Researchers Discover Three New Species of Mini 'Dragon' In Andes

Researchers have discovered three more species of the woodlizard genus that are native to South America and Panama. The new species were discovered in Andean cloud forests of Ecuador and Peru.

Researchers noted differences between the new lizards and museum specimens and, with the help of DNA analysis, were able to classify the lizards as three distinct species. The newly identified species are yet to be described.

"During the last few years we doubled the number of known species of woodlizards, showing that the diversity of these conspicuous reptiles had been underestimated," Dr. Torres-Carvajal, research team leader at the Museo de Zoologia QCAZ in Ecuador, said in a statement.

The latest findings bring the total number of known woodlizard species up to 15. Researchers added that the discovery of several new species at once is likely due to their carrying out fieldwork in areas that were "poorly explored."

"That more than half of the diversity of a group ... has been discovered in recent years should be heard by people in charge of conservation and funding agencies," added Torres-Carvajal.

The findings were published in the journal ZooKeys.