How hard is it to find new species in Israel?

Every year, thousands of new animal, plant, and fungal species are identified. Some of the species are entirely new, while others were previously discovered but only recently scientifically confirmed. According to the California Academy of Sciences, approximately one-tenth of all species on Earth have been identified so far, with the research institute contributing to 2024's discoveries by identifying no less than 138 species.
Among those discovered last year, two distinct species stand out: a South Indian gecko named after the iconic Vincent van Gogh painting The Starry Night, and a vegetarian piranha from Brazil named Sauron, the main villain in The Lord of the Rings.

Unlike the aforementioned species, the Trichopelma grande, a massive and highly hairy Tarantula spider that nests in Cuba, was discovered but not previously described as a new species. This species was discovered in 2008, but a DNA study conducted by the Cuban research team of Dr. David Ortiz and Elier Fonseca proved the existence of a new species, which was then published in the Journal of Natural History in November. Following the Cuban spider's recent self-determination journey, one would wonder: what are the chances of discovering a whole new species in Israel, rather than one that is (sort of) related to Spiderman?

Prof. Shai Meiri, a senior lecturer in the School of Zoology at the George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences since 2009, is well-versed in the mission of discovering new species in Israel. Prof. Meiri's lab primarily examines reptiles at various stages of evolution, ecology, and conservation. "You can see here, for example, part of our attempt to map all the reptiles of the world - 12,300, 12,400 species - and understand their ecology and morphology on a global scale," he demonstrates on his office's PC. "We are currently studying the biology, with an emphasis on ecophysiology, of reptiles in Israel. We are looking into what influences their activity - metabolic rate, water processing, thermal biology - and where this may lead them in the coming years, with global warming and continual changes in land designation lurking in the background."

“If we used to state that X differences were required to distinguish between two species, now we say that 70% X is sufficient.”

What is your lab’s current research focus?

"We're studying reptile biodiversity in Israel and the Middle East. There is a tendency in Israel to believe that because we are a small country with excellent research, we know our fauna very well. We are now discovering that we have more species in general, as well as other species, than we previously imagined. "Generally speaking, the inclination today in all animal groups around the world is to refer to very minor changes than we did in the past and claim 'this is a species.' We have improved tools for identifying discrepancies. If we used to look, count, and inspect under a microscope and say, 'This looks the same to me,' we can now put tissue samples from these creatures in a test tube and examine their DNA. We also know, through molecular means, micro-CT scans, and other tools that we use to identify differences, that things are not always as they appear, at least at first glance.” 

Prof. Shai Meiri's lab, the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History 

Prof. Meiri believes that the standards for discovering new species are falling, which he refers to as 'taxonomic inflation.' "If we used to state that X differences were required to distinguish between two species, now we say that 70% X is sufficient. What the heck? Even 55% suffices for you. We do, however, examine our preconceived notions. If we used to say, 'I picked up this lizard, it's two centimeters long, it yelled at me, it has a Zorro mask - that's a miniature gecko!' Today, I can say, 'I always thought the miniature geckos in Eilat looked a little bigger to me and had a few more stripes on their backs than the ones in the Arava - that's not the same miniature gecko!’”
 

Prof. Meiri continues, "We're also identifying other species in Israel. We knew there was a four-lined snake on Mount Hermon and were familiar with it, but it wasn't the snake found 400 kilometres away in Turkey. It's not the same species. If our perception of Israel's biodiversity has not changed, then our perception of the world's biodiversity has, since if it is a separate species, we will have to define it as such and explain why it differs from the species in Turkey, which we thought was the same until yesterday."

“I believe that climate change will not be the most pressing issue for Israel's flora and wildlife in the next ten to twenty years, but rather habitat degradation and invasive species.”

 

 

Its life is being disrupted on a daily basis - Uromastix (spiny-tailed lizard)

What are the chances of discovering a new species these days, especially as it becomes increasingly difficult to preserve species? 

"If it's a bird, that'll be close to zero. If it's an insect, I'm confident that if someone does a thorough job here at the botanical garden, he or she will discover ten new kinds of insects unknown to science. On the one hand, it depends on how well that group has been examined. On the other hand, the question is whether the group is easy or difficult to approach. If you have to go into the ocean for it, things get more problematic. If this group is found in South Sudan or even North Sudan, the prospects of doing so are slim. If I have to dig in the earth for a species and can only make 'DNA soup' from it, things get more problematic. If it's a species with economic value, such as cultivating an agricultural parasite, right? Then you have an incentive to work on it since there will be more money and interest. Even when we identify new reptiles, they are usually not new species, but rather 'wow, I've never seen such an animal before. What I assumed was a standard Roth's dwarf racer was not! On the surface, it appears to be a Roth's dwarf racer, but when I turn it over and inspect it from below, as well as the molecule on the left, I discover a new species.”

Prof. Meiri believes that there are more worlds to discover in Israel, particularly those of insects. "I am pretty sure that there are large groups of insects, because no one has looked at this group in Israel since 1958, so basically there is something to discover because there is something to discover," he says. "Reptiles are one of the easiest groups to study since they are large, conspicuous, and have dedicated reptile aficionados. There are only about 90 reptile species, thus there is a chance of discovering new species in every non-avian group. We do have surprises, and if there are surprises in the reasonably well-known groups, there are undoubtedly some in the less studied, less renowned, and less likely to attract notice - even among nature enthusiasts." 

One issue that has undoubtedly captured the attention of nature enthusiasts for over the last decade is the climate crisis. According to Prof. Meiri, climate change in Israel "does not directly affect species discovery. Climate change is predicted to have a negative impact on certain species, most notably the Mount Hermon species. Whatever exists on the lofty Mount Hermon, and its dispersion is limited, the mountain will deplete it. If a species that is allegedly too hot for it, it can go to a colder place; if it reaches the Lebanese border, it is lost to the Israeli fauna.” Prof. Meiri continues, "If the species is found in a valley or at a low altitude above sea level, it can basically climb Mount Meron in the Galilee; if it is found in the northern Golan, it can climb all the way to Mount Hermon. There isn't much further to go, and there's no way out. Even if there are higher summits in Syria or Lebanon, they are inaccessible. You must go across the valley, which is warmer."

The war makes it anxious - Eirenis modestus (dwarf snake) 
 

Alternatively, Prof. Meiri provides a contrasting example from southern Israel of a perhaps extinct species: the Eilat spiny-tailed lizard. "It dwells in granite rocks because that is its preferred habitat. It requires granite rocks found only in the Eilat area. Aside from the fact that hotels, water parks, camel ranches, and other structures are being built there, which is the usual problem of habitat destruction, if Eilat dries out further, the species will become extinct because it will be unable to migrate north to an area with more rain because there are no granite rocks in the north. "Such species are endangered. I hope I'm not mistaken, but I believe that climate change will not be the most pressing issue for Israel's flora and wildlife in the next ten to twenty years, but rather habitat degradation and invasive species.”

When Prof. Meiri addresses Israel's northern neighbors, it's difficult not to think about the continuing conflict and its effects on flora and wildlife, as well as the potential damage, particularly the discovery of new species. "The war benefits no one, including reptiles," asserts Prof. Meiri. "We have direct and indirect proof of the damage that war causes. For example, when rockets and mortars fall on a plantation area, the animals and plants burn along with them. We also have proof of reptiles being held within a metabolic chamber for 24 hours during a physiological experiment, with some instances occurring during missile falls and interceptions in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area. "You can see in the metabolic readings that when there are reasonably distant and few explosions, there are spikes that are twice or three times higher than the normal breathing rate - this is a stress response. Stress is bad for everyone. We have no idea how much it impacts the populations themselves.”

Prof. Meiri's assertions support the findings of a study he co-conducted with Prof. Eran Levin and a team of School of Zoology researchers, which discovered that the Swords of Iron War affect wildlife by producing tension and anxiety. "In short, it's hard to see how we can do a real analysis (within the political reality of the Middle East) that will tell us, on the one hand, that it's clear what's going to happen to this or that population or species; on the other hand, it doesn't seem like an argument to whoever will replace (Hassan) Nasrallah as the secretary-general of Hezbollah, or to whoever will be the next president of Syria, that we need to take it down a notch because the dwarf snake is anxious. Unfortunately, no one will take this into account.”