New Mollusk Species Found in Philippines

By The Associated Press

MANILA, Philippines (AP) - A French-led marine expedition team believes it has discovered thousands of new species of mollusks and crustaceans around a Philippine island, officials and scientists said Monday.
 
Some 80 scientists, technicians, students and volunteers from 19 countries surveyed the waters around Panglao island, 390 miles southeast of Manila from 2004-05.
 
"Numerous species were observed and photographed alive, many for the first time, and it is estimated that 150-250 of the crustaceans and 1,500-2,500 of the mollusks are new species,'' said a statement from the expedition team, which was led by Philippe Bouchet of the French National Museum of Natural History.
 
"However, it requires a thorough comparison with all previously named species to ascertain if a novel species is indeed new to science,'' it added. "This is a slow and tedious process.''
 
On Monday, the Panglao Marine Biodiversity Project turned over to the Philippine National Museum more than a hundred holotypes or representative specimen of the rare finds, officials said.
 
The expedition team said its survey revealed over 1,200 species of decapod crustaceans - a group that includes crayfish, crabs, lobsters and shrimps - and some 6,000 species of mollusks.