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A herpetofauna with dramatic endemism signals an overlooked biodiversity hotspot

The Milne Bay Region of southeasternmost Papua New Guinea comprises a small portion of mainland New Guinea and several offshore islands, totaling 15,000 km2 in land area. I numerically summarize the literature and fndings from my feld surveys of the region’s herpetofauna and show that it contains the greatest known assemblage of range-restricted endemic herpetofauna globally for such a small area. Further, most of these species occupy only one or two of 11 small areas of local endemism within the region.

Introduced predators, including stoats and rats, are a major threat to kiwi. Credit - Shutterstock/Lakeview Images
Despite major conservation efforts, populations of New Zealand's iconic kiwi are more vulnerable than people realise
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Like many endangered species, Aotearoa’s flightless and nocturnal kiwi survive only in small, fragmented and isolated populations. This leads to inbreeding and, eventually, inbreeding depression — reduced survival and fertility of offspring.

The Fiji crested iguana — which mostly lives on just one island — may soon need to find a new home. (Wikimedia Commons)
Rare iguana species discovered through The Blue Lagoon faces a new threat to its survival
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It was during a screening of the 1980 film The Blue Lagoon that the Fiji Crested Iguana was first identified. The movie was partially shot at Nanuya Levu, Fiji and, when John Gibbons from the University of the South Pacific watched the sweeping landscape shots of native flora and fauna on th

Climate change threatens New Guinea’s biocultural heritage

New Guinea is the most biologically and linguistically diverse tropical island on Earth, yet the potential impacts of climate change on its biocultural heritage remain unknown. Analyzing 2353 endemic plant species distributions, we find that 63% of species are expected to have smaller geographic ranges by 2070. As a result, ecoregions may have an average of −70 ± 40 fewer species by 2070.