Tiny Tropical Island Yields a Wealth of Species

Scientists sampled some 4,000 different mollusk species in Espiritu Santo. Mollusk expert Philippe Bouchet speculates that as many as 1,000 of these could be new species.

Among the finds: this sundial snail, already known to science and so named for the swirling pattern on its shell.

In a career spanning dozens of deep-sea expeditions in three oceans, Bouchet has already described more than 400 new mollusk species.



The thick, solid spines of a pencil sea urchin jut out like the writing instruments that lend this creature its name.

These nocturnal animals hide in coral reef cavities during the day and crawl out after dark to forage for food.

Found in the Pacific and Indian oceans, pencil urchins are popular in the aquarium trade because they fare well in captivity. Their sturdy spines are sometimes used for making mounts for jewelry.


A ballerina-like red dragonfly hunts for smaller insects on a sunlit rock by the side of a small river in Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu, in the South Pacific.

Insect expert Emmanuel Boitier spotted this one catching tiny flies before it darted off to the next rock. This genus of dragonfly is found in Asia, Africa, and Australia as well as the southwest Pacific.

Discoveries like these will provide a benchmark for measuring future ecological change in a little-studied corner of the world



French insect expert Emmanuel Boitier came across this cicada at night, newly hatched and coming to life under a leaf. The insect was found in a forest on Espiritu Santo, the 1,548-square-mile (4,010-square-kilometer) island in Vanuatu where the Santo 2006 expedition took place.

After a few hours, as the young insects dry off, their salmon color usually changes to brown or green.



Slipper lobsters usually resemble stones, blending in with their rocky habitats.

This one, collected by crustacean experts during the Santo 2006 expedition, funded in part by the National Geographic Society's Committee for Research and Exploration, bears a bright blue band at its middle--a striking contrast with the dull color of the rest of its body. (National Geographic owns National Geographic News.)

This lobster species is one of many collected during the expedition that are already known to science.


Even on tiny remote islands, scientists can find an impressive array of life.

During the Santo 2006 biodiversity survey in Vanuatu, 153 scientists from 20 countries fanned out across the remote South Pacific island of Espiritu Santo, examining mountains, forests, caves, reefs, and water for all living organisms.

In five months, they collected 10,000 species. Some 2,000 of these may be new to science.

This squat lobster, found in waters 150 meters (492 feet) deep, is one of the new species. Eighty percent of the world's species remain to be discovered, notes French scientist Philippe Bouchet, one of the expedition's leaders.