Amazing Images from Australia's 'Lost World'

Lost World

(Image credit: Tim Laman/National Geographic)

Earlier this year, scientists set out to explore a place where few humans have tread: the rain forest of Australia's Cape Melville Range. Surrounded by massive boulders, the mountain range has been largely cut off for millions of years and is home to at least six unique vertebrate species that have evolved insolation. Three of those species were discovered during this year' scientific trek. The project was funded by the National Geographic Expeditions Council.

Amazing Camouflage

The skin of the newly discovered leaf-tailed gecko blends in with the reptile's environment in Cape Melville.

Cape Melville Shade Skink

This unusually long-legged skink was discovered during the expedition. It has been named

Gecko

The leaf-tail gecko climbs across a mossy boulder. Its new scientific name is Saltuarius eximius.

Rock-Loving Frog

Researchers discovered a new frog species living in the Cape Melville Range. It lays its eggs and lives most of its life deep in boulder fields, where conditions are dark and moist.

Big-Eyed Beauty

The leaf-tail gecko's huge eyes are an adaptation to help it see in the dark cracks between boulders.

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Megan has been writing for Live Science and Space.com since 2012. Her interests range from archaeology to space exploration, and she has a bachelor's degree in English and art history from New York University. Megan spent two years as a reporter on the national desk at NewsCore. She has watched dinosaur auctions, witnessed rocket launches, licked ancient pottery sherds in Cyprus and flown in zero gravity. Follow her on Twitter and Google+.