Photo Gallery: "Lost World" of New Species Found in Indonesia
The golden-mantled tree kangaroo is just one of dozens of species discovered in late 2005 by a team of Indonesian, Australian, and U.S. scientists on the island of New Guinea.
The animal is the rarest arboreal, jungle-dwelling kangaroo in the world, the researchers say. This was the first time the mammal was found in Indonesia, making it only the second site in the world where the species is known to exist.
The kangaroo was discovered on an expedition in the Foja Mountains of Indonesia.
The National Geographic Society, Conservation International, and the Biology Research Center of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences supported the expedition.
印尼“失落世界”发现新奇物种
这只罕见的金披风树袋鼠是2005年底由美国、澳大利亚、印度尼西亚3国科学家在印尼的一座孤岛上发现的。研究人员表示，这是世界上最漂亮的袋鼠，同时也是栖息在丛林地区最为珍贵的有袋动物。这是科学家在印尼首次发现这种哺乳动物。
今年2月，该科考队又在印尼巴布亚省热带雨林中发现了大批新物种，堪称地球上的“失落世界”。这片从未有人涉足的原始森林，竟存在至少40个新物种和许多珍稀物种，这里有许多种新鸟类、青蛙、蝴蝶和棕榈树，它们显然还保持着原始面貌。科考人员表示，这里也许是整个亚太地区最质朴的生态系统。
