‘Large’ creature with black eyes found at mine and discovered as new species
On a small island in Papua New Guinea, a “large” creature moved around a mining site, its black eyes scanning the surroundings. Something about the “matte” animal caught the attention of passing scientists — and for good reason.
It turned out to be a new species.
Fred Kraus visited Misima Island as part of a larger project to survey the region’s reptile diversity. His efforts were focused on a group of tree-dwelling snakes with a historically “confusing” classification system, he wrote in a study published April 4 in the peer-reviewed journal Zootaxa.
During his visit, Kraus found several “large” snakes with white chins, the study said. Intrigued, he took a closer look at the animals, compared them with other known species and soon realized he’d discovered a new species: Dendrelaphis atra, or the atra tree snake.
Atra tree snakes are considered “moderately large,” reaching about 4 feet, 1 inch in length, the study said. They have black eyes and “matte black” coloring.
A photo shows the coloring of the new species. Kraus said he named the new species after the Latin word for black, “atra,” because of its coloring.
Unlike other related species, atra tree snakes darken in color as they age, Kraus said. A smaller, younger snake had a “gray brown” hue while older, larger snakes were “uniformly black.”
Atra tree snakes were found around villages and gardens, on a rainforest ridge and at “severely degraded human-modified habitats at a mine site, including alongside a building,” Kraus wrote. Much about the species’ lifestyle remains unknown.
So far, the new species has only been found on Misima Island off the southeastern coast of mainland Papua New Guinea, the study said. A video shared on YouTube in 2020 by TVWAN Online shows the island.
The new species was identified by its size, coloring, scale pattern and genitalia. The study did not include a DNA analysis.
Kraus also discovered three more species of snakes, one each on Rossel Island, Sudest Island and Woodlark Island.
This story was originally published April 14, 2025 at 10:20 AM with the headline "‘Large’ creature with black eyes found at mine and discovered as new species."
