Creature with 10 legs discovered lurking in a puddle in China. It’s a new species
In a small puddle deep in the forests of China, a tiny creature hides under a rock.
When the time is right, it slips out from the protection of the dark and sifts through the mud looking for a meal.
The tiny crustacean has existed in the shadows completely undetected – until now.
In a new study, researchers identify a newly discovered species of crab from the Duqiaoshan Forest Park in southeast China.
The study, published on June 8 in ZooKeys, identified the new species as Sinolapotamon cirratum, identifiable from its pincered cousins by a “bluntly angular” body.
Other species in the animal genus have bodies that come to a “pointed or shortly pointed” end, but the new species has a more rounded exterior.
The crabs call muddy puddles on the forest floor home, specifically along the Pearl River basin, an area that follows one of the world’s largest rivers across the southern region of China.
The Pearl River basin catches water from a 280,000-square-mile area and is home to 230 million people, according to a 2019 study in Nature.
“We speculate that the Pearl River contributed to the spread of (the new species), but further surveys will be needed to validate this hypothesis,” the study authors said.
Despite the high population, the 10-legged crab has remained in isolation in its freshwater habitats.
But the researchers said there may be more to find.
“Based on the geographical distributions of (the new species), there is still possibility to discover new species in Guangxi or Guangdong,” the study authors said.
The Duqiaoshan Forest Park in in southeast China, about 1,450 miles from Beijing.
This story was originally published June 12, 2023 at 3:49 PM with the headline "Creature with 10 legs discovered lurking in a puddle in China. It’s a new species."
