It ’s not the big ears , sharp tooth , or recollective legs that inspired the naming of thisnewly describedspecies , but its long , pinkish , 2-dimensional olfactory organ : get in touch with the Hog - nosed rotter , Hyorhinomys stuempkei . Discovered on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi in 2013 , the furred critter is so different from anything else report that it does n’t just represent a new species , but a whole new genus . In fact , the scientists behind the find seem to be on something of a scroll , as this latest find mark the third novel genus trace by them since 2012 .
The animal is separate as a “ termagant - rat , ” named in part due to those telling tooth , and is one of 13 known coinage of this chemical group found scampering round the timberland of the Philippines and Sulawesi . In addition to the grownup teeth , large nose , and long hind peg suspected to be used for hopping , it also plainly has long than normal urogenital – or pubic to you and me – hairsbreadth . All of these unearthly characteristics , as well as the results of transmissible analysis , make it sufficiently unlike from other know shrewmouse - bum to flow into its own genus . The fresh species is distinguish in theJournal of Mammalology .
Another of the beast ’s oddities is the manifest deficiency of a specific jaw muscle fastening discover in most mammals , called the “ coronoid procedure . ” This adds an extra connection from the jaw to the skull , allow for brute to chew more powerfully . This betoken that the Hog - nosed so-and-so has a diet that does n’t require much chewing , and indeed , the researchers found that they feed mainly on earthworms and mallet larvae .
The team of scientist from theLouisiana State University , Museum Victoriain Australia , andMuseum Zoologicum Bogoriensein Indonesia have been studying the biodiversity of Sulawesi since 2010 due to its geographical complexity and the fact that it occupies a alone cross route between Asia and Australasia , with an odd mix of species related to others found on both continents . While they were n’t particularly surprised to find fresh coinage in this understudied area , they were surprised to find oneself just how unique they are .
Image in text : Kevin C. Rowe / Museum Victoria
