biodiversity

Tiny beetle trapped in 53-million-year-old amber is named after Twenty One Pilots

Scientists use a synchrotron to reveal the first formally described puppet beetle from France’s Oise amber.

Preserved in amber for about 53 million years, a beetle has been described as a new species by researchers in Spain and France. Named Cnopus twentyonepilotorum, it is the first puppet beetle (family Aderidae) to be formally described from the Oise amber of northern France. The findings are published in the open-access journal ZooKeys.

The study was led by Jules Ferreira, a PhD candidate at the Institut Botànic de Barcelona (CSIC-CMCNB) and the Facultat de Ciències de la Terra of the Universitat de Barcelona, with Erich L. Spiessberger and David Peris. They worked with André Nel of the Institut de Systématique, Évolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB) at the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle in Paris, a joint unit of the CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE and Université des Antilles, and with Alessandra Patera of the ALBA Synchrotron.

†*Cnopus twentyonepilotorum* sp. nov., holotype C05038. Habitus of the holotype in dorsal view. Scale bars: 250 µm. Credit: Ferreira et al. 2026, ZooKeys.

Puppet beetles, also known as ant-like leaf beetles, are small insects with about 1,000 living species found on every continent except Antarctica. Despite this reach, their biology is poorly known and their fossil record is sparse. The Oise amber, from Le Quesnoy near Creil, is one of the oldest Cenozoic ambers in Europe and preserves the fauna of a warm, humid forest from the early Eocene.

“Aderidae had already been reported from this amber, but none had ever been formally described. Our specimen offered the opportunity to fill this gap and to better understand the evolutionary history of the family.”

– Jules Ferreira

To study the fossil without damaging the amber, the team used synchrotron X-ray microtomography at the ALBA Synchrotron, which allowed them to reconstruct a detailed 3D model of the fossil beetle and compare it with living species. The beetle belongs to Cnopus, a genus that still exists today. Until now, its oldest fossils of this genus came from the Baltic and Bitterfeld ambers, around 38 to 34-million-years-old.

†*Cnopus twentyonepilotorum* sp. nov., holotype C05038. 3D renderings. Credit: Ferreira et al. 2026, ZooKeys.

This discovery shows that this beetle lineage was already established in Western European forests in the early Eocene, roughly 15 million years earlier than previously documented. Some internal structures normally used to distinguish living species were not preserved, so the fossil cannot be fully compared with all its modern relatives. Its age, however, makes it very unlikely to belong to a species still alive today.

“What surprised us most was how little the external morphology of this lineage has changed over time. Despite more than 50 million years of evolution, major climatic changes and the transformation of European forests, the overall external morphology of these tiny beetles has remained remarkably stable.”

– Jules Ferreira

The species name honours the band Twenty One Pilots. The authors say the dedication acknowledges the group’s contribution to raising awareness of mental health and to reducing the stigma around anxiety, depression and personal hardship.

The team is now studying other puppet beetles from the Oise amber and hopes to learn which beetle groups persisted in European forests between the early and late Eocene.

“Amber is exceptional in this respect. It sometimes preserves several organisms trapped together, offering rare snapshots of ancient ecological associations. Each new fossil adds a piece to this puzzle and helps us better understand how beetle communities were assembled and how they changed through time.”

– Jules Ferreira

The holotype is held in the palaeontological collection of the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle in Paris.

Original source:

Ferreira J, Spiessberger EL, Nel A, Patera A, Peris D (2026) First fossil species of puppet beetles (Coleoptera, Tenebrionoidea, Aderidae) from the lowermost Eocene Oise amber (France), with a review of the fossil record of Aderidae. ZooKeys 1297: 153-180. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1297.210120

For more articles on zoology, visit the ZooKeys website and follow the journal on BlueSky and Facebook.

New species of pygmygoby discovered at the edge of the Red Sea’s unexplored deep reefs

Charon’s pygmygoby, named for the golden “coins” on its tail, is known from just two specimens.

Researchers have described a new species of fish from the northern Red Sea, found at the entrance to a cave on a steep reef slope. Charon’s pygmygoby (Trimma charon) is a small, translucent fish with a broad orange-red stripe, golden spots on its tail, and an unusual four-part eye. The two known specimens measure just 12 and 17 millimetres.

The study was led by Viktor Nunes Peinemann at the Marine Science Program, Division of Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia. His co-authors are Matthew D. Tietbohl Talas and Michael L. Berumen of KAUST, and Sergey V. Bogorodsky of the Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, Germany. It is published in the open access journal ZooKeys.

A name inspired by gold coins

The species is named after Charon, the ferryman of Greek mythology who carried the dead across the river into the underworld. The dead were traditionally buried with a coin to pay for the crossing.

“One of the most striking features of the new species is the golden spots scattered across its tail fin. They cover most of the fin and resemble small gold coins.”

– Viktor Nunes Peinemann

The name also reflects where the fish may live. The team suspects the species is more common on deep “mesophotic” reefs below 30 metres, which remain largely unexplored.

“These dark, deeper, unexplored reefs could be viewed as a kind of ‘underworld’ beneath the shallow, well-lit, and better studied reefs most of us are more familiar with.”

Freshly collected *Trimma charon* sp. nov., paratype, live, ROMI118237, 12.1 mm SL. Photograph: V.N. Peinemann.

A clue to deeper discoveries

The fish was collected in May 2023 at Walih Island, at 30 metres, the maximum depth of the team’s scientific diving. Despite extensive searches of similar habitats since, it has not been seen again. “So far, the entire species is known from only a single encounter and two specimens,” said Peinemann. The team suggests it may simply be the shallow edge of a species that mostly lives deeper. “Red Sea reefs below that depth almost certainly hold more undiscovered gobies.”

The new species looks similar to the pallid pygmygoby (Trimma anaima), which is found from East Africa to the Pacific but has never been recorded in the Red Sea. Genetic data suggest the two are close relatives, though further work is needed to confirm this. “While one species seems to have spread across much of the Indian and Pacific Oceans, its closest relative appears to have stayed in the Red Sea and evolved separately for millions of years,” said Peinemann.

*Trimma avidori* – an abundant Red Sea species. Photograph: V.N. Peinemann.

A field guide for hard-to-spot fishes

With this discovery, 11 Trimma species are known from the Red Sea, making it the most species-rich goby genus in the region. At least nine appear to be found nowhere else in the world. The paper also provides an illustrated identification key to all 11 species, along with photographs and field notes on where each lives.

*In situ* photographs of Red Sea *Trimma* species. A. *T. avidori*; B. *T. filamentosus*; **C, D**. *T. barralli*; E. *T. sheppardi*; F. *T. quadrimaculatum*. All photographs taken in the Red Sea. Photographs by V.N. Peinemann (panels A, D); by F. Krasovec (panel B); by S.V. Bogorodsky (panels C, E, F).

“Knowing which species are present, how to accurately identify them, and where they live, is the most foundational step to building a stronger understanding of these species and ecosystems. They still have many secrets and deserve much more attention.”

– Viktor Nunes Peinemann

Photo collage of each Red Sea species of Trimma. Photographs by V.N. Peinemann.

Original source

Peinemann VN, Bogorodsky SV, Tietbohl Talas MD, Berumen ML (2026) Trimma charon, a new species of pygmygoby (Teleostei, Gobiidae) from the Red Sea with a key to the Red Sea species of the genus. ZooKeys 1293: 1–16. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1293.204097

For more articles on zoology, visit the ZooKeys website and follow the journal on BlueSky and Facebook.

Building evidence for research assessment reform: Pensoft joins the new Horizon Europe project REALISE

As part of the REALISE consortium, Pensoft contributes to the project with services and know-how in scholarly publishing and project branding

Pensoft is taking part in the newly launched EU-funded project REALISE (Responsible Evaluation and Assessment Leading to Inclusive Scholarly Excellence), as a leader of Work Package 2: Communication, Dissemination and Exploitation of project progress and results.

REALISE focuses on building evidence for research assessment reform to ultimately develop pathways across the European Research Area to more inclusive and reasonable practices.

The Project

REALISE is dedicated to leading the way in research assessment reform by delivering evidence-based insights and actionable guidance.

The project has outlined several objectives to reach its goals, including:

Creating a knowledge base of synthesised evidence: REALISE is to combine cutting-edge evidence and framework conditions for the practical application of valid and thorough research assessment reform.
Investigating novel assessment tools and methods: the consortium is to conduct research activities to explore a broader range of new tools and methods for research assessment.
Investigating novel reform methods: the project is to carry out research activities to analyse new approaches, based on both theory and methods, to reform, institutional changes and culture.
Reflect and recommend: the consortium is to combine project findings and co-create a coherent roadmap for future developments.
Exchange, engage and valorise: REALISE is to co-create studies to explore new research assessment tools and methods.

The goals are aligned with the European Commission’s vision and recommendation for an extensive set of innovations and metrics to modernise research assessment.

Pensoft’s role in REALISE

As the leader of Work Package 2, Pensoft will reinforce the project’s visibility and long-term impact. Key activities under this work package include:

Unique brand identity: Pensoft will create a distinctive and recognisable visual identity for the project, including a logo, brand manual, promotional materials and a website to serve as a hub for project updates and content.
Social media: To ensure community engagement and visibility, Pensoft will create and manage the project’s social media profiles, fostering an active and inclusive social media presence.
Communication, dissemination and exploitation plan: Pensoft will prepare a plan for sharing project updates and results with key audiences and stakeholders. The plan will be implemented in the early stages of the project.
Stakeholder mapping and engagement: Pensoft will contribute to the in-depth stakeholder analysis led by the coordinating institution.

The listed efforts, and more, aim to ensure that project results are widely accessible and reusable by all relevant and targeted groups within and beyond the research community.

International Consortium

REALISE brings together nine institutions across eight European countries operating in various sectors:

Know Center (KNOW), coordinator – Austria
The University of Leiden (ULEI) – Netherlands
Radboud University (SRU) – Netherlands
The University of Edinburgh (UEDIN) – United Kingdom
Spanish National Research Council (CSIC)/Ingenio (CSIC-UPV) – Spain
University of Coimbra (UCOIMBRA) – Portugal
Federation of Finnish Learned Societies (TSV) – Finland
SWPS University (SWPS UNIVERSITY) – Poland
Pensoft Publishers(PENSOFT) – Bulgaria

Together, the consortium is dedicated to providing evidence for research assessment reforms and developing pathways to more inclusive and responsible practices in research assessment.

Over the next few months, REALISE will focus on providing an ambitious research agenda dedicated to creating a systematic evidence base for research assessment reform, leveraging strong existing links to key initiatives.

Visit the REALISE project’s website and follow the project on BlueSky and LinkedIn to stay connected and follow the project’s progress.

TETTRIX, a new EU project for taxonomy innovation and biodiversity research welcomes Pensoft as a partner

Pensoft is helping TETTRIX make taxonomic knowledge more accessible, connected, and valuable to the wider biodiversity community.

TETTRIX, a new €12 million EU project, aims to connect Europe’s taxonomic data, expertise and training to support biodiversity research and conservation. The four-year Horizon Europe project, coordinated by the Consortium of European Taxonomic Facilities (CETAF), held its kick-off meeting in Brussels, Belgium, on 7-9 October 2026.

According to the 2019 global assessment by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), around one million animal and plant species are threatened with extinction worldwide. Taxonomy – the science of naming, identifying and classifying species – provides the reliable identities and reference knowledge needed to recognise species, track changes in biodiversity, and inform conservation and environmental policy.

Structured around four complementary pillars – Integrate, Transform, Upskill and Demonstrate – the project will support innovation and collaboration across the European taxonomic community while expanding opportunities for external organisations to contribute to its objectives.

Pensoft’s role

Pensoft holds a keen interest in taxonomy and its role in biodiversity conservation. We have been collaborating with the taxonomic community for a long time now, and back in 2021, CETAF, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and Pensoft worked together on the Red List of Insect Taxonomists project – a European Commission-funded initiative, which aimed to assess the available taxonomic expertise on insects across Europe and help identify insect taxa that are threatened by extinction.

Expanding from this interest and our extensive research in the field, in TETTRIX, Pensoft will help map the European taxonomic landscape using publication data and dynamic visualisations, and support the curation of expertise for the TETTRIX Marketplace, while advising on its functionality.

At Pensoft, we believe science has the greatest impact when it is accessible, shared and connected to the people who can use it. That’s why we’re excited to be part of TETTRIX and to help bring the project’s work to a wider audience, connect people and knowledge, and make sure the results don’t just stay within the project, but are shared, used, and built on by the wider community.

– Prof. Dr. Lyubomir Penev, CEO and Founder of Pensoft

In addition to our scientific work, Pensoft will also take part in the publicity and communication side of the TETTRIX project. As a coordinator of Pillar 3: Capacity building & knowledge transfer and a lead of WP9: Outreach and Knowledge Transfer, Pensoft will contribute to enhancing TETTRIX’s visibility, stakeholder engagement, and long-term impact by connecting taxonomic knowledge and project results with researchers, policymakers, stakeholders, and wider society.

This will include developing the project’s visual identity and website, producing promotional materials, and engaging audiences through social media, newsletters, and press releases. Pensoft will also communicate the outcomes of the Satellite projects – third-party initiatives, funded by TETTRIX, which will help research and respond to present-day issues in biodiversity – through targeted content and communication campaigns.

Throughout the project, Pensoft will upkeep the TETTRIs legacy of promoting Taxonomy Recognition Day, celebrated every year on 23 May, and continue developing the #NameItToSaveIt campaign for taxonomic action.

The TETTRIX consortium

Coordinated by CETAF (Consortium of European Taxonomic Facilities), TETTRIX brings together 19 partnering organisations from 12 countries to help Europe better understand, protect, and sustainably manage nature.

Consortium of European Taxonomic Facilities (CETAF) – Belgium
Natural History Museum Vienna (NHMW) – Austria
National Museum of Natural History (MNHN) – France
Free University of Berlin (FUB) – Germany
Senckenberg Nature Research (SENCKENBERG) – Germany
Meise Botanic Garden (MeiseBG) – Belgium
Naturalis Biodiversity Center (NATURALIS) – Netherlands
University of Crete (UoC) – Greece
KPMG International (KPMG) – Netherlands
University of Lisbon (ULISBOA) – Portugal
Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) – Germany
Pensoft Publishers (PENSOFT) – Bulgaria
Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) – Norway
University of Helsinki (LUOMUS) – Finland
State Museum of Natural History Stuttgart (SMNS) – Germany
Royal Botanic Gardens Kew (RBGK) – UK
Institute of Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences (IBOT-CAS) – Czech Republic
Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) – UK
Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBINS) – Belgium

For more information:

Visit the TETTRIX project website at tettrix.eu, and make sure to follow the project’s progress via our social media channels on Bluesky, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook.

A millipede from South Australia has been rediscovered and described 90 years after it was first collected

Colobothrix deckeri is the first in its moisture-loving family to be found in a part of Australia with a low annual rainfall.

The new species Colobothrix deckeri is in the millipede family Dalodesmidae. It is remarkable because it is the first in its moisture-loving family to be found in a part of Australia with a low annual rainfall, between 400 and 500 mm.

*Colobothrix deckeri*. Mesibov, 2026. Image by Ben Parslow, SAMA.

The new species is also unusual for the shape of its sphaerotrichomes, which are tiny ball-shaped structures found on the legs of mature males in Dalodesmidae and some other millipedes. Sphaerotrichomes normally have a long, pointed seta emerging from the ball. The new species has been placed in the new genus Colobothrix, which means “stunted hair”, because the seta on its sphaerotrichomes is reduced to a short, blunt rod.

A cluster of sphaerotrichomes on a leg of *C. deckeri*. Scanning electron micrograph image by Robert Mesibov.

Colobothrix deckeri was named by Australian myriapodologist Robert Mesibov in honour of German colleague Peter Decker, who played a key role in the story behind the species rediscovery, as described in the peer-reviewed, open-access journal ZooKeys.

The first specimen of C. deckeri was collected in 1936 and deposited as an unidentified millipede in the South Australian Museum (SAMA). In 2015 Decker found the specimen among many he borrowed from the Museum for his PhD work on another millipede family, Paradoxosomatidae.

Decker recognised the specimen as a dalodesmid and sent images of its microscopic characters to Mesibov, who is a dalodesmid specialist. The specimen was the first evidence for Dalodesmidae in dry South Australia, and in 2016 and 2017 Mesibov searched the 1936 locality on South Australia’s lower Yorke Peninsula for fresh material. Both searches were unsuccessful, although the two trips yielded a new paradoxosomatid.

Meanwhile, arachnologists Michael Rix and Danilo Harms had been sampling spiders and associated litter invertebrates on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, about 50 km south of the 1936 locality. In 2010 they discovered a remarkable new species of assassin spider from a single site in the relatively wet northwestern corner of the island. They also collected several specimens of the new, still unidentified millipede at the same site and deposited them in the Western Australian Museum (WAM).

Early this year, Mesibov found the WAM millipede record online. He emailed WAM curator Mark Harvey, who kindly provided several images of the millipede collected by Rix and Harms, with close-ups of its diagnostic characters. The images showed that the 2010 Kangaroo Island specimens were the same species that had been collected in 1936 on the Yorke Peninsula.

Kangaroo Island suffered devastating bushfires in 2020. It was feared that the new assassin spider had been pushed towards extinction by the fires, because the 2010 site had been burned out. In 2021, arachnologist Jessica Marsh searched for the new assassin spider on Kangaroo Island. She found more specimens in 2021 at sites several kilometers distant from the 2010 site, and her by-catch included the new millipede.

“Third time lucky! I found the new millipede alive and well this year at relatively wet sites not far from its 2010 and 2021 localities.”

– Robert Mesibov

He collected a few specimens for description and future genetic analysis, and the 1936, 2021 and 2026 specimens are now all housed in SAMA.

An unanswered question is whether C. deckeri still lives on South Australia’s Yorke Peninsula, which is much drier than northwestern Kangaroo Island.

“The 1936 locality is underlain by limestone, and the rock is broken where it is exposed at the ground surface. I wonder if the species survives in small voids in this bedrock, as a relict from wetter periods in South Australia’s past. That might explain why I couldn’t find it in 2016 and 2017, and how it could persist in such a dry climate.”

– Robert Mesibov

Original source:

Mesibov R (2026) Two new millipede genera and species from Kangaroo Island, South Australia (Polydesmida, Dalodesmidae, Spirostreptida, Cambalidae). ZooKeys 1295: 277-291. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1295.214938

For more articles on zoology, visit the ZooKeys website and follow the journal on BlueSky and Facebook.

Pensoft publishes the collection of abstracts for LTER Bulgaria 20th anniversary conference

The “sea capital” of Bulgaria, the city of Varna, hosted a very special occasion during the past week – an international conference marking the 20th anniversary of the LTER-BG network. Over the past two decades, its members have been dedicated to establishing roadmaps and infrastructures for generating, consolidating and sharing ecosystem research data across the Balkan country and beyond.

In celebration of this milestone, members of the wider eLTER community, encompassing the whole of Europe, contributed to a three-day agenda packed with progress updates, innovative showcases and meaningful discussions on the past and future of long-term ecosystem, critical zone and socio-ecological research.

eLTER network at the LTER-BG International Scientific Conference 2026 — *The participants in the LTER Bulgaria international scientific conference 2026.*

Pensoft Publishers has served as the communication and dissemination partner for the eLTER Research Infrastructure for the past six years. Pensoft has also always supported the activities of LTER Bulgaria.

For this 20th anniversary conference, all 55 abstracts for oral and poster presentations were organised and published in a special collection titled “Long-Term Ecosystem Research: Contributions, Challenges and Future Perspectives” on the ARPHA Conference Abstracts, and for less than a week it has already garnered over 6,000 views.

ARPHA Conference Abstracts from LTER-BG International Scientific Conference 2026 — Conference abstracts published in ARPHA Conference Abstracts.

Impressed by the statements of engagement made by young scientists within the eLTER community, the Pensoft team supported the organisers’ idea to provide an Early Career Scientist Award, which granted its recipient a free publication in the One Ecosystem journal.

Following a unanimous vote by the dedicated jury members Svetla Doncheva, Vesela Evtimova, Elena Todorova and Alexandra Tzvetkova, early career researcher Sabica Naz from the Slovak Academy of Sciences was selected as the winner. She distinguished herself with the presentation “Impacts of pre-season climatic and functional drivers on the spring onset of phenocam-derived GCC”.

As the official communication partner of eLTER and its affiliated projects, Pensoft provided dissemination materials by eLTER RI at the dedicated booth where attendees also had the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the company’s wider publishing and research project portfolio.

At the booth, participants could get acquainted with Pensoft’s wider scientific journal portfolio. With One Ecosystem and Nature Conservation covering ecosystem science and conservation practices, NeoBiota focuses on biological invasions and Advances in Pollinator Research dedicated to all things pollinator science. Individual-based Ecology publishes research on individual-level ecological processes while the Biodiversity Data Journal supports the publication of biodiversity data. Alongside these, Research Ideas and Outcomes offers a platform for sharing research across the whole project cycle, from proposals to final results.

ORPHO and Scientiana promo materials
Metabarcoding and Metagenomics brochure.
Frontiers of Biogeography brochure.
Advances in Pollinator Research promo materials.
Individual-based Ecology promo material.
One Ecosystem journal brochure.
NeoBiota promo materials.

Beyond these commitments, Pensoft was front and centre within the event’s agenda as well.

Alexandra Tzvetkova during the opening panel of LTER-BG International Scientific Conference 2026 — Alexandra Tzvetkova during the opening panel.

During the opening panel, Alexandra Tzvetkova, part of the Pensoft team working for eLTER RI, welcomed the participants, reminded them to start sharing the special collection of abstracts with their networks and highlighted the innovative propositions from Pensoft that were about to be presented in the next days and could be very useful for the eLTER community in the future – Scientiana and ORPHO.

Further, two Pensoft presentations were delivered as part of the thematic session “Emerging Technologies in Ecosystem Research, Data Management and Open Science in LTER”, and brought the audience closer to the publisher’s vision for the future:

Senior Communications Officer Peter Bozakov delved into the forthcoming science communication platform for research projects Scientiana. Launching in early 2027, it is set to be a portal for consolidating knowledge, mapping out collaborations and innovating outreach in the context of past, present and future scientific initiatives at all scales.

Pensoft’s newest platform Scientiana — *Peter Bozakov introduces Pensoft’s newest platform – Scientiana*.

While, Events and Marketing Coordinator Victoria Stoyanova explored the new frontiers that an AI-FAIR outlook unveils in the domain of academic publishing. Specifically, she showcased the evolution of the ARPHA platform and the newly launched ORPHO, Pensoft’s next-gen collaborative writing tool, as examples of innovation placed directly in the hands of authors.

Together, ARPHA and ORPHO support the entire manuscript workflow from submission to publication, with structuring, taxon tagging, classification, and data publication taking place as part of the publication process itself.

*A crash course in using ORHPO by Victoria Stoyanova*

The presentations proved themselves a stepping stone to further discussions on potential collaborations with scientists, conversations that were bolstered by on-site demonstrations of the tools in question.

The conference in Varna was enjoyable, fruitful and full of hope and esteem for the better future of long-term ecosystem research. And our Pensoft team left with many ideas and an affirmed ambition to keep working to provide better solutions and services for the development of European science. What we will always remember are the words of our host – the national coordinator of LTER Bulgaria in the past 20 years, Svetla Doncheva-Bratanova:

I would like to thank the Pensoft team for the wonderful participation in the conference. You are amazing and I am certain we could do wonders together!

Many thanks to the Bulgarian LTER community and the wider eLTER community for bringing together so many passionate researchers and making these past few days special.

Iris patterns offer a non-invasive way to recognise individual Amazonian treefrogs

Researchers in French Guiana demonstrate that the golden eyes of a Neotropical treefrog can replace invasive marking techniques.

Identifying individual animals in the wild has long meant tagging, branding or clipping. For amphibians, the standard approach has often been toe-clipping, a procedure that can affect survival, physiology and behaviour.

A new study suggests that, for at least one species of treefrog, nature has already provided a more humane solution: the eyes.

*Osteocephalus oophagus in situ.* Photographed in French Guiana (4°02’N, 52°41’W; ) between March and May 2021. Credit: Mélissa Peignier et al., 2026.

Published in the open-access journal Herpetozoa, the research was led by Dr Mélissa Peignier and colleagues at the Division of Behavioural Ecology at the University of Bern, with contributors from the Institute of Electronic Music and Acoustics at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz.

The team examined Osteocephalus oophagus, an Amazonian treefrog whose golden irises are crossed by fine black radial lines, forming a pattern reminiscent of a human fingerprint.

Fieldwork took place over three rainy seasons, from 2021 to 2023, on a river island of roughly five hectares in the Nouragues Nature Reserve in French Guiana. Across 392 captures, the researchers identified 103 individual frogs.

Osteocephalus oophagus in situ. Photographed in French Guiana (4°02’N, 52°41’W; ) between March and May 2021. Credit: Mélissa Peignier et al., 2026.

On later encounters, they photographed each animal’s eyes without touching it and compared the images with a reference library held on a rugged tablet. Frogs recognised in this way were simply left undisturbed. The identifications were independently verified using Wild-ID, a software package for photographic mark-recapture analysis.

The iris patterns proved highly distinctive. Within a single season, between 56% and 80% of frogs were recaptured and reliably re-identified, showing that the patterns are stable enough for short-term monitoring. Photographs could even be taken of frogs in amplexus, the mating embrace, without disrupting them.

Examples of individual identification upon capture and recapture based on iris patterns in three male *Osteocephalus oophagus* photographed in French Guiana (4°02’N, 52°41’W; Bongers et al. 2001) between March and May 2021 and 2022. Credit: Mélissa Peignier et al., 2026.

The project began with simple admiration.

“At the time, I was doing my PhD, studying Allobates femoralis in the field in French Guiana. My first reaction was simply something along the lines of, ‘Wow, what beautiful eyes!’ That initial curiosity gradually turned into a genuine interest in the species, and I realised how little we actually know about them.”
Dr Peignier

Example of the diversity of iris patterns from eight *Osteocephalus oophagus* individuals photographed in French Guiana (4°02’N, 52°41’W; Bongers et al. 2001) between March and May 2021, 2022, and 2023. Credit: Mélissa Peignier et al., 2026.

The team’s motivation was also ethical.

“Other studies have used toe-clipping, which involves removing some of the digits. Personally, I was uncomfortable with this approach, especially given that these are arboreal frogs that rely on their limbs to climb trees.”
Dr Peignier

Dr Peignier hopes the method will spread.

“In a world where biodiversity is declining at an alarming rate, it is essential that we minimise our impact on the animals we study.

If we can reliably identify individuals using naturally occurring features, we may be able to reduce the need for more invasive marking techniques while still collecting the data needed to answer important scientific questions.”

The authors stress that suitability will vary between species, and that the approach should be tested case by case before wider adoption. Even so, they see considerable promise for amphibians with complex irises.

Fieldwork, Dr Peignier adds, had its own rewards.

“Honestly, the frogs themselves are incredibly beautiful and surprisingly chill, which makes working with them a real pleasure.”

Original source:

Bégué L, Petel F, Premel V, Raboisson G, Ringler E, Ringler M, Toszeghi M, Vacher V, Peignier M (2026) Iris pattern recognition as a non-invasive method for individual identification in Osteocephalus oophagus (Hylidae). Herpetozoa 39: 381-387. https://doi.org/10.3897/herpetozoa.39.e208000

Genomic study uncovers a new lace bug species on Japan’s remote Ogasawara Islands

Analysing 52 specimens with a genetic method known as MIG-seq, the team found that an insect previously regarded as a single species, Omoplax desecta, in fact comprised two.

Researchers have used genome-wide DNA data to identify a new insect species on the Ogasawara Islands, a remote Japanese archipelago roughly 900 to 1,000 kilometres south of Tokyo. The findings suggest that evolution among island insects is more intricate than appearances imply. The study is published in the open-access journal ZooKeys.

The Ogasawara Islands are a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site, celebrated for their endemic land snails and plants. Their insects, of which some 440 endemic species are known, have received far less evolutionary attention.

Jun Souma, of Hirosaki University’s Shirakami Research Center for Environmental Sciences, and Naoyuki Nakahama, of the Graduate School of Agriculture at Osaka Metropolitan University, examined Omoplax, a genus of lace bugs found nowhere else and thought to have diversified rapidly across the islands.

Analysing 52 specimens with a genetic method known as MIG-seq, the team found that an insect previously regarded as a single species, Omoplax desecta, in fact comprised two. Populations on the Chichijima and Hahajima island groups were genetically distinct, and subtle differences in male genitalia confirmed the split. The Hahajima population is now described as Omoplax sandoru, named after the local name of its host plant.

*Omoplax desecta* (nymph). Image credit: Jun Souma.

*Omoplax desecta* (adult). Image credit: Jun Souma.

Souma was first drawn to Omoplax desecta by its unusual diet:

“The reason I took a particular interest in Omoplax desecta is that it feeds on both the native plant Rhaphiolepis indica var. tashiroi and the introduced plant Calophyllum inophyllum in the Chichijima island group.

This is quite unusual for lace bugs, which typically exhibit high host specificity. I was also intrigued by the fact that it is distributed across multiple island groups, which is different from other Omoplax species.”

The Hahajima population posed its own puzzle:

“I had wondered why it fed exclusively on Rhaphiolepis indica var. tashiroi and why there were no individuals with dark brown to black pronotum, which are sometimes seen in the Chichijima island group.

After conducting population genetic and phylogenetic analyses, I began to suspect that this population might be a distinct species. Upon closely observing their morphological characteristics, I was certain of this.”

Jun Souma, conducting observation on *Calophyllum inophyllum* where *Omoplax desecta* feeds. Image credit: Jun Souma.

The evolutionary tree also overturned expectations:

“The most surprising finding of my research was that species feeding on the same plant and appearing very similar are not necessarily sister groups.

Adaptive radiation among insects on oceanic islands may be more complex than comparisons of morphological characteristics and life histories would suggest at first glance.”

The results point to both geographic isolation and shifts between host plants as drivers of speciation.

*Rhaphiolepis indica* var. *tashiroi*. Image credit: Jun Souma.

Of particular interest is the insect’s adoption of Calophyllum inophyllum, a tree introduced by people. The data indicate that this host shift occurred once, and recently.

“I also find it interesting that the introduction of Calophyllum inophyllum by humans may have led to a budding of future speciation in Omoplax desecta.”
Jun Souma

*Calophyllum inophyllum*. Image credit: Jun Souma.

The authors note that DNA could not be obtained from two rare species, leaving parts of the story unresolved. Further sampling will be needed to trace how these insects reached the islands and diversified.

Original source:

Souma J, Nakahama N (2026) Genome-wide SNP data reveal phylogenetic relationships and further new species of lace bugs (Hemiptera, Heteroptera, Tingidae) endemic to the Japanese oceanic islands (the Ogasawara Islands), providing insight into their speciation. ZooKeys 1294: 175-203. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1294.205145

For more articles on zoology, visit the ZooKeys website and follow the journal on BlueSky and Facebook.

New special issue highlights threatened fish of European wetlands

A recently published special issue in the journal Nature Conservation is dedicated the unique and highly specialised fish and their importance for the conservation of wetlands in Europe.

At first glance, muddy, low-oxygen waters seem unattractive. For some highly specialized fish species, however, they are vital refuges. It is precisely these habitats that are increasingly threatened in Europe.

A new special issue in the journal Nature Conservation, recently published and edited by an expert group led by Josef Wanzenböck, is dedicated to these unique fish and their importance for wetland conservation.

The special issue “Biology and conservation of wetland fishes in Europe” brings together selected papers from the international conference “The Fish of Muddy Waters,” which took place in Vienna in October 2025. The focus was on fish species adapted to the specific conditions of wetlands and their surrounding areas.

Fish fauna monitoring in Illés Pond VI in the Szada Pilot Area. Photo by Sándor Tatár. From Bajomi et al., 2026

These include, among others, the European mud minnow (Umbra krameri), the weatherfish (Misgurnus fossilis), and the crucian carp (Carassius carassius). At the same time, non-native fish species that have since become established in the peripheral areas of floodplains and other wetland habitats were also examined, and their impact on ecosystems was discussed.

What makes these fish special is their ability to cope with conditions under which many other species could not survive. In small, muddy bodies of water, oxygen levels can be very low at times. The fish species found there are adapted to these extreme conditions and can therefore provide important insights into the state of their habitat. This means that fish inhabiting wetlands are much more than just rare species. They can serve as indicators of the ecological health of their habitats. If these specialized fish are struggling, this often points to changes or a deterioration in the entire ecosystem.

Distribution of Umbra krameri in Hungary — Distribution patterns of *Umbra* *krameri* in Hungary in the past 50 years. Black dots show the occurrences within the certain 10 × 10 km ETRS rectangle. Red lines show the borders of the 12 geographic regions of the country. Sallai et al., 2026

For instance, a study by Sallai et al., covers 50 years of records from Hungary, the core of the European mud minnow’s range, found that the species has disappeared from 44% of its historically known localities. Its lineage is roughly 60 million years old, yet surviving populations are increasingly confined to artificial canals. In the research article, drying wetlands emerged as the clearest threat.

Umbra krameri — 38-day-old *Umbra* *krameri* fry reared at the Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences for stocking. Photo credit: Csaba Posztós.

The issue also offers cause for hope. Bajomi and col. showed that in two small, isolated artificial ponds, mud minnows released by conservation teams were still breeding 7 to 10 years later, which shows that carefully designed translocations can create safe refuges for the European mudminnow (Umbra krameri).

For more research like this, access the full Special Issue here: https://natureconservation.pensoft.net/issue/5260/

This was precisely the focus of the conference “The Fish of Muddy Waters.” The goal was to strengthen the link between research and conservation and to draw attention to fish species that often receive less public attention than larger or economically more significant species. The exchange between international scientists and representatives of nature conservation organizations should help to consolidate existing knowledge and develop new approaches to the protection of endangered wetland fish.

Fish have always held a firm place in our culture and are closely linked to the use of water bodies. However, the little-known inhabitants of wetlands reveal another side of this relationship: they highlight just how closely the conservation of individual species is tied to the protection of their habitats. Research on these species can thus also help raise awareness of the importance of wetlands and lay the groundwork for more effective biodiversity conservation.

This newly published special issue offers insight into current research on these specialized fish species and makes selected results of the Vienna conference accessible to an international audience of experts.

Cover image credit to: Lukas Fuxjaeger

Three New Species of Conger Eel Discovered in the Deep Waters Around Taiwan

Researchers have now described three new species of the conger eel genus Gnathophis, drawing on 130 specimens collected from the deep sea.

Researchers from National Taiwan Ocean University, University of Taipei and the Smithsonian Institution have now described three new species of the conger eel genus Gnathophis, drawing on 130 specimens collected from the deep sea. The findings raise the number of Gnathophis species known from Taiwan from two to five.

Members of this genus are medium-sized eels of tropical and subtropical deep waters, recognisable by a blunt tail tip, a fleshy snout that projects beyond the teeth, and a small fleshy keel on the underside of the snout.

The team compared vertebral counts, the pores of the sensory lateral line, colouring and tooth patterns, and for two of the species they added DNA barcoding to confirm the distinction. The two barcoded species differ from each other by roughly 4.4 to 4.9 per cent in the gene examined, well beyond the variation seen within a single species.

Each name tells a small story about where the eel was found or how it looks:

Gnathophis kbalanensis (Kbalan’s conger): named after “Kbalan”, an ancient name for the Yilan region of northeastern Taiwan, in use roughly 800 to 1,300 years ago. It is also known as Cabaran in Spanish and Kat-má-lán in Taiwanese. The largest specimen measured 472 millimetres, and the species is recognised by its blackish fins and a high vertebral count of 134 to 137.
Gnathophis melanurum (black tail conger): named from the Greek melan, meaning black, and urum, meaning tail, in reference to its black tail fin. Its dorsal and anal fins are pale, which makes the dark tail stand out. It was found off both northeastern and southwestern Taiwan, mostly at depths of around 200 to 300 metres.
Gnathophis nanhaiensis (Nan Hai’s conger): named after “Nan Hai”, the Chinese name for the South China Sea, where the holotype was collected at a depth of about 509 metres. The Latin ending -ensis means “originating in”. Known from only two specimens, it has pale fins and the highest vertebral count of the three, at 139 to 143.

Gnathophis kbalanensis sp. nov. Credit: Jian-Fu Huang, et al.
Gnathophis melanurum sp. nov. Jian-Fu Huang, et al.
Gnathophis nanhaiensis sp. nov. Jian-Fu Huang, et al.

The first two species share a feature that sets them apart from some of their relatives: the lateral line pores above the pectoral fin are raised, and the peritoneum, the lining of the body cavity, is black. Several of the specimens were ripe females carrying loose eggs, which suggests these waters may serve as spawning grounds.

The study also tidies up the regional record. An eel previously listed in Taiwan as Gnathophis xenica was confirmed to be a misidentification, and the researchers found no evidence to split the widespread G. heterognathos into separate species.

The work is dedicated to the late Dr David G. Smith, whose contribution to eel taxonomy inspired the first author.

Original source:

Huang J-F, Liao Y-C, Chan T-Y, Chen H-M, Smith DG (2026) The congrid eel genus Gnathophis in Taiwan (Anguilliformes, Congridae), with descriptions of three new species. ZooKeys 1287: 11-46. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1287.183842

For more articles on zoology, visit the ZooKeys website and follow the journal on BlueSky and Facebook.