this post was submitted on 02 Feb 2024
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Biodiversity

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Welcome to c/Biodiversity @ Mander.xyz!

A community about the variety of life on Earth at all levels; including plants, animals, bacteria, and fungi.



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Biodiversity is a term used to describe the enormous variety of life on Earth. It can be used more specifically to refer to all of the species in one region or ecosystem. Biodiversity refers to every living thing, including plants, bacteria, animals, and humans. Scientists have estimated that there are around 8.7 million species of plants and animals in existence. However, only around 1.2 million species have been identified and described so far, most of which are insects. This means that millions of other organisms remain a complete mystery.

Over generations, all of the species that are currently alive today have evolved unique traits that make them distinct from other species. These differences are what scientists use to tell one species from another. Organisms that have evolved to be so different from one another that they can no longer reproduce with each other are considered different species. All organisms that can reproduce with each other fall into one species. Read more...

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[–] autotldr@lemmings.world 1 points 2 years ago

This is the best summary I could come up with:


Five new spooky-looking species of millipede have been discovered, one of which belongs to a totally unknown group of critters.

The new species, which resemble something out of a sci-fi movie, were found in the forest litter of Tanzania's remote Udzungwa Mountains, according to a new paper in the European Journal of Taxonomy.

Millipedes are actually not insects, but something called diplopods, and are defined by their elongated bodies and plentiful legs.

This discovery was made during an expedition meant to examine how forests in the area were being affected by logging and other disturbances, and how woody vines may be taking over the region, driven by warmer temperatures.

These discoveries, including the millipedes, are hoped to highlight the sheer amount of undiscovered diversity lurking in forests around the world.

He said unearthing the new genus and species of millipedes highlighted the huge amount of discovery remaining in tropical forests.


The original article contains 492 words, the summary contains 150 words. Saved 70%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!