Chercher Mountain Brush-furred Rat

Mammals > Rodentia

The Chercher Mountain Brush-furred Rat (Lophuromys chercherensis) is a rare and ecologically distinct rodent restricted to the mist-shrouded montane forests of the Chercher Mountain range in eastern Ethiopia. Belonging to a specialized African lineage noted for stiff,...

Scaly-foot Snail

Invertebrates > Gastropoda

The Scaly-foot Snail (Chrysomallon squamiferum), commonly termed the ‘sea pangolin’ or volcano snail, is an extraordinary peltospirid gastropod that survives in one of the most hostile environments on Earth. Clinging to the scalding, mineral-rich chimney...

Kea

Birds > Parrots

The Kea (Nestor notabilis) is celebrated as the world’s only true alpine parrot, inhabiting the rugged mountain slopes and subalpine valleys of New Zealand’s South Island. Famous for its extraordinary cognitive intelligence, insatiable curiosity, and...

Colonial Tuco-tuco

Mammals > Rodents

The Colonial Tuco-tuco (Ctenomys sociabilis) is a fascinating subterranean rodent native exclusively to the subalpine Patagonian steppe of southwestern Argentina. Unlike nearly all other species in the diverse tuco-tuco family—which are fiercely territorial and...

Gunnison Sage-Grouse

Birds > Galliformes

The Gunnison Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus minimus) is a critically imperiled gallinaceous bird endemic to the high sagebrush steppe basins of southwestern Colorado and eastern Utah. Only recognized as a distinct biological species from the greater sage-grouse in the year...