Glowing creature found lurking in graveyard of Mexico at night. It’s a new species
At a small graveyard in Mexico, a stinging creature perched in the crevice of a rock wall. A beam of light cut through the darkness and landed on the animal.
Visiting scientists spotted the glowing animal — and discovered a new species.
Researchers visited a cemetery in Michoacán several times in 2020 to survey wildlife, according to a study published July 1 in the journal Dugesiana. Equipped with UV lights, they set out at night to search for the telltale glow of a scorpion.
Searching a rock wall around the edge of the graveyard, researchers found several scorpions. They captured the animals and, taking a closer look, realized they’d discovered a new species: Vaejovis castanoae, or Castaño’s scorpion.
Castaño’s scorpions can reach just under 2 inches in length, the study said. They have textured bodies, pincers and stingers. Photos show their dark brown coloring.
Castaño’s scorpions were found “exclusively on the crevices of (a) rock wall” at a graveyard. Like most scorpions, the new species was seen glowing, or fluorescing, under UV light.
Researchers said they named the new species after Gabriela Castaño Meneses, “one of the most prominent scientists in Mexico working on Arthropods communities in different environments.”
So far, the new species has only been found at one site in Michoacán, the study said. This state is on the western coast of Mexico and a roughly 200-mile drive west from Mexico City.
The new species was identified by its body shape, proportions, appendages and other subtle physical features, the study said. Researchers did not provide a DNA analysis of the new species.
The research team included Gerardo Contreras Felix and Jose Navarrete Heredia.
This story was originally published July 3, 2024 at 1:32 PM with the headline "Glowing creature found lurking in graveyard of Mexico at night. It’s a new species."
