A Citizen Scientist’s Photo Helped Confirm Two Species Alive After 7,000 Years
Carlos Bocos uploaded photographs of a small marsupial to iNaturalist. Those images helped scientists confirm a species that had been classified as extinct for thousands of years — and earned Bocos a co-authorship on the published study.
Two marsupial species in New Guinea, previously known only from fossil evidence and believed extinct for more than 7,000 years, have been confirmed alive. According to The Bishop Museum in Honolulu, which announced the discovery on Tuesday, Bocos posted photographs of the pygmy long-fingered possum on iNaturalist. Those photographs provided additional evidence confirming the species’ survival.
That contribution was significant enough to make Bocos a co-author on the study documenting the rediscovery.
Two Marsupials Classified as ‘Lazarus Species’
The two species at the center of this discovery are the pygmy long-fingered possum and the ring-tailed glider. Both are classified as “Lazarus species,” a scientific term for organisms that reappear after having been thought extinct.
“The discovery of two Lazarus species, thought to be extinct for millennia, is unprecedented,” said Dr. Tim Flannery of the Australian Museum in a news release.
The species were first identified through fossils by Dr. Ken Aplin in the 1990s, after teeth belonging to the animals were excavated during an archaeological dig in western New Guinea. For decades, those fossils were the only evidence these species had ever existed.
Dr. Kristofer Helgen of the Bishop Museum and Dr. Tim Flannery of the Australian Museum conducted research over the past two years to confirm the animals’ existence in New Guinea.
“To be able to say that they indeed are alive brings me joy as a scientist and conservationist. It feels like a second chance to learn about, and protect, these remarkable animals,” Helgen said.
Helgen also said the rediscovery demonstrates that “extinction can be averted,” adding, “It’s a message of hope, one of second chances.”
A Photograph, a Jar and a Fossil Record
The confirmation came from multiple converging lines of evidence.
Helgen identified the ring-tailed glider after seeing a photograph of the gliding ring-tailed possum in the wild and recognizing it as one of the species Aplin had previously classified as extinct. That moment of recognition was triggered by a single wildlife image.
Researchers also discovered two preserved specimens of the pygmy long-fingered possum in a jar at the University of Papua New Guinea, providing evidence that the species had survived more recently than previously believed.
Then there was Bocos’s contribution through iNaturalist — photographs of the pygmy long-fingered possum that added further confirmation to what the preserved specimens suggested. Each piece of evidence on its own told part of the story. Together, they built a case strong enough for scientific publication.
Indigenous Knowledge Filled Gaps that Lab Work Could Not
Citizen science platforms weren’t the only non-traditional source of knowledge that helped confirm these species.
Indigenous communities in the Tambrauw and Maybrat regions of West Papua assisted scientists in identifying the animals based on their knowledge of the marsupial’s behavior and lifestyle. Their local ecological knowledge complemented the formal scientific investigation in ways that filled gaps laboratory research alone could not.
The rediscovery drew on fossils, museum specimens, Indigenous ecological knowledge, wildlife photography shared on a public platform, and years of professional research. No single method or single group of people produced the confirmation on their own. The blend of formal and informal science made it possible.
What Bocos’s Story Means for Anyone Documenting Wildlife
The trajectory from casual wildlife photograph to published co-authorship is unusual, but the underlying mechanism is not. Observations uploaded to platforms like iNaturalist feed into a growing global dataset of biodiversity information that researchers draw upon.
Bocos’s photographs of the pygmy long-fingered possum, properly shared on a public biodiversity platform, reached the eyes of researchers working on one of the most extraordinary zoological rediscoveries in recent memory. A photograph of a small marsupial contributed to confirming the survival of a species believed extinct for over 7,000 years.
The pygmy long-fingered possum and the ring-tailed glider were in New Guinea’s forests for millennia. It took professional science, Indigenous knowledge and citizen contributions to bring them back into the scientific record.
As Helgen put it, this discovery is “a message of hope, one of second chances.” Sometimes, the person who helps deliver that second chance is the one behind the camera.
Production of this article included the use of AI. It was reviewed and edited by a team of content specialists.
