Five species of previously unknown snakes with stunning eyes were discovered in jungle trees, and one was named after Leonardo DiCaprio. But mining threatens them all.
Slithering among shrubs in the foothill forests of Panama, there is a snake the color of burnt embers, with round eyes like glowing coals. The snake, soon to be named DiCaprio's snail-eating snake , is one of five newfound species living in the jungles of Central and South America. In a new study, researchers described the new species and shed light on how gold and copper mining operations in the region may threaten other stunning snakes.
S. irmelindicaprioae derives its name from actor and conservationist Leonardo DiCaprio, who asked that the red-eyed snake be named for his mother, Irmelin Indenbirken. DiCaprio's eponymous snake is about 15 inches long, and spends its evenings on palm fronds 10 feet above the ground, foraging for snails and slugs. Docile to a fault, the snake defends itself not by biting but by coiling protectively around its head and emitting a foul odor.
Image 1 of 4To identify the new species, Arteaga and colleagues built an evolutionary tree of Dipsadinae — a large and diverse subfamily of arboreal, terrestrial and aquatic snakes found in the Americas — after analyzing 343 sequences of snake DNA. The scientists determined that five species were sufficiently distinct from their closest relatives, in both appearance and genetics, to qualify as new species.
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