If you work in an office, like me, it’s easy to go through most of the day only interacting with other humans. But all it takes is a walk in the park to see that we are just one of the many animals that walk this Earth. Ants crawl out of cracks in the sidewalk, songbirds flit between tree branches and, if you’re unlucky, yellow jackets show up to steal a sip of your iced tea.
Some animals, like squirrels and pigeons, have become all-to-familiar. But, others have evolved and thrived in environments rarely seen by human eyes — the depths of the ocean and remote swaths of the Amazon Rainforest.
Even in the midst of what scientists are calling the sixth mass extinction, caused by anthropogenic climate change, the world is teeming with life. Researchers encounter undiscovered species and describe them to their peers in academic papers about 8,000 times per year, according to one estimate.
The following list is not comprehensive. Instead, this is a list of a few of the best looking and, of course, most charismatic new animals discovered in 2023.
