Papua New Guinea

A spectacular bird fauna includes many birds of paradise found nowhere else including the Raggiana Bird-of-paradise (eBird), the Ribbon-tailed Astrapia (ARKive WM), the Growling Riflebird (eBird), the Curl-crested Manucode (eBird), and Lawes' Parotia (eBird). Other endemic birds include the Fire-maned Bowerbird (eBird), Scheepmaker's Crowned Pigeon (ARKive WM), the Gray-naped Pheasant-pigeon (eBird), the Knob-billed Fruit-dove (eBird), the Superb Pitta (ARKive WM), the Brown-headed Paradise Kingfisher (eBird), the Blue-eyed Cockatoo (WPT), the Purple-bellied Lory (WPT), the New Britain Boobook (eBird), the New Britain Goshawk (WWF), the Manus Fantail (eBird), and the Odedi (Markus Lagerqvist). Endemic genera include the Blue Bird-of-paradise (eBird), the Bougainville Honeyeater (eBird), and the Bismarck Honeyeater (eBird).

Mammals unique to PNG include the Huon Tree Kangaroo (ARKive WM), the Tenkile (TCA), the Lowland Tree Kangaroo (PapuaWeb WM), Macleay's Forest Wallaby (Ecology Asia WM pdf), Bulmer’s Fruit Bat (EDGE WM), the New Britain Masked Flying Fox (ARKive WM), the New Guinea Big-eared Bat (BHL), a horseshoe bat Rhinolophus mcintyrei (p. 163 of PNG LNG pdf), the Fly River Woolly Bat (ResearchGate), the Bronze Quoll (Google Books), Woolley's Three-striped Dasyure (p. 127 of PNG LNG pdf), the Painted Ringtailed Possum (Pavel German), the Woodlark Cuscus (EDGE), the Admiralty Spotted Cuscus (iNaturalist), Tate’s Striped Possum (IUCN), the Fly River Water Rat (iNaturalist), the Lesser Tree Mouse (p. 143 of PNG LNG pdf), the Manus Island Mosaic-tailed Rat (BHL), the Eastern White-eared Giant Rat (iNaturalist), and the Giant Bandicoot (Google Books).

Reptiles known only from PNG include the Mount Rossel Forest Snake (Bishop Museum WM), the Striped Crown Snake (iNaturalist), the Bismarck Sharp-nosed Blindsnake (Bishop Museum WM), the Normandy Island Beaked Blindsnake (Reptile Database), the Milne Bay Ground Snake (Bishop Museum WM), the East Papuan Keelback (Bishop Museum WM), the Mussau Monitor (Species New to Science), the Papua Forest Dragon (Bishop Museum WM), a crocodile skink Tribolonotus parkeri (Species New to Science), the Bumblebee Gecko (Mongabay), the Slender Litter Skink (Bishop Museum WM), and Pritchard's Snake-necked Turtle (IUCN). Representing endemic genera are the Bismarck Ringed Python Bothrochilus (Reptile Database), the Bougainville Coral Snake Parapistocalamus (Britannica WM) and the Fojia Skink Fojia (Reptile Database).

A rich variety of endemic frogs includes the Torricelli Mountain Frog (Bishop Museum WM), Siegfried's Rainforest Frog (ARKive WM), the New Britain Land Frog (IUCN), Slater's Callulops Frog (Ecology Asia), the Michael Rainforest Frog (ARKive WM), the Milne Bay Mehely Frog (IUCN), the Alotau Land Frog (Bishop Museum WM), a cross frog Oreophryne ezra (ResearchGate), the Papua Big-eyed Tree Frog (figs. A & B at ResearchGate), the Rossell Tree Frog (Bishop Museum WM), Papurana waliesa (iNaturalist), and the Pomugu Wrinkled Ground Frog (ARKive WM). Endemic genera include Barygenys (Bishop Museum WM), Genyophryne (AMNH WM pdf) (iNaturalist), and the world's smallest frogs Paedophryne (iNaturalist) (PLOS).

Freshwater fish restricted to PNG include the Popondetta Blue-eye (rainbowfish), the Lake Kutubu Rainbowfish (ARKive WM), the Lake Wanam Rainbowfish (rainbowfish), the Bulolo Rainbowfish (rainbowfish), the Spinach Pipefish (Shoal), Allomogurnda insularis (FishBase), the gobies Stenogobius watsoni (FishBase) and , Glossogobius macrocephalus (GBIF), a loach goby Rhyacichthys novaeguineae (BHL), a blind sleeper goby Oxyeleotris caeca (WA Museum), the Kikori River Sole (BHL), the Pima Hardyhead (BHL), and a catfish Oloplotosus luteus (BHL). Endemic genera include the Kiunga Blue-eye (rainbowfish), the Peacock Gudgeon (FishBase), a glass perchlet Tetracentrum (BHL), and a worm goby Gymnoamblyopus (ResearchGate).

Endemic marine fish include the Leopard Epaulette Shark (ResearchGate), the Sailback Houndshark (BHL), the New Ireland Stingaree (FishBase), the Papuan Guitarfish (GBIF), the Vanderloos Angelfish (FishBase), the Papuan Blue Damselfish (iNaturalist), Collette’s Coralblenny (FishBase), Jessica's Spiny Basslet (reefbuilders), the Tiny New Guinea Longtail Dragonet (FishBase), the Forked Jawfish (FishBase), the Cat's Eye Cardinalfish (EurekAlert!), the Tiny Goby (FishBase), the Electric Shrimpgoby (FishBase), and the clingfish genera Protogobiesox (ResearchGate) and Unguitrema (OSF pdf) (GBIF).

Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing (ARKive WM) is the world's largest butterfly. Other endemic butterflies include Delias bornemanni (iNaturalist), Papilio weymeri (Papilionidae of the World), Graphium browni (Papilionidae of the World), Euploea doretta (Yale), Morphopsis meeki (odsfm.com) (iNaturalist), Platypthima leucomelas (iNaturalist), Taenaris butleri (iNaturalist), Phaedyma ampliata (iNaturalist), and the lycaenid genera Taxiarchis (Semantic Scholar) and Tennenta (Semantic Scholar). Moths known only from Papua New Guinea include a splendid ghost moth Aenetus albadamanteum (ResearchGate) and a swallowtail moth Cyphura laeensis (PIF).

Stemmocrypta antennata (Google Books) (UC Riverside) is the sole member of an endemic family of true bugs. Other endemic insects include the jewel beetles Calodema ribbei (coleoptera-atlas.com WM) and Petersonia shelleybarkeri (ResearchGate), the weevils Eupholus nickerli (Wikipedia) and Trigonopterus helios (ResearchGate), a flower beetle Ischiopsopha jamesi (flickr), a dung beetle Onthophagus rutriceps (GBIF), the longhorn beetles Rosenbergia denserugata (odsfm.com) and Potemnemus nylanderi (GBIF), a stalk-eyed fly Achias rothschildi (GBIF), the damselflies Macrocnemis gracilis (GBIF) and Argiolestes annulipes (p. 60 of Bishop Museum WM pdf), the dragonflies Diplacina fulgens (iNaturalist) and Microtrigonia sinuosa (p. 85 of Brachytron pdf), the ants Pheidole drogon (AntWiki) and Strumigenys yaleogyna (AntWiki), a bee Heterotrigona tricholoma (p. 4 of Semantic Scholar pdf), a stick insect Eurycantha horrida (ResearchGate), the leaf insects Rakaphyllium exsectum (ZooKeys) and Walaphyllium lelantos (GBIF), the katydids Ingrischia megacephala (GBIF) and Microsalomona brachyptera (GBIF), a monkey grasshopper Biroella rammei (SysTax WM), a cricket Gnominthus baitabagus (OSF), and a caddisfly Oecetis acuminata (NHM-London).

Other endemic invertebrates include the jumping spiders Tabuina varirata (Jumping Spiders) and Papuamyr omhifosga (ZooKeys), the harvestmen Zalmoxis adze (p. 9 of Sharma Lab WM pdf) and Strandibalonius yalomensis (GBIF), a velvet worm Paraperipatus novaebritanniae (BHL), a cave-dwelling freshwater crab Sendleria genuitei (GBIF), a cave-dwelling freshwater shrimp Jolivetya foresti (AToL Decapoda pdf), a crayfish Cherax papuanus (ARKive WM), and a freshwater mussel Westralunio albertisi (MUSSELp).

Endemic land snails include the Manus Green Tree Snail (Mongabay), Paryphantopsis misimensis (iNaturalist), Papustyla hindei (PNG Snails), Chloritis dentrecasteuxi (iNaturalist), Torresiropa paterivolans (Mongabay), Partula similaris (p. 5 of Univ. Michigan pdf), Ogeramua ogeramuensis (iNaturalist), Trochomorpha nigrans (GBIF), and Rhynchotrochus louisiadensis (flickr).

Endemic marine life includes the nudibranchs Mexichromis circumflavus (Sea Slug Forum WM) and Aegires petalis (Sea Slug Forum WM), a cone snail Conus hughmorrisoni (ResearchGate), and a black coral Blastopathes medusa (Species New to Science).

Orchids exclusive to PNG include Dendrobium engae (Orchids of NG), the night-flowering Bulbophyllum nocturnum (POWO), Epiblastus basalis (iNaturalist), Dryadorchis huliorum (IOPSE), Aglossorrhyncha lucida (Orchids of NG), Liparis ochrantha (Orchids of NG), and Calanthe cremeoviridis (Orchids of NG). Other endemic plants include the world's tallest banana Musa ingens (Plant Files), Saurauia taylorii (Naturalis pdf), Anthorrhiza echinella (ResearchGate), Hoya liddleana (ResearchGate), Rhododendron christianiae (BioLib), a cycad Cycas schumanniana (Cycad Pages WM), Etlingera grandiflora (IUCN), Alpinia stenobracteolata (p. 24 of PNG LNG pdf), Pleuranthodium corniculatum (ResearchGate), Nepenthes calcicola (ResearchGate), and Begonia sandaunensis (ResearchGate).

Trees known only from PNG include the Klinki Pine (ARKive WM), Helicia subcordata (PNGplants), Garcinia schraderi (PNGplants), Acronychia foveata (p. 45 of PNG LNG pdf), Hunga papuana (p. 155 of ResearchGate pdf), Terminalia archipelagi (PNGplants), Dillenia montana (flickr), Brachychiton carruthersii (PNGplants), Elaeocarpus finisterrae (PNGplants), and Eucalyptopsis alauda (IUCN). Endemic palms include Calyptrocalyx polyphyllus (PACSOA WM), Cyrtostachys bakeri (POWO), Ponapea hentyi (PACSOA WM), Hydriastele longispatha (PACSOA WM), and the endemic genus Brassiophoenix (POWO). Other endemic tree genera include Magodendron (POWO), Kairothamnus (ResearchGate), Dolianthus (Semantic Scholar) (twitter WM), Rhadinopsis (BHL), Rosselia (p. 187 of ResearchGate pdf), Papuadendron (BHL) (GBIF), Basisperma (GBIF), and Lamiodendron (NLA) (BHL).

Additional endemic vascular plant genera include an orchid Ophioglossella (Orchids of NG), Sahulia (ResearchGate), Anthorrhiza (Bihrmann's Caudiciforms), Sepikea (BHL), Ruthiella (fig. 22 at BHL), Lauterbachia (BHL), Jadunia (GBIF), Piora (GBIF), Decatoca (GBIF), and Rheopteris (Semantic Scholar),

Endemic fungi include Cetreliopsis papuae (IUCN WM) and Fissolimbus fallaciosus (ZOBODAT pdf). Endemic lichens include Sticta alpinotropica (IUCN) and Bunodophoron pinnatum (100 New Lichens WM). Endemic non-vascular plants include the mosses Orthothuidium curtisetum (GBIF) and Anomobryum hyalinum (GBIF) and the liverworts Schistochila undulatifolia (GBIF) (SLU WM pdf) and Lepicolea norrisii (GBIF).