* . *
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact
Monday, August 4, 2025
Earth-News
  • Home
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    Exclusive | Fox Takes Stake in IndyCar Owner Penske Entertainment – The Wall Street Journal

    Exclusive | Fox Takes Stake in IndyCar Owner Penske Entertainment – The Wall Street Journal

    Go-to entertainment: why gaming was made for the toilet – The Guardian

    Why Gaming Is the Ultimate Way to Pass Time in the Bathroom

    Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra takes the Lollapalooza stage – Yahoo Home

    Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra takes the Lollapalooza stage – Yahoo Home

    Sens. Blackburn, Warnock introduce CREATE Act to provide tax relief to music creators – Yahoo Home

    Sens. Blackburn and Warnock Launch CREATE Act to Deliver Tax Relief for Music Creators

    That’s (Political) Entertainment: When Theatre Meets Politics

    Future Script: How Generative AI Is Changing Collective Bargaining in the Entertainment Industry – Jackson Lewis

    Future Script: How Generative AI Is Transforming Collective Bargaining in Entertainment

  • General
  • Health
  • News

    Cracking the Code: Why China’s Economic Challenges Aren’t Shaking Markets, Unlike America’s” – Bloomberg

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Science
  • Sports
  • Technology
    Credo Technology: Wiring The AI Revolution (NASDAQ:CRDO) – Seeking Alpha

    Credo Technology: Driving the Next Wave of AI Innovation

    Microsoft Seeks to Extend Access to OpenAI Technology – PYMNTS.com

    Microsoft Aims to Broaden Access to OpenAI Technology

    Livonia police use grappler technology to stop drunk driver – ClickOnDetroit | WDIV Local 4

    Livonia Police Deploy Grappler Technology to Safely Stop Drunk Driver

    Emory orthopaedic surgeons use robotic technology to transform knee replacement surgery – Emory News Center

    How Robotic Technology is Revolutionizing Knee Replacement Surgery

    Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp (CTSH) Q2 2025 Earnings Call Highlights: Strong Revenue … – Yahoo.co

    Cognizant Q2 2025 Earnings: Impressive Revenue Growth and Key Takeaways

    Revving Up The U.S. Technology Engine – Forbes

    Revving Up The U.S. Technology Engine – Forbes

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    Exclusive | Fox Takes Stake in IndyCar Owner Penske Entertainment – The Wall Street Journal

    Exclusive | Fox Takes Stake in IndyCar Owner Penske Entertainment – The Wall Street Journal

    Go-to entertainment: why gaming was made for the toilet – The Guardian

    Why Gaming Is the Ultimate Way to Pass Time in the Bathroom

    Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra takes the Lollapalooza stage – Yahoo Home

    Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra takes the Lollapalooza stage – Yahoo Home

    Sens. Blackburn, Warnock introduce CREATE Act to provide tax relief to music creators – Yahoo Home

    Sens. Blackburn and Warnock Launch CREATE Act to Deliver Tax Relief for Music Creators

    That’s (Political) Entertainment: When Theatre Meets Politics

    Future Script: How Generative AI Is Changing Collective Bargaining in the Entertainment Industry – Jackson Lewis

    Future Script: How Generative AI Is Transforming Collective Bargaining in Entertainment

  • General
  • Health
  • News

    Cracking the Code: Why China’s Economic Challenges Aren’t Shaking Markets, Unlike America’s” – Bloomberg

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Science
  • Sports
  • Technology
    Credo Technology: Wiring The AI Revolution (NASDAQ:CRDO) – Seeking Alpha

    Credo Technology: Driving the Next Wave of AI Innovation

    Microsoft Seeks to Extend Access to OpenAI Technology – PYMNTS.com

    Microsoft Aims to Broaden Access to OpenAI Technology

    Livonia police use grappler technology to stop drunk driver – ClickOnDetroit | WDIV Local 4

    Livonia Police Deploy Grappler Technology to Safely Stop Drunk Driver

    Emory orthopaedic surgeons use robotic technology to transform knee replacement surgery – Emory News Center

    How Robotic Technology is Revolutionizing Knee Replacement Surgery

    Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp (CTSH) Q2 2025 Earnings Call Highlights: Strong Revenue … – Yahoo.co

    Cognizant Q2 2025 Earnings: Impressive Revenue Growth and Key Takeaways

    Revving Up The U.S. Technology Engine – Forbes

    Revving Up The U.S. Technology Engine – Forbes

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
No Result
View All Result
Earth-News
No Result
View All Result
Home Science

A new armadillo species was hiding in plain sight

July 6, 2024
in Science
A new armadillo species was hiding in plain sight
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

The newly described Guianan long-nosed armadillo.

The newly described Guianan long-nosed armadillo. Credit: © Quentin Martinez (https://quentinmartinez.fr/)

They’re scaly, covered in armor, and hiding a secret identity. Nine-banded armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus), the idiosyncratic mammal that spans from southern Illinois to northern Argentina, are not actually one species after all. Instead, the group of these unusual animals is made up of four distinct species, according to a study published in June in the journal Systematic Biology. 

Armadillos are part of Xenarthra, the mammalian group native to the Americas that also includes anteaters and sloths. Though armadillos are a classic symbol of the southern U.S.–particularly Texas, where they’ve been a lovable mascot for everything from sports teams to chain restaurants, they’re actually relatively recent arrivals there. The armored animals first established themselves north of the Rio Grande in the late 1800s, after crossing the river of their own accord. Around the same time, the reptile-esque mammals were introduced by humans to Florida. Since then, they’ve continued to spread. In recent years, individual armadillos have been spotted as far north as Illinois and Indiana and as far east as Virginia. Why and how they’re managing to expand so widely remains a mystery, but now we’re learning more about the various species of these peculiar creatures.  

Through genetic and trait analysis, biologists say they’ve uncovered the covert variety hiding under the umbrella of the over-simplified armadillo clade. Previously, there’ve been 21 recognized species of armadillo, and so breaking one lineage into four represents about a 14% increase in ‘dillo diversity. In addition to broadening the armadillo family tree, the new divisions could have significant conservation implications as scientists consider the four species in a new context. 

Two of the newly defined species had been proposed as subspecies in past research. One of the species sticks with the name and description of the classic nine-banded armadillo. The fourth represents a previously undescribed species (the first within armadillos in 30 years). 

The news means that Texas’ state animal is getting re-named: It’s now the Mexican long-nosed armadillo (Dasypus mexicanus), which occupies the most northern part of the former Nine-banded armadillo’s range–from Costa Rica into the U.S. Then there’s Dasypus fenestratus living in the western Andes from Costa Rica through Ecuador, northern Columbia, and northern Venezuela. Only the southernmost part of the former nine-banded range, encompassing most of South America, remains the official home of the nine-banded armadillo. 

Finally there’s the Guianan long-nosed armadillo (Dasypus guianensis). This never-before-described species inhabits the Guinean Shield, a 1.7 billion year old geological formation comprising multiple high-elevation regions underlying Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, and part of Venezuela.  

A specimen of the new species, collected in 1961, in the Field Museum’s collections. Credit: Kate Golembiewski, Field Museum

“Each species now has a much more restricted distribution,” says Anderson Feijó, one of the study co-authors and assistant curator of mammals at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. “This finding shifts the way we think about [these animals’] ecological requirements,” he adds. What was previously considered a broadly adaptable and wide-ranging animal, at no risk of losing ground, will now have to be re-considered four times over. It’s possible each species has different habitat needs or resources, and that–in some places–those aren’t being met.

“We’ll now have to reassess each of the four different entities,” Frédéric Delsuc, senior study author and an evolutionary biologist at the French National Center for Scientific Research. Delsuc is also part of the specialist group at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in charge of classifying where armadillo species should fall on the IUCN Red List. He is eager to evaluate each of the newly delimited four species, though he’s not immediately concerned about any of them, considering how frequently they’re splattered on roads, he says, indicating they’re probably “quite numerous.”

Though sad for armadillos, the mammals’ tendency to end up beneath the wheels of cars was actually a boon to the researchers. A little over half of their 80 total armadillo samples came from dried samples–mostly museum specimens. But 34 samples were collected fresh in the field, “mostly from roadkill,” says Delsuc. 

Using these armadillo bits taken from across the entire, former nine-banded range, the scientists extracted both mitochondrial and nuclear DNA. They conducted multiple analyses to parse out the exact relationships among their 80 study animals. In one type of analysis, they repeatedly grouped the individuals by genetic similarity, and found four clusters popping up over and over again. In another type of analysis, they assessed gene flow between these clusters. Although they found some evidence of hybridization, these instances were rare and only observed at the margins of each group’s range. “All of this supports these four lineages as distinct species,” says Mathilde Barthe, the lead study author who recently completed her PhD in molecular evolution at the University of Montpellier in France. 

It’s unclear how long ago each of the armadillo branches diverged, but the presence of low levels of hybridization indicates it was likely relatively recent, on the scale of evolutionary time, notes Delsuc.

Thorough genetic analysis was critical to discovering and defining the species split because, for the most part, all four species look visually similar to each other. On first glance or in the field, “it’s very hard to tell them apart,” says Feijó. However there are subtle differences in skull shape that make it possible for experts to distinguish skeletal specimens, says Delsuc. And the new Guianan species is most distinct from the others. It’s slightly larger, has a hairless shell, one additional vertebrate, and a domed, thick skull, according to Feijó’s formal description. Additional study could find that the species diverge in other ways, like behavior or diet. 

The new findings were 25 years in the making, and built on past studies of armadillo diversity. However, there are still some limitations. The DNA contained in museum samples is often contaminated and degraded. The scientists took “special care,” to reduce the impact of that potential contamination and filter their data, says Barthe–but some quirks may have fallen through the cracks. Still, none of the researchers expect their proposal to stir much controversy. “The evidence has been piling up, and kind of leading to this final conclusion,” says Feijó. 

There is still so much to learn, even about mammalian biology. “Usually, people assume mammals are a very well known group,” says Feijó. “But the reality is we are just learning.” Today, there’s four newly defined species. Tomorrow, he notes there’s probably even more to come.

>>> Read full article>>>
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source : Popular Science – https://www.popsci.com/science/new-armadillo/

Tags: ArmadilloscienceSpecies
Previous Post

NEPA warns about crocodiles amid passage of hurricane

Next Post

Borderlands 2 with expansions is now 73 percent off

New rule would expand tug escort requirements, reduce risk of oil spills in Puget Sound – Washington State Department of Ecology (.gov)

New Rule Strengthens Tug Escort Requirements to Drastically Reduce Oil Spill Risks in Puget Sound

August 4, 2025
100 years ago, scientists thought we’d be eating food made from air – Popular Science

A Century Ago, Scientists Predicted We’d Be Eating Food Made from Air

August 4, 2025
Maserati and Sparco Launch Lifestyle Capsule Inspired by Motorsport Heritage – stupidDOPE

Maserati and Sparco Launch Lifestyle Capsule Inspired by Motorsport Heritage – stupidDOPE

August 4, 2025
Fox News Flash top entertainment headlines of the week – Fox News

Top Entertainment Headlines You Can’t Miss This Week

August 4, 2025
How Is the Economy Doing Right Now? – NerdWallet

What’s Really Going On with the Economy Right Now?

August 4, 2025
Exclusive | Fox Takes Stake in IndyCar Owner Penske Entertainment – The Wall Street Journal

Exclusive | Fox Takes Stake in IndyCar Owner Penske Entertainment – The Wall Street Journal

August 4, 2025
At Washington Health Care Authority, workers are warned of layoffs – Washington State Standard

Washington Health Care Authority Alerts Employees of Potential Layoffs

August 4, 2025
NYPD program allowed slain officer to moonlight as private security guard – Spectrum News NY1

NYPD program allowed slain officer to moonlight as private security guard – Spectrum News NY1

August 4, 2025
Credo Technology: Wiring The AI Revolution (NASDAQ:CRDO) – Seeking Alpha

Credo Technology: Driving the Next Wave of AI Innovation

August 3, 2025
Judge Halts Stephen F. Austin’s Female Sports Cuts Amid Title IX Suit – Sportico.com

Judge Halts Stephen F. Austin’s Female Sports Cuts Amid Title IX Suit – Sportico.com

August 3, 2025

Categories

Archives

August 2025
MTWTFSS
 123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
25262728293031
« Jul    
Earth-News.info

The Earth News is an independent English-language daily published Website from all around the World News

Browse by Category

  • Business (20,132)
  • Ecology (753)
  • Economy (778)
  • Entertainment (21,655)
  • General (16,273)
  • Health (9,815)
  • Lifestyle (786)
  • News (22,149)
  • People (777)
  • Politics (787)
  • Science (15,991)
  • Sports (21,273)
  • Technology (15,755)
  • World (759)

Recent News

New rule would expand tug escort requirements, reduce risk of oil spills in Puget Sound – Washington State Department of Ecology (.gov)

New Rule Strengthens Tug Escort Requirements to Drastically Reduce Oil Spill Risks in Puget Sound

August 4, 2025
100 years ago, scientists thought we’d be eating food made from air – Popular Science

A Century Ago, Scientists Predicted We’d Be Eating Food Made from Air

August 4, 2025
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact

© 2023 earth-news.info

No Result
View All Result

© 2023 earth-news.info

No Result
View All Result

© 2023 earth-news.info

Go to mobile version