assignment 1

BIL 107: Assignment 1 Spring 2026

Due: Tuesday, Feb. 3, 11:59pm, in Blackboard

Your goal for this assignment is to explore a recent exciting discovery in biodiversity, either a recently discovered extant species (extant = alive today), or a recent fossil discovery that represents something new to science. It can be any kind of species, but for full credit you will need to address the 8 questions below. Extra credit will also be possible, but only if you explore a more unusual discovery. More details below.

First thing to do: Find an account of a new species discovery (fossil or extant) in the mainstream media (=MSM). It should be reputable. It should be published in the last five years. New York Times has an excellent science section that describes all the big breakthroughs, but other print media are also good sources. TV/video news sources usually have less information, and will be harder to work with. You can access NYT and many other MSM through Richter Library. Why the MSM? Your species should be an exciting discovery. The MSM are more likely to have a story on something perceived as exciting. Dont forget about the mainstream in MSM it should be a source that is familiar to an average person. Its easy to find new species announcements in obscure science/conservation sources please dont use these.

Next thing to do: Trace down the original research article that describes your species or fossil. Your MSM article may give the reference, or it may just mention an author, or a journal. Try to read at least the abstract, and look at some figures. Its possible that the discovery is so new and so exciting that it hasnt been officially published yet. Thats ok, but you need to be sure thats true before you state it.

Third thing to do: Provide information for the following eight items. You do not need to write a paper. You can answer them in a numbered list.

1. What is the name of the MSM where you found your article? Give a link to your article. It really does need to be mainstream something a regular person might read.

2. Give the citation for the research article describing the species. Use the format under Journals on this site: If the work has not been publish yet, note that and say why you think so.

3. Scientific name of species. Its unlikely that it has not yet been named, but if thats the case, state that.

4. What lineage does it belongs to? That is, what are its closest known relatives? For example, is it an animal? Is it a vertebrate? An arthropod? A cetacean? Be as precise and as informative as you can.

5. For extant species: where does the species live? What can you say about its geographic distribution and its ecology? For extinct species: where was it found? How old is it? Can you say anything about its distribution and ecology?

6. New species are discovered all the time. Most of them get ignored by the MSM. Why did this particular new discovery get covered? What is exciting about it? For example, if its a fossil, does it tell us something new about the history of life on Earth? If it is extant, is it surprising that it hadnt been discovered earlier? In short, WHY IS THIS COOL?!

7. How was it discovered and who discovered it? What is the evidence that it is a new species?

8. What is still not known about this species?

Finally: You need to turn this is to Blackboard by 11:59PM on Tuesday, Feb. 3. It will be worth 10 points. Late assignments will not be accepted.

Extra credit opportunity! You will get two points of extra credit if:

No more than one other student in the class use the same discovery that you use.

You answer the 8 questions above to a high standard.