This means that the species, named Crocidura stanleyi, is one of the world's smallest mammals. The researchers were very excited when they caught a specimen that had fallen into a red bucket set out as a trap for small animals.
I will never forget that moment, says Yonas Meheretu, a researcher at SLU.
He says he immediately saw that there was something special about the little animal. The species had been seen once before, but the discoverer, American Bill Stanley, died of cardiac arrest before he could find out whether it was really a new species. Now the species has been named after him. According to Meheretu, the discovery is of great significance.
Identifying new species is crucial to understanding the unique wildlife of the Ethiopian highlands, he says.
