New York City is one of the most well-explored places on Earth. Established nearly four centuries ago by an influential Dutchman, the city has since grown into the largest and most densely populated metropolis in the country, with no fewer than 28,000 people per square mile, or about one person per 1,000 square feet. People are everywhere. That is what makes this so astonishing: Scientists believe there are almost certainly hundreds, if not thousands, of undiscovered animal species living in the middle of New York, among the city's parks, gardens, and streets.
This is not about the big stuff such as birds or frogs, but small critters including flies, wasps, and other insects. It is not that New York City is some sort of global bug hot spot. Rather, the bulk of species in many insect groups, wherever they are found, remains unknown. As one example, there may be as many as 1.8 million species globally in a single fly family called Cecidomyiidae, known as the gall midges. Yet only about 7,000 of them have been described in the scientific record and are thus known species. Broadly speaking, taxonomists estimate that as much as 90 percent of all animal species on Earth are still unknown.
Project Overview
This summer, Vox is setting out to play a small role in filling these giant gaps in the global tree of life by trying to discover a new species right here in New York. It is a goal understood to be both attainable and useful: Documenting the world's biodiversity is essential to any argument and effort to protect it. Protecting insects is among the most self-serving acts humans can partake in, given the role bugs play in pollinating our foods, cleaning up our feces, and feeding other wildlife.
Step 1: Collect Insects
In both Central Park and Prospect Park, a tent-like structure called a Malaise trap has been deployed to capture small flying insects, including flies and parasitoid wasps. Bugs that fly into the trap are funneled into a jar of ethanol, where they are killed and preserved. The traps are designed to capture only small flying critters and usually do not entrap dragonflies, butterflies, or spiders. According to Emily Hartop, an entomologist at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, the impact on insect populations is minor as they are orders of magnitude larger than what the trap will collect. The traps will be open for three summer months: June, July, and August.
Step 2: Sequence Their DNA
Every month or so, collected insects are sent to the Centre for Biodiversity Genomics (CBG) in Canada. Scientists sequence small fragments of their genomes, producing distinct genetic barcodes for each. These barcodes are unique genetic IDs that help differentiate one species from another. CBG scientists compare these IDs to millions of barcodes for animals already sequenced. If there is no match, it indicates that what was found may be new.
Step 3: Bring in Expert Taxonomists
If genetic sequencing turns up bugs with unique codes, CBG sends those specimens to entomologists for thorough analysis. For example, Emily Hartop, a global expert in scuttle flies, will review potentially new scuttle flies. Ranjith AP, a taxonomist at CBG, will review potentially new wasps in the families Braconidae and Ichneumonidae. Potentially new bees will be sent to the American Museum of Natural History. The taxonomists examine genetic codes and anatomies, and review records for similar described species. If no match is found, the species is new.
Step 4: Give the Species a Name
The final step is to publish a description of the species, including evidence of its novelty, along with a name, in an academic journal such as Zootaxa. This makes the new species official by adding it to the formal scientific record. The project remains open to suggestions for naming a new species.
Significance and Goals
While a project of this size will not make a noticeable dent in describing life on Earth, it aims to reveal the scale of the unknown at a time when the planet is losing so much. Many insect groups are declining, including important pollinators like bees, wasps, and butterflies. Unless the rate of discovery is ramped up, species will almost certainly be lost to extinction before they are even known to exist. For more information, visit the project homepage.
