16 new species of grasshoppers found

“A Mississippi State University scientist has uncovered a hopping treasure trove—16 new species of grasshoppers thriving in the thorny scrublands of U.S. and Mexican deserts,” reports Sci Tech Daily:

Before JoVonn Hill’s discovery, only three species of Agroecotettix were known. Hill, director of MSU’s Mississippi Entomological Museum, emphasized the importance of carefully examining our environment…These newly uncovered species, native to the southern U.S. and Mexican deserts, provide valuable insights into the region’s evolution and ecology.

Hill, an assistant professor in MSU’s Forestry Experiment Station, said this grasshopper genus likely diversified during the Ice Age. In the Rocky Mountains, species of this subfamily in alpine grasslands became isolated as glaciers receded and their habitats shifted to higher elevations. The desert species his team discovered likely underwent a similar process of isolation and speciation.

“These grasshoppers we described live in a lowland thorny scrub habitat. Somewhere along the line, they, too, got isolated and speciated, because each one is still associated with a specific mountain range,” he said. “Their sexually selective nature and lack of premating rituals have kept populations stable and tied to specific mountain ranges.

The Appalachian grasshopper recently returned to Virginia after being absent for 80 years.

Bobcats recently returned to New Jersey after being absent from the state for 50 years.

Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frogs have come back from near extinction

Fish species rebounded off the coast of California due to their young finding a sanctuary in abandoned oil rigs.