Fauna of New Guinea

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Greater bird-of-paradise

The fauna of New Guinea comprises a large number of species of mammals, reptiles, birds, fish, invertebrates and amphibians.

As the world's largest and highest tropical island, New Guinea occupies less than 0.5% of world's land surface, yet supports a high percentage of global biodiversity. Approximately 4,624 vertebrate species inhabit the island of New Guinea and its surrounding waters, which constitutes about 8% of the recognized world vertebrates. This ranges from an estimated 4% of the world's lizards and mammals, to about 10% of the world's fish species.[1]

The numbers of global and New Guinea invertebrate species are poorly known, and thus an accurate comparison is difficult. Butterflies are the best known invertebrate group, and are represented in New Guinea by about 735 species, which is about 4.2% of the world total of 17,500 species.[1]

Origin

History

Papua New Guinea is a large island located north of Australia, and south-east of Asia. It is part of the Australian Plate, known as Sahul, and once formed part of the supercontinent Gondwana. The origin of most New Guinea fauna is closely linked to Australia. Gondwana began to break up 140 million years ago, and Sahul separated from Antarctica 50 million years ago. As it drifted north, New Guinea moved into the tropics.

Throughout Papua New Guinea's geological history there have been many land connections with Australia. These have occurred during

glaciations in various ice ages. Four occurred during the Pleistocene
; the last of which was severed 10,000 years ago. At this time, a number species existed on both land masses, and many plants and animals thus crossed from Australia to Papua New Guinea and vice versa. Many later became isolated as the connection ended, then further evolving to the new environment and becoming distinct species.

However, this Australia- Papua New Guinea mixing occurred among a relatively few faunal groups; some Papua New Guinea species have an Asian origin. As Papua New Guinea drifted north, it collided with the

endemic
to the island.

History of study

Influential evolutionary biologist

Whitney South Seas Expedition to the Solomon Islands. Mayr's experience of the fauna of New Guinea informed many of his conclusions about evolution for the rest of his life.[2]

Mammals

See also: List of mammals of Papua New Guinea
Goodfellow's tree-kangaroo (Dendrolagus goodfellowi)

The mammal fauna of New Guinea is composed of all extant subclasses of mammal: the

placentals and marsupials. New Guinea contains the largest number of monotreme species of any land mass, with only one species absent: the platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus). The marsupial fauna of New Guinea is diverse, consisting of the three orders: Dasyuromorphia, Peramelemorphia and Diprotodontia
.

The native placental mammals are solely represented by the rodents and bats. There are approximately the same number of placental species as marsupials and monotremes.

Monotremes and marsupials

New Guinea's monotremes are restricted to the family

Sir David's long-beaked echidna (Zaglossus attenboroughi). No living Zaglossus have been seen in Australia, in recent years, and this genus may now be endemic to New Guinea, although a specimen in the natural history museum was collected from the Kimberley region in the early 20th century [3] and fossils have been found in Australia.[4]

The native mammal fauna of New Guinea lacks large predators.

insectivorous. The largest is the bronze quoll (Dasyurus spartacus), a rare quoll, first discovered in southern New Guinea in 1979.[6] It reaches a snout to vent length of 36 centimetres (14.2 in). Fossils of larger marsupials have been found, including the carnivorous thylacine (Thylacinus sp.),[7] however evidence of carnivorous megafauna, such as the marsupial lion (Thylacoleo), has not been found.[5]

The kangaroos, Macropodidae, of New Guinea are highly varied in their ecology and behaviour. Those closely related to the Australian kangaroos, such as the agile wallaby (Macropus agilis), inhabit the open grasslands of New Guinea. However, the tree-kangaroos, which are mostly endemic to New Guinea, are different in appearance and behaviour. As suggested by their name, they are arboreal. They have long, thick tails which enable them to balance in trees, and large, strong forearms for gripping to trees. Two species of tree kangaroos are also found in Australia, they are believed to have migrated from New Guinea during the Pleistocene.[5]

The cuscus, family Phalangeridae, are a family of marsupials closely related to the

black spotted cuscus
(Spilocuscus rufoniger), are black, orange and yellow.

Many small,

Burramyidae, Petauridae and Pseudocheiridae. Krefft's glider
(Petaurus notatus) is one of only two New Guinea possums that are able to glide. It has large flaps of skin between its legs, which it spreads whilst in the air. Three sub-species are found in New Guinea, and they inhabit the entire island.

Placental mammals

The black-bellied fruit bat is native to the Bismarck Archipelago of Papua New Guinea.

The rodents are solely represented by the family

R. xanthurus group of Sulawesi.[8][9][10]

The old endemics have undergone an

grey black-eared giant rat
(Mallomys aroaensis); males can reach a length of 41 centimetres (16.1 in) from snout to vent.

The bats of New Guinea are a very diverse group, comprising six families, and 29 genera. The six families are:

Molossidae. Bats migrated to New Guinea on many occasions, with many species being shared with Australia, the Sunda Islands and even mainland Asia. The megabats, or Megachiropterans, of New Guinea are highly adapted, and many are endemic to New Guinea and surrounding islands.[5] While most megabats are herbivorous, and eat fruit, nectar and flowers, some species within New Guinea have adapted to also eat insects whilst in flight;[11] an ecological niche usually filled by microbats. Some species also forage on the ground, an adaptation not seen in areas with large predators.[5]

The microbats show much less endemism than the megabats. Only one genus and a few species are endemic to New Guinea and surrounding islands; this suggests a much later migration to New Guinea.

The colonisation of New Guinea by

wild boar (Sus scrofa) was introduced to New Guinea at least 6,000 years ago, though may have been introduced 12,000 years ago.[13] It is abundant throughout the island, and more common in areas where humans grow sweet potato as their primary food source. The wild boar is a large forager, and disturbs the forest floor whilst looking for food. This disturbance may have an effect on the native flora and fauna.[14]

The

domestic dog (Canis familiaris) was introduced to New Guinea about 2,000 years ago.[15] There is also an endemic wild dog, the New Guinea singing dog, Canis lupus hallstromi, that is closely related to the Australian dingo. It arrived on the island at least 6,000 years ago. Its common name comes from the way these dogs harmonize during chorus howls. The New Guinea singing dogs live in the remote mountains, above human habitation level, and are the largest land predator.[16]

Many murid species have been introduced to New Guinea. These include: the Polynesian rat (Rattus exulans), the Himalayan field rat (Rattus nitidus), the black rat (Rattus rattus), the ricefield rat (Rattus argentiventer), the brown rat (Rattus norvegicus) and the house mouse (Mus musculus). Most of these have not caused much damage, and most have only established in human settlements. R. nitidus and R. argentiventer have very limited distributions on the island. The house mouse is the most widespread of the introduced murids, and is found in settlements and grassland. It is the only introduced murid to reach the central region of Telefomin.[5]

Three species of

rusa deer (Cervus timorensis) is the most common, and well established. It is found throughout the north and south of New Guinea. It is commonly hunted for meat by humans. The other two species, the chital (Axis axis) and the fallow deer (Dama dama) are much rarer, and the fallow deer may be extinct.[17]

The cat (Felis catus) is common around human settlements, but is rare in the forested regions of New Guinea. In areas where it has established, native animal populations have dramatically decreased.[5]

Birds

Main article: List of birds of Papua New Guinea
The southern cassowary (Casuarius casuarius).

New Guinea shares a distinction with

Endemic Bird Areas
in New Guinea, with about 320 endemic bird species in the country.

The largest bird in New Guinea is the flightless cassowaries, of which all three species are native to New Guinea. Two of these species: the southern cassowary (Casuarius casuarius) and the northern cassowary (Casuarius unappendiculatus) reach heights of 1.8 metres (6 ft). The southern cassowary is also native to the tropical regions of Northern Australia. These birds dominate the jungles and coasts of New Guinea, with adults fearing no enemies as - outside of humans - not even crocodiles were known to attack them. However, the cassowary is one of the world's most dangerous birds, for it is capable of inflicting fatal kicking-injuries with its powerful legs, and the dagger-like claw on its inner toe. It is known to have killed several humans who have gotten too close, and they are especially dangerous when chicks are nearby.

Additionally, New Guinea's second-largest terrestrial bird is the neighbouring Australian bustard that is only located in the southern portions of the island.

The

crowned-pigeons
(the largest pigeons in the world) are one-sixth of the world's total.

Papuan hornbill (Rhyticeros plicatus), the only species of hornbill
native to New Guinea.

The

Paradisaeidae
, or birds-of-paradise, one of three bird families referred to (collectively) by the same name. Many species show extravagant sexual dimorphism. The males tend to be ornamented with bright, iridescent colours, and modified, ornamental feathers such as tufts and wattles. Many of them can change their physical appearance drastically when they display during mating rituals, in which each species has its own elaborate movements, habits and calls, all to attract females. Some species do not show this sexual dimorphism; both male and female can have or lack ornamentation.

Closely related to the birds-of-paradise are the bowerbirds, a group of 20 rather drab, stocky and short-plumed birds found in New Guinea and Australia. They lack the bright and iridescent color and ornamental plumes found in the birds-of-paradise, but what they lack visually is compensated for with the male's architectural skill. The male builds and decorates an elaborate “bower”, ranging from mats, stick towers, avenued chambers to tipi-roofed huts and displays it to the females. These birds are also famed for their mimicking abilities, as they are able to replicate nearly every sound they hear, and they incorporate these sounds into their own songs to attract a mate. Not only can bowerbirds mimic most other bird calls, but their repertoire includes other animals and humans, as well as human technology, such as automobiles, construction equipment, and airplanes.

Another odd avifauna from New Guinea is the poisonous birds, notably the

Central and South America, named as such due to their diet formic acid
-containing ants. However, in captivity, most such animals lose this toxicity when fed a diet of non-toxic insects (crickets, fruit flies, etc).

New Guinea's top predator is the

New Guinea harpy eagle (Harpyopsis novaeguineae). New Guinea, the Amazon rainforest, the Philippines, and New Zealand
all share the distinction of having a bird of prey as top predator.

Most coastal birds and seabirds native to New Guinea are found throughout the tropics.

Although some species are hunted for meat, valuable plumes and feathers, or for the pet trade, the main threats to most species come from logging and conversion of forest for agriculture, both of which degrade or eliminate important habitat.

Amphibians

See also: List of endemic amphibians of Papua New Guinea
The angiana tree frog (Litoria angiana), common to the highlands of New Guinea.

The amphibians of New Guinea consist of a highly diverse group of species, with over 320 described species, and many species still to be described. The amphibians of New Guinea, like most Gondwanan continents, are restricted to those of the order

hawk moth larvae, which were eating sweet potato crops; they have since become common in non-forested areas. The common Asiatic toad was accidentally introduced, and is very abundant in a small area in the north-west, and may be spreading further throughout the island.[19]

Frogs from the family Myobatrachidae are highly diverse and widespread in Australia. However, only seven described species have established in New Guinea. In Australia, the largest diversity is seen in the subtropical and semi-arid environments, with the greatest diversity in the tropics occurring in savannah. New Guinea, however, is mostly covered in dense rainforest. The most common myobatrachid in New Guinea is the

Wokan cannibal frog (Lechriodus melanopyga). It is a small ground-dwelling frog found throughout New Guinea. Lechriodus is the only myobatrachid genus with greater diversity in New Guinea than Australia. Excluding Lechriodus, the rest of the myobatrachids are mostly restricted to savannah in the southern Fly and Digul River plains.[20]

Tree frogs, of the family Hylidae, have successfully inhabited New Guinea. They are the most diverse family of frogs in New Guinea with over 100 species, and many more to be described.[21] There are two genera represented in New Guinea, Litoria and Nyctimystes. Litoria are found throughout both Australia and New Guinea, however, only one of the 24 species of Nyctimystes has reached Australia. Nyctimystes are arboreal frogs, which lay their eggs in fast flowing streams, behind a rock to avoid it being flushed away. The tadpoles have modified mouths, which use suction to stick to rocks.

Ranidae, also known as true frogs, are the most widely distributed family of frogs on earth, however, they are not well represented in Australia or New Guinea. New Guinea and Australia have been absent of Ranids for most of their history, however since the continent's collision with Asia, species have begun to move across. The Ranids in New Guinea are only represented with one genus, Rana.

Although the origins of Microhylidae in New Guinea are very similar to the Ranids, there is much more diversity. The Microhylids are represented by twelve genera in New Guinea, four of which are endemic.

Reptiles

See also: List of endemic reptiles of Papua New Guinea
The New Guinea crocodile.

The reptile fauna of New Guinea is represented by three of the four extant orders. The

testudines, or turtles and tortoises, and Crocodilia
, the crocodiles, are much less diverse. The turtles are represented by thirteen described species, and the crocodiles two.

The lizards of New Guinea are represented by approximately 200 described species. Of these, a majority are

crocodile monitor
. The snakes, approximately 100 described species, show a much lower rate of endemism than most of New Guinea's fauna.

The turtles of New Guinea are almost equally represented by fresh water turtles as marine. Six species of New Guinea's turtles are marine, and all are found on other land masses. The fresh water turtles are represented by seven species, with three endemic to New Guinea. One species, Parker's snake-necked turtle (Chelodina parkeri), is restricted to the Fly River.

The saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) is the largest reptile native to New Guinea. It is a widely distributed species, from eastern India to northern Australia. It is found in most of New Guinea's rivers, except for those heavily disturbed by humans, or too small to accommodate the species. The other crocodile native to New Guinea, the New Guinea crocodile (Crocodylus novaeguineae), is an endemic. It is much smaller than the saltwater crocodile. A separate species may occur in southern New Guinea.

Fish

See also: List of endemic fish of Papua New Guinea

Marine

New Guinea is within the Coral Triangle, the most species rich marine region in the world. In addition to more than 600 species of corals (about 76% of the total in the world), there are more than 2200 species of reef fishes (about 37% of the total in the world).[22]

Freshwater

Glossolepis incisus
(shown)

As of 2007, about 375 species of fishes are known from freshwater habitats in New Guinea. Of these, 217 are strictly freshwater and 149 are endemic to New Guinea.

blue-eyes, gudgeons and gobies, but there are also several species of Old World silverside, grunters, glassfish, ariid catfish, eeltail catfish
and more.

The complex geography of New Guinea has isolated many populations, resulting in endemics. A striking example of a

Oxyeleotris fimbriata) are found both north and south of these highlands.[23]

There are several large river systems in New Guinea, including the Fly, Sepik and Mamberamo, which all are rich in fishes. The Fly River Basin, the most species rich river of the island, has 105 fish species, while the Sepik River Basin has 57 species.[24] Among New Guinea's lake systems, the most important in terms of endemic fishes are Kutubu (13 endemics), Ajamaru (4 endemics),[25] and Sentani (4 endemics).[26][27][28] The gudgeons Oxyeleotris caeca from the upper Kikori River system in Papua New Guinea and O. colasi from the Lengguru area in Western New Guinea are the only described species of cave-adapted fish from the island.[29][30]

Introduced species and pollution presents a serious problem to some freshwater regions in New Guinea. For example, Lake Sentani (near Jayapura city) and Lake Wanam (near Lae city) have four and one endemic fish species respectively, but these are now seriously threatened.[26][27][31] Tailings from mines has also polluted several rivers, including the Porgera River (Porgera Gold Mine), Strickland River (Porgera Gold Mine), Auga River (Tolukuma Mine), Ok Tedi River (Ok Tedi Mine), Fly River (Porgera Gold Mine and Ok Tedi Mine), Otomina River (Grasberg mine) and Ajkwa River (Grasberg mine).[32] The Ok Tedi and Grasberg mines alone account for more than half the yearly tailings dumped into water by major mining operations worldwide.[32]

Freshwater crustaceans

There are freshwater crabs and freshwater shrimps in New Guinea, but generally these are poorly known and often they have not yet been evaluated

taxonomically.[33][34] As of 2007, 17 species of Caridina, 22 species of Macrobrachium and 6 species of Holthuisana (formerly included in Austrothelphusa) are known from New Guinea.[23] Other crustacean genera known from New Guinea freshwater are Atya (2 species) and Palaemon (2) shrimps, and Geelvinkia (3), Halicarcinus (1), Pseudograpsus (1), Ptychognathus (1), Rouxana (5) and Varuna (1) crabs.[35]

There are more than 20 species of Parastacid crayfish of the genus Cherax in New Guinea.[36] With eight endemics, by far the greatest diversity is found in the Paniai Lakes.[35]

Insects

Ornithoptera alexandrae
Ischiopsopha bifasciata
Main article: List of butterflies of Papua New Guinea

The New Guinea insect fauna demonstrates many principles of

faunal exchange
. The oceanic Pacific Islands received insects from New Guinea The number of higher taxa falls with greater distance from New Guinea, with the age of island groups In some. The insect faunas of New Guinea and New Zealand interchanged through New Caledonia not Australia. [37]

There is no comprehensive overview on the insect fauna of New Guinea but a bibliography is available [38] There may be 300,000 - 100,000 species and Papua New Guinea ranks 12th in the world in terms of endemism of large butterflies. The Papua Insects Foundation provides an expert resource [39]

Notable

Arrhenodes digramma, Eupholus magnificus, Mecopus bispinosus, Callictita spp.. Also known from New Guinea are Batocera wallacei, Ithystenus curvidens, Meganthribus pupa, Sipalinus gigas, Pelargoderus rubropunctatus, Rhynchophorus bilineatus, Gasterocercus anatinus, Acalolepta australis, Actinus imperialis, Megacrania batesii
.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b Allison, A. (2011). "Introduction to the Fauna of Papua". The Ecology of Papua, the Ecology of Indonesia Series, Vol. IX: in press.
  2. ^ Diamond, Jared. 2005. Obituary: Ernst Mayr (1904−2005). Nature 433:700-701.
  3. ^ Helgen, KM, Miguez RP, Kohen JL and Helgen LE. 2012. Twentieth Century occurrence of the long-beaked echidna Zaglossus bruijni in the Kimberley region of Australia. ZooKeys 255:103-132
  4. S2CID 45643228.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
    )
  5. ^
    ISBN 9781862730298
    .
  6. S2CID 254707972
    .
  7. JSTOR 1377473
    .
  8. ^ Musser, G. G. and M. D. Carleton. 2005. Superfamily Muroidea. pp. 894–1531 in Mammal Species of the World a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. D. E. Wilson and D. M. Reeder eds. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.
  9. ^ Helgen, K.M. 2005. The amphibious murines of New Guinea (Rodentia, Muridae): the generic status of Baiyankamys and description of a new species of Hydromys. Zootaxa 913:1–20.
  10. ^ Rowe et al., 2008, Mol. Phyl. Evol. 47:84–101
  11. doi:10.1071/WR9770025
    .
  12. S2CID 163973
    .
  13. ^ Bulmer, S. (1982). Biogeography and ecology of New Guinea. The Hague: Junk.
  14. ^ Dwyer, P.D. (1977). "Notes on Antechinus and Cercartetus (Marsupialia) in the New Guinea Highlands". Proceedings of the Royal Society of Queensland. 3.
  15. ^ Allen, J. (1972). "Nebira 4: an early Austronesian site in Central Papua". Archaeology and Physical Anthropology in Oceania. 7: 253–307.
  16. ^ Koler-Matznick et al., 2003, 2007
  17. ^ Ziegler, A.C. (1982). Biogeography and ecology of New Guinea. The Hague: Junk.
  18. ISBN 978-954-642-273-6
    .
  19. ISBN 978-954-642-273-6
    .
  20. ISBN 978-954-642-273-6
    .
  21. ^ Tyler, M.J. (1968). Papuan Hylid Frogs of the Genus Hyla. Rijksmuseum van Natuurlijke Historie. pp. 1–203.PDF
  22. ^ WWF: Coral Triangle facts. Retrieved 22 November 2012.
  23. ^ a b c d Tappin, A. R. (June 2007). Freshwater Biodiversity of New Guinea Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine. In-Stream, Australia-New Guinea Fishes Association, Queensland Inc. Retrieved 22 November 2012
  24. ^ Revenga, C., and Y. Kura (2003). Status and Trends of Biodiversity of Inland Water Ecosystems. Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, Montreal, Technical Series no. 11.
  25. ^ Polhemus, D.A., R.A. Englund, and G.R. Allen (2004). Freshwater Biotas of New Guinea and Nearby Islands: Analysis of Endemism. Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum, Conservation International
  26. ^
    doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T4631A147680762.en
    . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  27. ^
    doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T9268A147681075.en
    . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  28. ^ Hoese, D.F., and G.R. Allen (2015). "Descriptions of three new species of Glossogobius (Teleostei: Gobiidae) from New Guinea". Zootaxa 3986(2): 201-16. doi: 10.11646/zootaxa.3986.2.4
  29. ^ Allen, G.R. (1996). Oxyeleotris caeca, a new species of blind cave fish (Eleotridae) from Papua New Guinea. Rev. Fr. Aquariol. 23(1-2): 43-46.
  30. ^ Pouyaud; Kadarusman; Hadiaty; Slembrouck; Lemauk; Kusumah; Keith (2012). "Oxyeleotris colasi (Teleostei: Eleotridae), a new blind cave fish from Lengguru in West Papua, Indonesia". Cybium. 36 (4): 521–529.
  31. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T9272A147681490.en
    . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  32. ^ a b Earthworks and MiningWatch Canada (February 2012). Troubled Waters Archived 2012-10-28 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  33. ^ Australian & New Guinea Aquatic Life: Freshwater Crabs Archived 2013-04-26 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 22 November 2012.
  34. ^ Australian & New Guinea Aquatic Life: Freshwater Shrimp Archived 2012-12-30 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 22 November 2012.
  35. ^ a b Holthuis, L.B. (1982). Freshwater Crustacea Decapoda of New Guinea. in: Gressitt, J.L., eds (1982). Biogeography and ecology of New Guinea, vol. 2. Monographiae Biologicae 42: 603-619. Available online (pdf): part 1 and part 2
  36. ^ Australian & New Guinea Aquatic Life: Cherax - Freshwater Crayfish Archived 2012-11-20 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 22 November 2012.
  37. ^ J. L. Gressit , 1958 New Guinea and Insect Distribution Proceedings of the Tenth International Congress of Entomology: Montreal, August 17–25, 1956 [1]
  38. ^ J. L. Gressitt and J. J. H. Szent-Ivany, 1968 Bibliography of New Guinea entomology Pacific Insects Monograph 18: 1-674 pdf
  39. ^ Papua Insects Foundation Insects of Papua Indonesia. Retrieved 22 January 2014

References

External links
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