Green pit viper and other wild new species found hidden deep inside ‘treasure trove’ cave system
By Ben Cost
Published on April 9, 2026.
A survey by UK conservation charity Fauna & Flora and Cambodia’s Ministry of Environment has discovered 11 species new to science, including pit vipers, snails, and other unique critters. The team surveyed over 64 caves across 10 limestone hills in the Karst landscape in Western Cambodia's Battambang Province between 2023 and 2025. The newly discovered species include a highly venomous emerald pit viper, geckos, two micro-snails and two millipedes. The study also revealed that each of Cambodia's "karst areas" are a "laboratory of natural selection and evolution" that serve as a laboratory for evolution. The discovery could help scientists identify the driving forces behind these species' evolution and potentially help protect them.
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