New Species Discovered in 2025: Animals, Plants and Fungi
Monday, 5 January 2026
Did you know that a new species can be named by qualified
scientists all over the world, as long as they follow international rules? Probably,
a more amazing fact is that new species are still being discovered on a daily
basis. The Natural History Museum in
London helped to identify 262 species in 2025 alone. The global number runs
into the thousands.
The species do not have to be around – many of the new
species that are identified each year are fossilised remnants. However, in 2025 the Natural History Museum
helped with animals including a toad whose tadpoles skip the tadpole phase, and
some dazzling new jewel butterflies (one or two of which were around, but alas
may not be any more).
To discover more about how many species were discovered last
year, watch the Natural History Museum video below.
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