LOST LANDS
![](https://tds-images.thedailystar.net/upload/gallery/image/arts/land_3.jpg)
We live in an almost magical era when we are able to explore other planets, comets and the bits and pieces of vast outer space. We take it for granted that our earth has been extensively mapped, and that there is nothing left to discover. On the contrary, in our own home turf, there are 'lost' places discovered almost every year – never previously set foot on. These lost edens harbour life that is almost alien. Here are such places that have excited scientists and explorers alike in the past few years.
Melville Range, Australia: This rainforest on top of a mountain range in a remote part of northeastern Australia was cut off from the rest of the world for millions of years. The miles of mammoth sized boulders made it almost impossible to reach the peak. It was only last year that a crew of explorers decided to mount the mysterious unknown with a helicopter. They found new species which persisted for millions of years without going extinct. Perhaps most noteworthy is a relatively large sized gecko with protruding eyes, long legs and a signature tail that looks exactly like a leaf. They camouflage so well with the surrounding that it wouldn't be surprising if the entire rainforest was built out of these geckos.
Mount Victoria, Palawand Highlands, Philippines: This almost unexplored mountain in the highlands of central Philippines came into spotlight in 2000 after two extremely bored Christian missionaries tried to scale the summit, but got lost and were found 13 days later. Following their failure, in 2007, a team of hikers travelled through the lowland forest and found large carnivorous pitcher plants – big enough to catch not only insects, but creatures as large as rats and small monkeys too. The pitcher plant in question then came to be recognised as the largest one discovered so far. If that isn't trippy enough, they also found never before seen pink ferns and blue mushrooms. Perhaps that explains what those missionaries were up to for those 13 days.
Bosavi Crater, Papa New Guinea: This kilometre deep crater is what remains of a volcano that last erupted almost 200,000 years ago. It was only as recent as 2009 that a group of scientists climbed into the crater, to discover creatures you would expect out of any typical role-playing video game. They found a species of a giant rat – almost 32 inches long – that is surprisingly not afraid of humans. This rat is the same size of a full grown adult cat, and would probably make an interesting pet. The group of scientists also found fanged frogs (let's nickname it 'frocula') and a fish that grunts out of its swim bladder, probably complaining about life.
![](https://tds-images.thedailystar.net/upload/gallery/image/arts/snake_1.jpg)
Son Doong Cave, Vietnam: Deep inside the dense jungle of Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park, lies a cave which was initially discovered by a man in 1991, trying to shelter himself from the rain. Even though people lived miles away from the cave, they avoided it because of the loud sounds and roars coming out of it (caves tend to get lonely too). In 2009, curious explorers – with the help of the man mentioned earlier – explored the cave for the first time. As a matter of fact, it soon became to be known as the largest cave ever found. It is so big that it has its own 150 individual caves, lakes, rivers, a jungle as well as its own weather system. Although initially manned by a few people, a company is recently providing tours for people who want to be like Bruce Wayne and has USD 3000 to spare.
Comments