"Discovered, Described, and Eaten"...

.. was the heading Odious sent me referring to this New Scientist article about a new creature form the ever- surprising and fruitful mountains of Laos.

"It was for sale on a table next to some vegetables," says conservation biologist Robert Timmins, "and I knew immediately it was something I had never seen before." People in the Khammouan region of Laos know of the species, and prepare it by roasting it on a skewer..."

The most surprising thing about the new rodent is that it is not closely related to any living species, and may be close to the root of divergence of Old and New world species.

Now let's just hope the Chinese don't eat them all for medicine...

Thanks also to Cronaca.