MANILA, Philippines – International biologists have confirmed
the discovery of a new species of Tarsier on the island of Dinagat in
Mindanao 25 years after a Filipino biologist first saw the possibility
of there being a distinct species.
Rafe Brown, curator-in-charge at the University of Kansas’
Biodiversity Institute said in a statement published on their website
that the distinct Dinagat-Caraga tarsier was found to be a different
species through DNA testing conducted by Kansas University biologists.
Their testing confirmed a previous study done by Filipino Biologist Dioscoro Rabor in the 1970s.
“The confirmation of Rabor’s early suspicions about
the Dinagat Island tarsier population was extremely exciting, and it was
very satisfying to affirm his very perceptive early observations,”
Brown said in the statement.
“He commented that it looked larger to him and had different
shaped fingers and toes. I’m just glad we were able to bring new, modern
tools to this problem and identify the Dinagat-Caraga tarsier as a real
conservation priority,” he said,
The nocturnal tarsiers are iconic for their large eyes in
relation to body size being the world’s smallest primates. They are very
popular tourist attractions on the island of Bohol in
the Visayas region.
Brown said that the Philippine tarsier was previously
classified as a single species that was divided in to three subspecies.
With their latest discovery of three distinct “genetic units,” Brown
said that conservation efforts can be redirected to the areas where the
different species are to ensure the full and effective preserving the
species.
“They’re threatened with habitat loss due to development,
mining and deforestation from the timber industry,” Brown said. “We need
a protected area — such as a national park — in the ranges of each of
the genetic
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