Photo by Brad Maryan.
A team of scientists from The Australian National University has discovered a new species of lizard hidden among the sand dunes of Western Australia's coastline. However, mankind's encounter with this new species may be short-lived. Urban sprawl and habitat destruction are already pushing the tiny creature towards extinction. The 6cm long Ctenotus ora , or the Coastal Plains Skink, only lives in the dunes along the Swan Coastal Plain between Dunsborough and Mandurah, south of Perth. The discovery, detailed in the journal Zootaxa , took place during research to determine the levels of biological diversity in South-western Australia by ecologists Mr Geoffrey Kay from the Fenner School of Environment & Society, and Scott Keogh from the ANU Research School of Biology. "The discovery of a new species is a momentous occasion in science," said Mr Kay. "To find something as yet undetected, so close to one of the country's largest cities, demonstrates how much we've still got to discover.
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