Tag: 20th Century

Äthiopische Wassermaus (Nilopegamys plumbeus) - W. H. Osgood (1928)
Illustration of the Ethiopian amphibious rat by Leon L. Pray from the first description from 1928: It is based on field studies by the nature painter Louis Agassiz Fuertes and is one of the few contemporary illustrations of the species. Its close connection to bodies of water is clearly visible. Image: L L. Pray in Osgood 1928

Ethiopian Amphibious Rat: Only one specimen—and lost since 1927

A particularly remarkable novelty It is known from a single specimen: an adult male that the American zoologist Wilfred Hudson Osgood collected on March 20, 1927, in the Ethiopian highlands—in a small mountain stream near the source of the Little Abbai. This animal later became known as the Ethiopian amphibious

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Bodensee-Kilch (Coregonus gutturosus) und ein Tiefseesaibling (Salvelinus profundus)
Historic depiction of the Lake Constance whitefish with the Lake Constance deepwater char (bottom left), which was rediscovered in 2016. Both lived in the deep areas of Lake Constance — a habitat that was severely affected by eutrophication in the 20th century. (© Walter, Emil, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)

Lake Constance Whitefish: An example of species loss in alpine lakes

Species or just a form? The Lake Constance whitefish or kilch belongs to the genus Coregonus—a group of salmonids found in cool, oxygen-rich waters across the Northern Hemisphere. In Europe, they are known as Felchen, Maränen, Reinanken or Renken (whitefish). Hardly any other fish group is considered as taxonomically difficult: many forms have arisen only

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Mono-Lake-Tauchkaefer / Mono Lake diving beetle (Hygrotus artus)
Until its rediscovery in 2017, the Mono Lake diving beetle was known only from the male holotype collected in June 1917 (photo), which is now housed in the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. (© Loggi at German Wikipedia., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)

Mono Lake diving beetle: missing for 100 years—and sought in the wrong place

A mistake with consequences For a long time, the case seemed clear: the Mono Lake diving beetle lived—so it was assumed—in Mono Lake in California’s Sierra Nevada. A lake that could hardly be more inhospitable: highly alkaline, extremely saline, and with conditions to which only a few specialized organisms can

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Wolterstorff-Molch (Cynops woltertorffi) - Natural History Museum (London)
The Yunnan lake newt was named by George Albert Boulenger (1905) in honor of the German geologist and zoologist Willy Wolterstorff, who worked extensively on the systematics of salamanders and newts. (© "1946.9.6.32-pic1" - Cynops wolterstorffi (Boulenger, 1905) Collected in China by The Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London, CC BY 4.0, via GBIF)

Yunnan lake newt—a poorly documented extinction

A newt with a fish-like appearance At the beginning of the 20th century, John Graham collected several animal species previously unknown to science in the southwestern Chinese province of Yunnan. He sent the finds to London, where they were examined by George Albert Boulenger at the Natural History Museum. Boulenger,

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Tobias caddisfly – museum specimen from the Entomological Collection of ETH Zurich
A museum specimen of the extinct Tobias caddisfly, collected in 1914, in ETH Zurich’s entomological collection. (© Hydropsyche tobiasi – Foto von E. Schmitt, Entomologische Sammlung ETH Zürich, CC BY-SA 4.0, via GBIF)

Tobias’ caddisfly: Germany’s only endemic species to have gone extinct

Inconspicuous, highly specialised insects Caddisflies are among those insects that hardly anyone notices. They are inconspicuous, quiet and do not impose themselves on people. In 2002, the Austrian entomologist Hans Malicky described them aptly as animals that “cause neither harm nor any particular benefit”, that “do not sting and do

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Riesen-Heidelibelle / St.-Helena-Heidelibelle (Sympetrum dilatatum)
One of the few museum specimens of the extinct Saint Helena darter in the Natural History Museum in London—an adult male. (© BMNH(E)1241597 Sympetrum dilatatum dorsal - Sympetrum dilatatum (Calvert, 1892) by The Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London, CC BY 4.0, via GBIF)

Saint Helena Darter—the only dragonfly of St Helena

A hotspot of insect endemism Many people know the remote island of St Helena primarily from history: as Napoleon’s place of exile, where he was interned in 1815 and died in 1821. Beyond this prominent episode, however, the small volcanic island in the South Atlantic—around 1,800 kilometers west of the

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Pholidoscelis cineraceus
One of the few museum specimens of the extinct Guadeloupe ameiva. (© Laure Pierre, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)

Guadeloupe ameiva—isolation, colonization & the end of an island species

Islands under pressure The West Indies—including the Lesser Antilles—are among the most species-rich regions in the world. Many lizard and snake species are found exclusively there. These endemic species have adapted over millennia to the conditions of individual islands. Yet this very specialization makes them particularly vulnerable: when habitats are

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Rotfuchs als invasiver Räuber
A red fox carrying a squirrel in its mouth, a symbol of the hunting success of this highly adaptable predator, which in Australia became a threat to numerous endemic animal species. (© NPS Photo/Kent Miller, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)

From 60 to 1.7 Million: How the Red Fox Conquered Australia in Just 60 Years

When European settlers of British origin brought the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) to Australia from around 1870 onward, they were thinking of tradition, not ecological consequences. Hunting foxes with packs of hounds, then a deeply rooted social ritual in England and now banned, was meant to continue in the new

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Östliches Irmawallaby oder Greys Wallaby
Its external features gave the toolache wallaby a distinctly elegant appearance, which was described appreciatively even by settlers who otherwise had little interest in Australian animals. (© John Gould, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)

Toolache Wallaby: The most beautiful, elegant and agile of all wallabies

British naturalist Frederic Wood Jones, who spent many years in Australia, called Grey’s wallaby, also known as the toolache wallaby, “probably the most beautiful and elegant of all wallabies” in 1924. The high-contrast facial markings, the banded fur on the back and the overall fine gray tone of the coat

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Kouprey
The kouprey is among the most enigmatic wild cattle in the world. First described scientifically in 1937, it was already extremely rare at that time. Characteristic features include the frayed horn tips of mature bulls and the pronounced dewlap. Today, according to the IUCN, the kouprey is probably extinct. (© Illustration aus Coolidge, H. J. (1940). The Indo-Chinese forest ox or kouprey. Memoirs of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, 54(6), via Biodiversity Heritage Library)

The Kouprey: A Zoological Mystery

The kouprey is considered one of the most mysterious wild cattle in the world. First described by Western scientists only in 1937, this shy animal from the tropical forests of the tri-border region of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia remained scarcely studied for decades. Many zoologists saw the kouprey as a

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