Mammals > Capromyidae & Caribbean Hutias
The Hispaniolan Hutia (Plagiodontia aedium), locally known in Hispaniola as the Zagouti, is one of only two surviving native non-volant land mammals on the entire island of Hispaniola (alongside the Hispaniolan Solenodon). Representing the sole extant member of its...
Amphibians > Rhacophoridae & Gliding Frogs
Helen’s Flying Frog (Rhacophorus helenae) is a spectacular, giant gliding tree frog endemic to southern Vietnam. Discovered by herpetologist Jodi Rowley less than 60 miles from Ho Chi Minh City, this remarkably large, moss-green amphibian astonished scientists...
Reptiles > Anguids & Arboreal Alligator Lizards
Campbell’s Alligator Lizard (Abronia campbelli) is one of Central America’s most breathtakingly beautiful squamates. Discovered in 1993 in the mist-veiled montane cloud forests of eastern Guatemala, this rare, emerald-to-turquoise arboreal alligator lizard...
Birds > Suliformes & Gannets
Abbott’s Booby (Papasula abbotti) is a magnificent, archaic seabird and the sole surviving representative of the ancient genus Papasula. While virtually all other sulids nest on oceanic cliff ledges or low coastal ground, Abbott’s Booby possesses the...
Reptiles > Eublepharidae & Geckos
Kuroiwa’s Ground Gecko (Goniurosaurus kuroiwae), also known as the Ryukyu Ground Gecko, is a primitive, strikingly adorned lizard endemic to the subtropical island forests of Okinawa, Japan. Belonging to the ancient eyelid gecko family Eublepharidae, it diverges...
