New Species Discovered in Remote Congo Corner

New Species Discovered in Remote Congo Corner



Aug. 2007 - A new species of bat, a rodent 
species, two shrews, and two frogs have been discovered in a remote corner 
of the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. The area has been unexplored 
since 1960 because civil unrest has made it too dangerous, a wildlife 
conservation organization said Tuesday. 
The fact that this area of Africa's Albertine Rift has been off-limits to 
outsiders could be viewed as a blessing, said the Wildlife Conservation 
Society, WCS, based at New York's Bronx Zoo. 
"For the planet’s ever shrinking wilderness, a combination of political 
instability and geographic isolation could be seen as a blessing," the WCS 
said. "In the few remaining places where human influence is light, nature 
can prosper, and even multiply." 
A two month expedition between January and March 2007 to the 
Misotshi-Kabogo Forest and nearby Marunga Massif led by WCS scientists, 
made the discoveries. 
"If we can find six new species in such a short period, it makes you 
wonder what else is out there," said researcher Dr. Andrew Plumptre, 
director of the WCS Albertine Rift Program. 
The forest survey included participants from WCS, the Field Museum in 
Chicago, the National Centre of Research and Science in Lwiro, DRC, and 
the World Wildlife Fund. 
In spite of the conflict and related degradation in the area, about 1,000 
square kilometers (386 square miles) have remained intact, from the shores 
of Lake Tanganyika to elevations of 2,725 meters (8,940 feet) above sea 
level, Plumptre said.
 
The survey team found a high level of biodiversity in the gallery forests 
and woodlands, including chimpanzees, bongos, buffalo, elephants, 
leopards, and several types of monkeys, including a subspecies of colobus 
monkey found only there. 
The researchers also recorded a high diversity of birds, reptiles, and 
amphibians, as well as plants that may be new to science. 
But due to poaching, few large mammals were seen. 
Currently, human impacts on the region are low, with minor gold mining 
being the most substantial threat. 
Survey members met with the leaders of local villages and said that most 
of them support turning the region into a protected area. 
"The forest has been isolated from much of the Congo Forest block for at 
least 10,000 years, and as a result, contains some interesting new 
species," said WCS researcher Deo Kujirakwinja, one of the survey 
participants. 
"There is a real need to protect this forest and carry out more research 
in the area," said Kujirakwinja. 
Stretching from the northern end of Lake Albert to the southern end of 
Lake Tanganyika and extending through five countries, the Albertine Rift 
is a reservoir of biodiversity. 
This series of high mountain chains separates the Guineo-Congolian 
rainforest of Central Africa from the forest-savanna mosaic habitats of 
East Africa. 
It takes in the ice fields atop the Rwenzori mountains at 5,000 metres 
(16,000 feet), active volcanoes, hotsprings, bamboo, alpine vegetation, 
montane forest, savanna and lowland forests at 600 metres (1,800 feet). 
In a 2003 study, Plumptre showed that the region is inhabited by more than 
half of the bird species of continental Africa and nearly 40 percent of 
Africa's mammals, including the world famous mountain gorillas, now 
threatened by poaching. 
The Albertine Rift has been identified as an Endemic Bird Area by Birdlife 
International, an Ecoregion by the World Wildlife Fund, and a Biodiversity 
Hotspot by Conservation International. 
The Wildlife Conservation Society has been working in this region since 
the 1950s, supporting the conservation and establishment of national 
parks. 
James Deutsch, director of the Wildlife Conservation Society's Africa 
Program, said of the area where the six new species were found, "Since few 
people live there, it would be relatively easy to create a park while 
supporting the livelihoods of people who live in the landscape." 

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