Top 10 species discovered in 2009
MSNBC: Top 10 new species of 2009 named
Weird and wild picks include bomb-dropping worm, frogfish with psychedelic skin
by John Roach
msnbc.com contributor
This bomb-dropping worm, Swima bombiviridis, is among the top 10 species discovered in 2009, according to the International Institute for Species Exploration at Arizona State University. The annual roundup winnows down a list of about 20,000 species described each year to just a few mind-benders.
"It is a great way of getting the public involved in biodiversity," says Mary Liz Jameson, a biodiversity scientist at Wichita State University and chair of this year's selection committee. While the criteria for selection include scientific significance, Jameson admits that "the cool factor" also plays a part.
For example, the bomb-dropping worm found off the coast of California "has these green gills it can kind of throw off, and the predator will follow the gill instead of following the [worm], so it is tripping up the predator," Jameson said. "It's really cool."
Click ahead to see the other cool species on the top-10 list.
Rest at link.
In addition to the annelid worm, the newly described animals include a sponge, a slug, a spider, and three species of fish. There are also two species of plants and a fungus.