Discovered the rare and extinct bat species

A large, extinct species of bat is found in a forest in Papua New Guinea, researchers reported on June 4.

Before being found, the bat of this species of Pharotis imogene has not been seen anywhere in the past 120 years, according to AFP.

'This species is thought to be extinct,' said Luke Leung, a researcher at the University of Queensland (Australia).

Newly discovered bat species.(Photo: wort.lu)

Two Queensland University students captured a child in mid-2012 while doing field work in a coastal province in Papua New Guinea.

The animal is unlike any other bat that survives on Earth and was later identified as the unseen breed since an Italian scientist caught the first baby in 1890.

Mr. Leung said more research is needed to determine if this bat is one of the few mammal species that can only be found in the southeastern peninsula of Papua New Guinea, or it lives in other areas too.

The bat has just been found to have large heads and is considered an endangered animal on the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Catherine Hughes, one of the two students who caught the quarter, said the findings show the biodiversity of Papua New Guinea.

'There are areas in Papua New Guinea that no researchers have come. The diversity of animals and ecology in this country is so unique that you can imagine that all species are present and not yet discovered , 'she told AFP.