A tiny podo moose was born in the zoo in England/Chester Zoo
A new species of tiny elk was found in the central Andes in Peru, and it became the first new species found in South America in more than 60 years - and that's not the only thing special about this discovery.
In the past, it was believed that there were only two species of these tiny moose, known as podos, which are the smallest moose in the world. They are divided into two subspecies - the southern and northern podo - and reflect where they live. At maturity, the podo reaches a height of up to 45 centimeters and weighs between 6 and 13 kilograms. It feeds mainly on leaves and has many enemies in nature including foxes, tigers and birds of prey.
While in the northern region, researcher Javier Barrio noticed something a little strange in some of the moose there. "He saw the animals in the field and they looked different from those in the north," study author Guillermo D'Elia told New Scientist. The team, which also included Elicer E. Gutierrez, was called in to perform an autopsy on the animals. They performed genetic tests to determine whether there were any differences in the DNA, as well as morphological analyzes that required measurements of characteristics such as skull length on museum specimens of the moose.
This is the famous podo moose:
And this is the new species:
Through these investigations, the researchers found that what were thought to be the Northern Podo can actually be split into two species, one of which is completely new to science. He was nicknamed "Pudella carlae" (Pudella carlae), after the biologist Carla Gazzolo - who the study reports helped save Barrio's life after a blood vessel problem. The new animal lives exclusively in the dry valleys of the Huancabamba Basin in Peru.
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The discovery of the new species, the details of which were published in the Journal of Mammology, also brings back to life the genus Podella, which was previously proposed in 1913 to separate the northern and southern species of the podo, but this proposal was then dropped.
The new study indicates that the Poodle Carla belongs to this genus and that the Northern Poodle also belongs to it. However, it is not clear how the new species was separated from its relative. "We don't yet know whether the new species arose from a population that became isolated as the depression formed, or from animals that settled later and adapted to the environment — but we intend to find out," D'Elia said.
There are clear differences between the three currently known species of podo. The Carla Poodle is in the middle in terms of size (although they are all incredibly tiny). It reaches only 7 to 9 kg - about the weight of a dachshund - and the authors of the auction state that it is shorter than 43 cm at the shoulder. The new Podo also has a different color pattern than the rest of its tiny family, with paler ears and body fur that the authors describe as having a "rich reddish-brown or reddish-orange" color.
The podo is in danger of extinction and its status is defined as "vulnerable" - mainly due to deforestation for pastures or fruit orchards. In addition, it is in the wild under constant threat of being hunted or captured by tourists or hunters for sale as a pet. The longest recorded lifespan for the podo is 15 years and nine months, with the average podo lifespan being 8 - 10 years.