Arachnothelphusa rimba n. sp. – Photo provided by SFC
KUCHING (Aug 9): Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC) has revealed that two new freshwater crab species were discovered in Sarawak recently.
The crabs, which are of the gecarcinucid freshwater crab genus Arachnothelphusa, were discovered in the Lanjak Entimau Wildlife Sanctuary and Bako National Park, respectively.
With the discovery of the two new species, Sarawak has at least 51 freshwater crab species that have been described while the two new crabs have been identified as the “Arachnothelphusa rimba n. sp.” And “Arachnothelphusa bako n. sp”.
“The discovery of the new species were made by a joint survey team comprising scientists from SFC and the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, National University of Singapore (NUS),”
“We are very honoured and proud to be able to share the discovery of two new species of crabs from the Totally-protected Areas (TPAs) in Sarawak under the Rimba platform,” added SFC chief executive officer Zolkipli Mohamad Aton in a press release issued by SFC today.
For the record, the Research for Intensified Management of Bio-Rich Areas of Sarawak (Rimba-Sarawak ) is initiated by SFC as an international collaborative platform.
The main intention of Rimba was to open up Sarawak’s TPAs to international scientists who have the necessary expertise to conduct research and use the findings to help Sarawak better manage its parks, as well as to train and equip young scientists.
“Since 2015 to July 2021, 19 memorandum of understandings (MOUs) have been signed with international renowned institutions with interesting results and findings,” said Zolkipli.
Meanwhile Prof Dr Peter Ng, the collaborator from NUS who made the discovery said that the discovery of two beautiful new species of tree-climbing crabs is a testimonial to the fantastic animal life still present in the verdant forests of Sarawak.
“The Sarawak government and SFC must be complimented, not just for conserving this biodiversity but also facilitating the discovery through working with their regional collaborators!” said Ng.