Article content

A newly discovered cave-dwelling species of insect found in B.C. could be a survivor from the last ice age, scientists say.

Haplocampa wagnelli, the arthropod found in a limestone cave near Port Alberni on Vancouver Island, is about three to four millimetres long, with six legs, no eyes and a whitish, almost transparent colour.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Newly discovered insect found in Vancouver Island caves could be a survivor from ice age Back to video

Alberto Sendra, lead author of a study published in the journal Subterranean Biology on Tuesday, said the little bug’s existence opens up possibilities of how species survive in different climates and conditions.

“This is a very intriguing species because it looks like it lived underground in caves — for more or less a long time,” Sendra said in an interview.

“This means they can survive in the glacial period. And this is very remarkable because there are no examples of species that live in subterranean areas so far up north.”

Sendra, a professor of animal biology at the University of Alcala in Madrid, said there is a possibility the insect migrated north from the United States and settled in the caves in Vancouver.