Atlantic sixgill shark: New shark species discovered in Atlantic Ocean

A team of scientists has identified a new shark species residing in the Atlantic Ocean. Using genetic testing, the study confirmed that the new species, named the "Atlantic sixgill shark", is different than its counterparts in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. "We showed that the sixgills in the Atlantic are actually very different from the ones in the Indian and Pacific Oceans on a molecular level, to the point where it is obvious that they're a different species even though they look very similar to the naked eye," said Toby Daly-Engel, Assistant Professor and shark biologist at the Florida Institute of Technology. Measuring up to 6 feet in length, Atlantic sixgill sharks are far smaller than their Indo-Pacific relatives, which can grow to 15 feet or longer. They have unique, saw-like lower teeth and six gill slits, as their name suggests, while most sharks have five gill slits. With their new classification, Atlantic Atlantic sixgill sharks will now have a better chance at long-term survival, Daly-Engel noted. "Because we now know there are two unique species, we have a sense of the overall variation in populations of sixgills. We understand that if we overfish one of them, they will not replenish from elsewhere in the world," she said. 

Atlantic sixgill shark – Hexanchus vitulus: 

i. Through genetic testing it has been proved that, the new shark species named “Atlantic sixgill shark” is different from the similar ones found in Indian and Pacific Oceans.ii. Hence they have not been associated with the existing species Hexanchus nakamurai. This new species is named Hexanchus vitulus.iii. The findings have been published in the journal Marine Biodiversity. The “Atlantic sixgill shark” is up to 6 feet long.iv. They feature unique, saw-like lower teeth and six gill slits. They date back to nearly 250 million years ago and are one of the oldest creatures on Earth.

Three new eel species found in Bay of Bengal : Gymnothorax pseudotile, Gymnothorax visakhaensis and Enchelycore propinqua

Context:

• Scientists have discovered three new species of eel along the northern Bay of Bengal coast in the past few months.

Other facts:

• Dark brown with white dots on the dorsal side, Gymnothorax pseudotile was discovered at the Digha coast of the Bay of Bengal.
• The other two species,Gymnothorax visakhaensis (uniformly brown) and Enchelycore propinqua (reddish brown body mottled with irregular creamy white spots), were discovered from the Visakhapatnam coast of the Bay of Bengal.

About eels:

• Eels are found mostly at the bottom of rivers and seas. Across the world about 1,000 species of eels have been identified.
• In India, the number is around 125. For species belonging to the family Muraenidae , referred commonly as Moray eels, there are records of about 200 species of which more than 30 species are found in India.

Five new species

• With these new discoveries, the Bay of Bengal coast has yielded at least five new species of eel.
• In 2016, Mr. Mohapatra and his team identified Gymnothorax indicus , an edible species.
• In 2015, a short brown unpatterned moray eel, named Gymnothorax mishrai(Bengal moray eel), was discovered from the coast of Bay of Bengal.
• The specimens of Gymnothorax pseudotile were collected in a trawl net by fishermen in the northern Bay of Bengal.

World’s Fifth-Largest Diamond Found in Lesotho, Africa

Workers at Lesotho’s Letšeng mine have discovered an absolute whopper of a diamond, rated at 910-carats. Roughly the size of two golf balls, the precious gem has an estimated value of $40 million.

The rock, uncovered in the landlocked southern African country of Lesotho, is a 910-carat, D-color Type IIa diamond. This type of diamond makes up about 1 to 2 percent of all natural diamonds, containing no measurable impurities such as nitrogen atoms. Type IIa’s are typically colorless, and are practically transparent in ultraviolet light. At 910-carats, it weights 182 grams, or 6.42 ounces. The Letšeng mine in which the diamond was unearthed is owned by Gem Diamonds, a British-based global diamond mining business.

“Since Gem Diamonds acquired Letšeng in 2006, the mine has produced some of the world’s most remarkable diamonds, including the 603 carat Lesotho Promise, however, this exceptional top quality diamond is the largest to be mined to date and highlights the unsurpassed quality of the Letšeng mine,” Clifford Elphick, Gem Diamonds’ Chief Executive Officer, said in a statement. “This is a landmark recovery for all of Gem Diamonds’ stakeholders, including our employees, shareholders and the Government of Lesotho, our partner in the Letšeng mine.”
The Letšeng mine is renowned for producing big, high quality diamonds. Back in 2015, Gem Diamonds sold a 357-carat rock for $19.3 million, and in 2006 it discovered the 603-carat Lesotho Promise. The company didn’t say how it would sell the diamond, or disclose its worth, but as Bloomberg Quint reports, the precious stone could be worth $40 million if it’s devoid of large internal defects.

The largest diamond ever discovered remains the 3,106-carat Cullinan diamond found near Pretoria in South Africa in 1905. The mine’s owner, Sir Thomas Cullinan presented all 1.33 pounds of the stone to Edward VII of the United Kingdom as a birthday present. That stone was then cut into nine large stones and 100 smaller ones. Many of the stones have become part of the crown jewels. The largest stone, the 530-carat Cullinan I, named the Star of Africa, is now part of the U.K.’s Royal Sceptre, and the 317-carat Cullianan II is mounted on the U.K.’s Imperial State Crown.

Elcysma Ziroensis : New moth species discovered in Arunachal Pradesh, India

A new moth species named ‘Elcysma Ziroensis’ has been discovered in the Talle Wildlife Sanctuary in Arunachal Pradesh.

The article was published by Bombay Natural History Society scientist Monsoon Jyoti Gogoi and renowned lepidoptera (study of butterflies and moths) expert J J Young, and state education department employee Punyo Chada.

"During a field trip to Talle Wildlife Sanctuary we colleted a torn, deformed moth found to be an undescribed female Elcysma, at an elevation of 1,700m in Ziro. This discovery represents the first record of Elcysma from Arunachal Pradesh," the researchers said.

Elcysma Ziroensis:
i. This discovery has been published in the Journal of Threatened Taxa. It was published by Jyoti Gogoi, J J Young and Punyo Chada.
ii. This new species has been scientifically named Elcysma Ziroensis. It would be commonly called Apatani Glory. This has been named after a local tribe called Apatani.
iii. The Elcysma Ziroensis is seen only during autumn, mainly, in September.