Top 10 New Species Revealed: Quirky Animals Include Glowing Cockroach

There are a lot of creatures on our planet--and scientists are discovering more every day. In fact, each year the International Institute for Species Exploration at Arizona State University compiles the Top 10 New Species list. What made the list this year? Among the new species are a glow-in-the-dark cockroach and a monkey with a blue behind.

There are an estimated 8.7 million species on Earth, give or take 1.3 million. Yet some scientists believe that the figure is even higher. Of these nearly 10 million species, about 1.2 million to two million have been identified. The rest, however, are out there and waiting to be discovered, according to the LA Times.

Actually finding these species, though, is a difficult task. Habitat is being lost from some areas at an alarming rate, and climate change is exacerbating already harsh conditions for some species. Amphibians, for example, are declining at a truly terrifying pace--it's estimated that Red-Listed species disappear at a phenomenal rate of 11.6 percent per year. This means that they would be gone from half of their habitats in about six years.

This reason, among others, is why researchers are more determined than ever when it comes to locating new species. There could be animals that are vanishing even before we know they actually exist. While researchers identify new species at a rate of about 18,000 per year, that's still too slow to close the gap.

Picking the top 10 new species each year helps highlight the ever-growing list of identified creatures. It also shows how important it is to actually preserve habitat and the myriad creatures that might live within certain disappearing areas.

"All of our hopes and dreams for conservation hinge upon saving millions of species that we cannot recognize and know nothing about," said Quentin Wheeler, founding director of the International Institute for Species Exploration, in a news release. "No investment makes more sense than completing a simple inventory to establish baseline data that tells us what kinds of plants and animals exist and where. Until we know what species already exist, it is folly to expect we will make the right decisions to assure the best possible outcome for the pending biodiversity crisis."

But how exactly do researchers actually decide which species make the list? They actually chose from more than 140 nominations, selecting species with weird or unusual features.

"We look for organisms with unexpected features or size and those found in rare or difficult to reach habitats," said Antonia Valdecasas, a biologist and research zoologist with Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, in a news release. "We also look for organisms that are especially significant to humans, those that play a certain role in human habitat or those that are considered a close relative."

So what species made the list? A tiny violet, a carnivorous harp-shaped sponge, the lesula monkey, a snail-eating snake, black-staining fungi, a tiny frog, an endangered shrub, a glowing cockroach, a hangingfly and a green lacewing all made the top ten.

The glowing cockroach in particular is unusual. It's known from a single specimen collected about 70 years ago from an area heavily impacted by the eruption of the Tungurahua volcano. Located in Ecuador, the species may already be extinct. The carnivorous sponge is also an interesting species. Located deep beneath the water of the northeast Pacific Ocean, it's shaped like a lyre and captures planktonic prey.

Want to see some amazing pictures of these animals? You can check them out here.