Screen grab reading Science > Animals Whoops, Scientists May Have Severely Miscalculated the Number of Species on Earth A new study focused on cryptic species— animals that look the same but are genetically different—found that they're more widespread among vertebrates than we previously thought. BY DARREN ORF PUBLISHED: FEB 18, 2026 8:00 AM EST RADIMIN

Screen grab reading - RESEARCH ARTICLES| 04 FEB 2026 Cryptic species are widespread across vertebrates Open Access Yinpeng Zhang ORCID logo ; John J. Wiens Corresponding Author ORCID logo Author & article information Proc Biol Sci (2026) 293 (2064): 20252377 . https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2025.2377 Article history

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#CrypticSpecies

There’s more than you thought - there’s always more than you thought!

1st the coverage, then the science

www.popularmechanics.com/science/anim...

doi.org/10.1098/rspb...

New research in #RESMedVetEnt

From host to host, and continent to continent: Two #phoresy-enabled #Guimaraesiella hitchhiker louse species revealed by integrative #taxonomy (#Phthiraptera: #Ischnocera)
doi.org/10.1111/mve.70045

#COIbarcoding #Lice #CrypticSpecies
@wileyecology.bsky.social

Description of a new species of loach from Guangxi Gutingshan Forest Park in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China: doi.org/10.3897/zook...

#cavefish #crypticspecies #subterranean

Lycodon duytan is a new cryptic snake species is described from north-central Vietnam. Find out all about it here: doi.org/10.3897/zook...

#crypticspecies #taxonomy #newspecies

(A) The proportion of aquatic beetles within eight families (pie charts) across the studied area, including 23 Tatra valleys (each represented by a code number; see Table S4A for full code explanations) and eight localities in the Tatra foothills (FH). For sampling sites details, see Table S4A. (B) Geographical distribution of aquatic beetles from eight families based on COI sequences outside the Tatra Mts from public BOLD database. For sampling sites details, see Table S5. (C) Boxplots comparing the altitudinal distribution of samples from Tatra Mts (TM, corresponding to those shown in part A) versus individuals from the BOLD database (WR—world populations, shown in part B). Boxes are bounded by the third quartile (Q3) above and the first quartile (Q1) below, representing the interquartile range (IQR). Black bars indicate the median, with X representing the average. Whiskers show data variability beyond Q3 and Q1, and circles denote outliers.

#LiteratureNotice Macko et al. High Altitudes as Reservoirs of Unique Genetic Diversity: A Case Study on Aquatic Beetles in Glacial Lakes of Tatra Mountains doi.org/10.1111/fwb.... #Beetle #Beetles #CrypticSpecies #DNABarcoding

New Opinion alert! The #Lutzomyia #longipalpis complex: what’s next? authored by Lucas de Sousa-Paula. @niaidnews.bsky.social‬ #crypticspecies #vectorborne #speciescomplex #arthropod

authors.elsevier.com/a/1lhD25Eb1x...

Three For The Price Of One: Genomics Reveals Three Distinct Cockatoo Species

#SciComm🧪 by @grrlscientist.bsky.social

#parrots🦜 #cockatoos #birds🦉 #ornithology🪶 #NewSpecies #genomics🧬 #CrypticSpecies #Endangered #conservation🌏 medium.com/grrlscientis...

Description the calling songs and duets of two new bush cricket species in the rotundifolia complex of Amblycorypha: doi.org/10.3897/jor....

#crypticspecies #newspecies #Orthoptera

Why Some Species Choose to Hide from Us Forever - WIOBS Some species deliberately avoid human contact—discover the reasons behind this elusive behavior and what it reveals about evolution, ssss

Why Some Species Choose to Hide from Us Forever wiobs.com/why-some-spe... #WildlifeConservation #Biodiversity #CrypticSpecies #EndangeredSpecies #HumanImpact

New research in #RESInsectConsDiv reports on the magnitude of cryptic insect diversity in one tropical rainforest
doi.org/10.1111/icad.12861

#CrypticSpecies #Biodiversity
@manusaunders.bsky.social @wiley.com

Photo: Amaxia sp., Barcode Index Number ACF3741; credit: J.A. Ramirez Silva

Historical demographic determinants complement climate #modelprediction of co-occurring #crypticspecies

doi.org/10.1111/ddi....

#phylogeography #nichemodels #demografichistory

There Are More Giraffe Species Than You Think

“For the longest time, people thought there was just one species of #giraffe🦒. DNA🧬 studies prove us wrong”

by @grrlscientist.bsky.social via #Substack

#CrypticSpecies #Biodiversity #evolution #SciComm🧪 grrlscientist.substack.com/p/there-are-...

Fig. 1. Distribution of six endemic Appalachian Lathrobium. Shared shapes indicate sister species.

#LiteratureNotice Haberski & Caterino. Endogean habits drove cryptic diversification in Appalachian Lathrobium Gravenhorst ( #Coleoptera, #Staphylinidae) doi.org/10.1016/j.ym... #Beetle #Beetles #RoveBeetles #CrypticSpecies

Promotion image for Wildlife Acoustics' webinar Birds Of A Feather: Finding, Understanding, and Appreciating Birds Through Sound. Image is of the title, subtitle, date and time, a feather with silhouettes of birds appearing to fly out of the feather as if the were made from it. The background is a wavy beige and white paper like texture. End image description.

Flock together with us on February 27th as part of our latest #webinar!

Join speakers Dr. Nick Leseberg, ornithologist Seán Ronayne, and Dr. John Quinn, as they share how passive acoustic monitoring is advancing #biodiversity research and protecting vulnerable species. #ornithology #crypticspecies

Many coral 'species' may, in fact, be separate 'cryptic' species! We found that up to 68% of #popgen studies in corals had putative cryptic taxa!! Check out the ms in Peer Community Journal! @peercommunityin.bsky.social
#corals #crypticspecies

peercommunityjournal.org/articles/10....

#NewSpeciesAlert - #𝑆𝑝ℎ𝑜𝑒𝑟𝑜𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑎, a new species of #pufferfish, a #CrypticSpecies from Brazilian waters, formally known as 𝑆. 𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒𝑟𝑖. #Tetraodontidae #Colomesus
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