-like mammal that indeed somewhat resembles both the grey squirrel and the European rabbit.

Affectionately dubbed the ‘squabbit’, this new zoological discovery is stumping scientists as to which species it is more closely related; the grey squirrel is a rodent, whereas the European rabbit is a lagomorph. Its bizarre appearance has led the scientists to believe that it may well be a type of arboreal rabbit. The discovery of a new mammal species in the UK is extremely rare, and the case is being treated with extreme caution. However, should the squabbit be formally described as a new species, this would be one of the most significant scientific discoveries for Britain this century.

Scat sample of the potential new species collected for DNA analysis © E. Cureuil

Slightly larger than the grey squirrel, the squabbit has predominantly grey fur which is a lighter reddish-brown between the ears and at the back of the neck. It has the long, bushy tail characteristic of the grey squirrel, thought to aide its balance when climbing trees, but larger, rounded paws more similar to those of a rabbit. Indeed, the paws of this species are presenting somewhat of a mystery, as the shape would lead scientists to assume that it is a ground-dwelling rather than tree-dwelling species. Surprisingly, however, the majority of reports of the squabbit have described its nimble climbing behaviour and ease of movement among the treetops. The most unusual feature setting this species apart from grey squirrels is its long, rabbit-like ears that are held upright above its head.

Edouard Cureuil, Professor of Rodent Evolution and Ecology at the Université Thierry Lodé, Paris, commented, “Although there is a possibility of genetic mutation within the grey squirrel population, the morphological differences appear too great to attribute to mutation…initial thoughts are that it represents an entirely new species that has somehow, until now, evaded the human eye.”

The squabbit is believed to have a similar diet to the grey squirrel, feeding on acorns, nuts and seeds, among other things.

The fact that the squabbit has so far avoided detection leads scientists to speculate that the species is predominantly nocturnal, and that Britain’s currently unpredictable climate may have disrupted its behaviour. It is thought to have a diet similar to that of the grey squirrel, feeding primarily on acorns, nuts and seeds, although it has also been observed grazing on grass at the foot of trees. Further studies should confirm whether this species builds burrows underground or nests in trees.

Several theories on the arboreal tendencies of the squabbit have been discussed, the most popular being an adaptation response to predation risks from wild boar and the many birds of prey present in the Forest of Dean. Camera traps have been deployed throughout the small area in which the squabbit occurs, and it is hoped that they will enable scientists to gain further insight into the behaviour of this bizarre new species. Scat samples have also been collected for DNA analysis which should shed some light on the unclear ancestry of the squabbit.

If confirmed as a new species, the squabbit will be a major new addition to Britain’s otherwise well-known fauna, and an exciting step for the world of species discovery.

Explore more newly discovered species on ARKive’s newly discovered species topic page.

Kaz Armour, ARKive Text Author

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Tehuantepec jackrabbit (Lepus flavigularis)

Species: Tehuantepec jackrabbit (Lepus flavigularis)

Status: Endangered (EN)

Interesting Fact: The Tehuantepec jackrabbit has impressively long ears which can measure up to 12 centimetres in length.

The Tehuantepec jackrabbit is considered to be the most endangered hare species in the world. Like other hares, it is characterised by its long legs, large hind feet, huge ears and superb running ability. This species is active at night or at dawn and dusk, sheltering in cover during the day. Like most hares, it does not dig burrows, instead relying on its camouflage and speed to escape predators. Young Tehuantepec jackrabbits, known as leverets, are well developed at birth and are left in a concealed place by the female, who only returns to nurse them briefly each day. This species is named after its distribution around the Gulf of Tehuantepec, Mexico.

Only four small, isolated populations of Tehuantepec jackrabbits remain, with a total population estimated at fewer than 1,000 individuals. This species has a restricted range and is threatened by habitat loss and human-caused fires, as well as by hunting. Unfortunately, conservation laws are not well enforced and this species’ habitat is unprotected. Urgent protection of its habitat is therefore needed, together with better enforcement of hunting regulations. Captive breeding, educational programmes and further research may also benefit this rare hare.

Find out more about the conservation of rabbits and hares at the World Lagomorph Society and the IUCN/SSC Lagomorph Specialist Group.

See more images of the Tehuantepec jackrabbit on ARKive.

Do you have a favourite species? Why not join our campaign to find the World’s Favourite Species and nominate it today!

Liz Shaw, ARKive Text Author

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Scientists have discovered two new species of mouse lemur in Madagascar, bringing the total number of these tiny primate species to 20.

The grey mouse-lemur, one of 20 mouse lemur species currently known to science

The mouse lemurs were collected during field surveys in 2003 and 2007, and genetic analysis has now shown them to be distinct species. In a paper recently published in the International Journal of Primatology, the scientists named the new species the Marohita mouse lemur (Microcebus marohita) and the Anosy mouse lemur (Microcebus tanosi).

The Marohita mouse lemur is named after the forest in which it was collected, while the Anosy mouse lemur is named after its distribution in the Anosy region in southeast Madagascar.

Miniscule primates

Mouse lemurs are some of the smallest primates in the world. All are nocturnal and live in Madagascar’s forests, where they feed on a range of insects, fruit, flowers, sap and even small vertebrates, such as frogs and geckos.

Although one of the largest mouse lemurs, the grey mouse-lemur is still one of the world’s smallest primates

The two new species are unusually large for mouse lemurs, with the Marohita mouse lemur reaching lengths of 28 centimetres and weights of about 78 grams. This makes it the largest of the known mouse lemurs. At 27 centimetres and around 50 grams, the Anosy mouse lemur becomes the second largest mouse lemur known to science.

New species discoveries

The rate at which new lemur species have been discovered in Madagascar has dramatically increased in the past decade. The mouse lemurs are one of the most species-rich groups of lemurs, but these tiny primates look so similar that genetic analysis is often the only way to tell them apart.

“I would say that in general, it is highly unusual to describe new species of primates in this age of global travel and consequent access to remote areas of the planet,” said Anne Yoder, director of the Duke Lemur Center and one of the authors of the paper. “That said, the number of described lemur species has more than tripled in the last 10 years. A large number of these new species have been mouse lemurs.”

Goodman’s mouse lemur was only discovered in 2005

Mouse lemurs under threat

Like many of Madagascar’s lemurs, the new mouse lemurs are likely to be under threat from human activities. Since the Marohita mouse lemur was first collected, much of the forest it inhabits has been cleared, and the scientists have classified the species as Endangered. The status of the Anosy mouse lemur is not yet known, but it is likely that it will also be classified as Endangered.

Further field studies have been recommended to assess the distribution and population sizes of the newly described lemurs, so that appropriate conservation measures can be put in place to protect them.

Conserving lemurs

The researchers point out the importance of identifying lemur species if they are to be protected. “Knowing exactly how many species we have is essential for determining which areas to target for conservation,” said Peter Kappeler of the German Primate Center, one of the authors of the paper.

Madame Berthe’s mouse lemur is classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List

According to Yoder, “I suspect that there are even more mouse lemur species out there to be found… Mouse lemurs are morphologically cryptic, they are tiny, they are nocturnal, and they occur in remote places. It therefore makes a lot of sense that the harder we look, the more species we will find.”

As well as identifying and protecting new lemur species, it will also be important to continue working towards the conservation of all lemurs in Madagascar. Public awareness will be an important part of this.

“I have found that the Malagasy people take great pride in their lemurs, as soon as they understand that Madagascar is unique in having lemurs, and also, that certain lemurs are specific only to a particular area,” said Yoder. “Also, and obviously, the government needs to participate in protecting the forests, and in providing economic alternatives to slash and burn agriculture to the Malagasy people.”

Read more on this story at Mongabay – 2 ‘giant’ yet tiny mouse lemurs identified in Madagascar and at Scientific American Blogs – Two new species of mouse lemur found in Madagascar.

Find out more about newly discovered species on ARKive.

View photos and videos of mouse lemurs on ARKive.

Liz Shaw, ARKive Text Author

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With Easter just a hop, skip and a jump away, and with Channel 4’s fascinating new Easter Eggs Live show catching our attention, we thought we’d crack into the ARKive coll-egg-tion and have a scramble around to eggs-tract some egg-citing eggs to eggs-hibit in our blog. Along the way, we’ve also learned about the eggs-istence of some rather eggs-centric egg-laying and guarding habits, and we hope you’re as eggs-tatic about our finds as we are!

Gooseberry fool?

Peacock butterfly eggs look a lot like gooseberries!

While you might be forgiven for being fooled into thinking that these green globules are plump and juicy gooseberries, they are, in fact, peacock butterfly eggs. The eggs of this species are laid in groups under nettles, usually in May, and hatch two weeks later.

Sunny-side up? Over-easy? Well-done?

Emu eggs come in various shades of greenish-black

However you like your eggs, there’s no denying that these ones look as though they’ve been char-grilled in their shells! But fear not, these emu eggs are supposed to look like this; they come in various shades of greenish-black and are the size of a small grapefruit. The male emu is an eggs-traordinary guardian, taking sole responsibility for incubating the eggs over the course of two months while the female wanders off to potentially find another mate, and protecting the chicks against predators for several months once they’ve hatched.

100 kids and counting…

Green turtles can lay an impressive number of eggs per nesting season

In the UK, having more than about four siblings would constitute being part of a pretty large and impressive family, but in the world of marine turtles, this is a mere drop in the ocean. Female green turtles produce between 100 and 150 ping-pong-ball-like eggs per clutch, and can lay up to nine separate clutches per breeding season. While this may seem rather a lot, marine turtles don’t guard their nests or look after their young, and with the threat of land- and ocean-dwelling predators, the survival rate of hatchlings is very low.

High-flying hunger games…

Bald eagle nests are some of the largest of any bird species

Bald eagle nests, made with sticks and lined with moss, grass, seaweed and other vegetation, are some of the largest of any bird species, sometimes reaching several metres in width. These enormous nests presumably provide a comfy and snug environment for the eggs during the 35-day incubation period, yet things can soon turn ugly. By being bigger and louder, the first-born chick is often afforded more parental attention and food, and will even occasionally kill its younger siblings.

Treasures of the deep

Shark eggs, such as this California horn shark egg, are often referred to as ‘mermaid’s purses’

A mermaid’s purse might well sound like something a sea-dwelling siren would keep her money and credit cards in, but a pilfering pickpocket could get a nasty surprise if they were to try to purloin this particular purse as it is actually a shark egg-case! Mermaid’s purses vary greatly in shape, size and colour, depending on the shark species in question.

Eggs-panding eggs

Common frog eggs are coated in a jelly-like substance

Frog egg masses, often referred to as frogspawn, tend to look rather like a gruesome collection of eyeballs. The female common frog releases between 1,000 and 2,000 eggs at a time, which are covered in a jelly-like coating. This coating expands when it comes into contact with water, providing protection for the tadpoles growing within.

Egg pasta

Pasta del mar – sea lemons produce somewhat pasta-like egg masses

What may look like a delectable strand of abandoned tagliatelle cast into the depths of the ocean is, in actual fact, a mass of sea lemon eggs. A common sea slug around Britain’s shores, the sea lemon produces thousands of eggs at a time which form a long, coiled, ribbon-like mass. These egg masses are produced in the spring and are attached to rocks, so if you take an Easter weekend dip in the sea and find such a structure, we would advise leaving it well alone and not adding it to your carbonara!

Ha-bee Easter!

Honey bee egg

A supplier of sugary goodness and a harbinger of spring to many, the honey bee lays its eggs from March to October. Honey bee colonies have a complex structure, formed of the queen, workers and drones, all of which serve different functions. Worker bees have a variety of roles within the colony, with some being tasked with feeding the developing larvae which emerge from the eggs around three days after they are laid.

Eggshellent parenting

King penguins incubate their egg on their feet

King penguins appear to take parenting very seriously, with each pair keeping a close eye on their precious egg. Incubation is shared by the male and female and is split into two- or three-week cycles, and parental duties remain shared once the chick has hatched. It’s a good job that king penguins don’t let their eggs out of their sight, otherwise they may not believe the chick belonged to them…the chick looks so different to the adult that they were first described as two completely different species!

Eggs-treme monotreme

A short-beaked echidna egg

While the majority of mammals give birth to live young, there are some eggs-treme mammalian species that lay eggs! These eggs-tra special critters are known as monotremes, and the short-beaked echidna is one of them. The echidna’s leathery egg is laid into a pouch on the female’s abdomen, where it is incubated for about ten days before it hatches. The young echidna, or ‘puggle’, remains there until it is 45 to 55 days old.

We hope you’ve enjoyed these eggs-amples of awesome eggs, and that you all have a wonderful Easter weekend!

To watch some incredible scenes of eggs from a wide variety of species hatching live, don’t forget to check out Easter Eggs Live online and tune in to Channel 4 at 8pm on Sunday 31^st March and Monday 1^st April for some more riveting reports and fascinating footage!

Kathryn Pintus, ARKive Text Author

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Amur leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis)

Species: Amur leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis)

Status: Critically Endangered (CR)

Interesting Fact: The Amur leopard is one of the most endangered big cats in the world, with only around 20 adults and 5-6 cubs counted in 2007.

A distinctive subspecies of leopard (Panthera pardus), the Amur leopard has a particularly pale coat and large, dark, widely spaced spots. This beautiful big cat is well adapted to living in the harsh, cold climate it inhabits, with a thick coat and longer legs than other leopards, helping it to walk through snow. The Amur leopard usually lives alone and hunts at night, feeding on a range of animals including hares and deer.

The Amur leopard once ranged through the Amur River Basin, the mountains of northeast China and the Korean Peninsula, but is now confined to the Russian Far East, with a few individuals in the Jilin Province of China. The main threats to the Amur leopard include hunting for its coat and for its bones, which are used in traditional Chinese medicine, as well as a reduction in its prey species. Wildfires and human developments are also a threat. Although the Amur leopard is legally protected, greater efforts are needed to reduce poaching and educate local people. A captive breeding programme is underway, and part of China’s Jilin Province has been set aside for the creation of a National Park to protect this species. Unfortunately, the future of this beautiful but highly endangered cat remains uncertain.

Find out more about conservation efforts for the Amur leopard at AMUR – Russian Amur Tiger and Leopard Conservation, WWF – Amur leopard and WCS – Amur leopard.

See images and videos of the Amur leopard on ARKive.

Visit ARKive’s Facebook page to see an infographic on the Amur leopard shared by one of our followers, Guillermo Munro.

Liz Shaw, ARKive Text Author

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