Kaya, possum fingers reporter Peter de Kruijff here.
Recently I learned about some New Guinea marsupials that to Western science had only been known previously from old fossils.
One of those species was a pygmy long-fingered possum which, as its common name suggests, has some interesting forehands.
These tiny critters have a body like an Australian pygmy possum, with the stripy head of a sugar glider and a massive pair of "ring fingers".
Their ring fingers are about twice the size of their other digits, probably to help extract bugs from holes in trees.
Along with a newly described genus of glider, the pair make for an exciting expansion of known marsupials living in the remote forests of the Vogelkopf (Bird's Head) Peninsula.
Fair to say this is probably not the last of the cryptic species we'll see coming from this region as we learn more and more about the island's connection to Australia and marsupial evolution.
This past week, the science team also wrote a pair of technology stories on how the war in Iran might impact Australians.
Technology reporter James Purtill examined whether high fuel prices would push more people to electric vehicles, and cadet science report Amy Briggs looked at the logistics around shifting flight paths due to no-fly zones.
Over on The Science Show co-host Robyn Williams spoke to an asteroid chemist about high lead levels in Los Angeles.
And if you want to laugh and learn, check out the new comedy-science panel show Tonight At The Museum on iview.
The program, which also airs every Wednesday at 8pm on ABC TV, is hosted by the hilarious Alex Lee and worth a watch!
Each week four comedians join Lee in the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery to compete for a chance at having a personal object put on display.
Got thoughts on this week's newsletter? Or perhaps a photo of something you'd want to see in a natural science museum? If you want to get in touch, send in an email!
More ABC science and technology: Web | Facebook | YouTube | ABC iview
