CNN’s Call to Earth editorial series and Rolex’s Perpetual Planet initiative have partnered together to bring awareness and education to environmental challenges and inspire positive action. In a recent expedition to a dangerous and scientifically unexplored area in South America, a team of researchers faced drug traffickers and the threat of danger but made an exciting discovery. They found a new species of snake, which they named after iconic actor Harrison Ford.
Dr. Edgar Lehr, the lead author of the scientific paper describing the snake species, shared that during the perilous journey, he thought it would be cool to dedicate the snake species to Harrison Ford. The snake, named Tachymenoides harrisonfordi, was discovered in Peru’s Otishi National Park, an area known for its biodiversity but deemed unsafe for travelers by the US Department of State.
The researchers faced treacherous terrain and had to arrive by helicopter with supplies for several weeks. The region is near a center of coca production and narco-trafficking, making it even more dangerous. The team encountered abandoned camps, heard voices of other men, spotted a drone spying on them, and overheard conversations attempting to pinpoint their location. They requested a rescue pickup, which took four days due to storms, but they were eventually retrieved by a military helicopter.
Despite the dangers they faced, the team made several important discoveries. They located and named a previously unmapped waterfall, documented a lizard species unknown to science, and confirmed the new snake species through genetic sequencing. Tachymenoides harrisonfordi is believed to inhabit wetlands in high elevations across southern Peru.
Naming the snake after Harrison Ford is fitting not only because of the humorous reference to Indiana Jones’ fear of snakes but also because Ford is a dedicated conservationist. Ford serves as vice chair of the nonprofit Conservation International’s board of directors and expressed his excitement about the discovery in a statement to the nonprofit.
Ford said, “This discovery is humbling. It’s a reminder that there’s still so much to learn about our wild world.” He emphasized the need to protect the places that sustain life and mend our broken relationship with nature, as one million species are at risk of extinction.
Lehr, the lead scientist, hopes that naming new species after celebrities will raise awareness among the general public about the remaining unknown plants and animals in the world. He believes that this awareness will lead to increased funding for scientific research and ultimately aid in the protection of these species.