--- title: "Biologists Are Somehow Discovering a Ton of New Species in Quarantine" description: "While working from home during the ongoing global pandemic, biologists have plenty of time — and they're discovering new insect species left and right." date: "2020-06-22" modified: "2020-06-22" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/biologists-discovering-new-species-quarantine" categories: - "Biology" - "Science & Energy" tags: - "biology" - "coronavirus" - "covid19" - "insects" - "the digest" --- # Biologists Are Somehow Discovering a Ton of New Species in Quarantine ![While working from home during the ongoing global pandemic, biologists have plenty of time — and they're discovering new insect species left and right.]() *\Image: Thomas Shahan\* ## Insects Close Up Biologists: They're just like us. Like everyone else, they've had to work from home during the ongoing global pandemic. And like everyone else, they've had more time on their hands than ever before. Which is how, with the help of nothing more sophisticated than a microscope, they're still discovering new insect species left and right, as [*Wired* reports](). Lisa Gonzalez, assistant entomology collection manager at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles, turned her home into a lab and began the lengthy, time-consuming task of going through massive collections of insects. ## Home Lab It's an especially lengthy process since she didn't have access to sophisticated DNA apparatus that could make identifying new species easier. Instead, she had to rely on old-school science — by looking at the various insects' features under a microscope. Her co-worker Brian Brown alone managed to discover nine species of small flies using a larger stereoscope from work — and a microscope he found on craigslist. "We can’t go into the lab right now, so we are back to identifying things with microscopes and looking for characteristics that are difficult to see," Brown told Wired. "These time-consuming tasks are confronted with people who have a lot of time." ## No Distractions "When you first start this work-at-home thing, you think, 'This is great because there are no distractions, and I can whip out a dozen papers,'" Brown explained to the website. "But it’s amazing how having a place to go to work focuses your efforts and attention." Their discoveries also highlight how many more species there are still out there to be discovered. "We do have incredible diversity and new species living under our noses,” Gonzalez told *Wired*. "That’s something most people don’t realize." **READ MORE:** [Stuck at Home, Scientists Discover 9 New Insect Species]() \[*Wired*\] **More on small critters:** *[Study: More Than 500 Vertebrates Poised To Go Extinct]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()