Citizen scientists and researchers, collaborating through Taxon Expeditions, have actually discovered and documented a new beetle types, Clavicornaltica mataikanensis, in Borneos rain forests, showcasing the substantial, yet mainly uncharted, biodiversity of tropical forests. Credit: Taxon Expeditions– Holm FriedrichThe undiscovered small beetles in the tropical rainforest are probably endless. However that did not prevent resident researchers on expeditions to the Ulu Temburong forest in Borneo to keep adding them to clinical records, one at a time. Together with a group of researchers, they published a new species, Clavicornaltica mataikanensis in the open-access peer-reviewed Biodiversity Data Journal.The minute, two-mm-long leaf beetle that lives on the forest flooring is the most recent discovery of Taxon Expeditions, which arranges clinical sightseeing tour for groups consisting of both scientists and laypeople. Unlike other science/adventure journeys, Taxon Expeditions arranges genuine clinical explorations for ordinary people, guiding them in the discovery of brand-new species of animals, by focusing on the countless little things that run the world. Resident scientists, researchers, and trainees working together in the rain forest. Credit: Taxon Expeditions– Sotiris KountourasClavicornaltica mataikanensis, named for the stream Mata Ikan (” fish eye”) that runs in the valley where it was discovered, is among a huge selection of small beetle species that reside in the leaf litter of tropical forests– and the majority of them have actually not yet been clinically described and called. At 2 mm long, the flea beetle is in fact one of the largest amongst its relatives– which may explain why so little is understood about their ecology and diversity.The excursion, in which regional trainees and researchers likewise participated, provided inexperienced lay people the chance to take part in the study of this hidden world of biodiversity and in the procedure of calling and publishing new types. Participant Lehman Ellis, from the United States, states it was “exciting and lovely” to be part of the discovery.Citizen scientist Eleonora Nigro in the field lab working on the publication. Credit: Taxon Expeditions– Iva NjunjićEntomologist and creator of Taxon Expeditions, Dr. Iva Njunjić, says: “We introduce the general public to all these small, stunning, and completely unidentified animals, and show them that there is an entire world still to be discovered.” Reference: “A new, unusually large, Clavicornaltica Scherer, 1974 flea beetle from Borneo, explained and sequenced in the field by resident researchers (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae)” by Sean Otani, Luca Bertoli, Filippo Lucchini, Tom P. G. van den Beuken, Desanne Boin, Lehman Ellis, Holm Friedrich, Brittany Jacquot, Sotiris Kountouras, Sarah Yu Rou Lim, Eleonora Nigro, Syafiie Sueif, Wei Harn Tan, Ulmar Grafe, Daniele Cicuzza, Massimo Delledonne, Iva Njunjić and Menno Schilthuizen, 15 March 2024, Biodiversity Data Journal.DOI: 10.3897/ BDJ.12. e119481.