Tuesday, June 30, 2026
Science

Hiding in plain sight: Discovery of cryptic species could double the number of vertebrates

There may be twice as many vertebrates on the planet as previous estimates claimed, according to a new study published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. That's not because of any errors or miscalculation, but because thousands of species have been hiding in plai...

Hiding in plain sight: Discovery of cryptic species could double the number of vertebrates
Image: Phys.org
There may be twice as many vertebrates on the planet as previous estimates claimed, according to a new study published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. That's not because of any errors or miscalculation, but because thousands of species have been hiding in plain sight. These are so-called cryptic species that appear identical to our eyes but are actually very different genetically.

Originally published at Phys.org

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