Brandon Peoples
Just what "is" a fish species? Etheostoma clinton may say, "...it depends on your definition of 'is'."
Last year, researchers Steve Layman and Richard Mayden discovered five new species of darter—tiny colorful fishes in the perch family. They named the new species after "environmentally-minded" politicians, most notably Barack Obama (Teddy Roosevelt and Al Gore also made the list). These “new” species had been hiding from us in plain sight—the southeastern US.
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| Five new species of Etheostoma were recently described in the southeastern US. Photos by J. Tomelleri. Source. |
Wait…how did five unknown fish species go undetected for so long right under our noses?
