This creature has been lost to science for over 80 years. Now, a team may have found it

By Stephanie Bailey, CNN

Updated 4:23 AM ET, Fri August 27, 2021

Jessie the scent detection dog and her team are searching for <a href="https://www.rewild.org/lost-species/de-wintons-golden-mole" target="_blank">De Winton's golden mole</a>, a tiny mammal lost to science for 84 years. The mole is part of conservation group Re:wild's top 25 'Most Wanted Lost Species' <a href="https://www.rewild.org/lost-species" target="_blank">list</a>. South Africa's Endangered Wildlife Trust partnered with Re:wild to use new detection techniques to hunt for the creature, including DNA analysis and dogs like Jessie. <strong>Click through to learn more about De Winton's mole and other rediscovered species.</strong>
Photos: The 'most wanted' species rediscovered in the wild
Jessie the scent detection dog and her team are searching for De Winton's golden mole, a tiny mammal lost to science for 84 years. The mole is part of conservation group Re:wild's top 25 'Most Wanted Lost Species' list. South Africa's Endangered Wildlife Trust partnered with Re:wild to use new detection techniques to hunt for the creature, including DNA analysis and dogs like Jessie. Click through to learn more about De Winton's mole and other rediscovered species.
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<strong>De Winton's golden mole</strong>: The moles create these burrows in the sand -- swimming underneath sand dunes with the help of an oily secretion that lubricates their fur and gives them a shine, which led to the name "golden" mole. Because they live underground, golden moles are completely blind, but can detect prey using advanced navigation abilities. Their habitat in South Africa is under threat from large-scale mining operations.
Photos: The 'most wanted' species rediscovered in the wild
De Winton's golden mole: The moles create these burrows in the sand -- swimming underneath sand dunes with the help of an oily secretion that lubricates their fur and gives them a shine, which led to the name "golden" mole. Because they live underground, golden moles are completely blind, but can detect prey using advanced navigation abilities. Their habitat in South Africa is under threat from large-scale mining operations.
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<strong>Sierra Leone crab</strong>: Not seen since 1955, this crab was <a href="https://www.rewild.org/press/found-rainbow-hued-land-dwelling-sierra-leone-crab-lost-to-science-for-66" target="_blank">rediscovered</a> last month near Sugar Loaf Mountain in a national park in Sierra Leone. It is the eighth species to be found on Re:wild's list. With its purple claws, the Sierra Leone crab is colorful -- but doesn't spend much time in water. Instead, it lives between rock crevices, burrows in trees, and in the ground. Pierre A. Mvogo Ndongo, a researcher at the University of Douala in Cameroon, spent three weeks searching for the crab, following leads based on interviews with local community members.
Photos: The 'most wanted' species rediscovered in the wild
Sierra Leone crab: Not seen since 1955, this crab was rediscovered last month near Sugar Loaf Mountain in a national park in Sierra Leone. It is the eighth species to be found on Re:wild's list. With its purple claws, the Sierra Leone crab is colorful -- but doesn't spend much time in water. Instead, it lives between rock crevices, burrows in trees, and in the ground. Pierre A. Mvogo Ndongo, a researcher at the University of Douala in Cameroon, spent three weeks searching for the crab, following leads based on interviews with local community members.
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<strong>Wallace's giant bee</strong>: Here, an expedition team member examines an arboreal termite mound containing the world's first rediscovered Wallace's giant bee and her nest. The nest was found in a tree about eight feet off the ground in a patch of forest in the north of Indonesia, where deforestation threatens its habitat. The bee has been lost to science since 1981 and was found by an independent search team in <a href="https://rewild.org/press/worlds-largest-bee-found" target="_blank">early 2019</a>. After rediscovery, the team initiated talks to look for Wallace's giant bee in other locations and to implement conservation action.
Photos: The 'most wanted' species rediscovered in the wild
Wallace's giant bee: Here, an expedition team member examines an arboreal termite mound containing the world's first rediscovered Wallace's giant bee and her nest. The nest was found in a tree about eight feet off the ground in a patch of forest in the north of Indonesia, where deforestation threatens its habitat. The bee has been lost to science since 1981 and was found by an independent search team in early 2019. After rediscovery, the team initiated talks to look for Wallace's giant bee in other locations and to implement conservation action.
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<strong>Wallace's giant bee</strong>: This is one of the first images of a living Wallace's giant bee. It is the world's largest knowing living bee species -- approximately four times larger than a European honey bee (shown here as a composite for comparison). In 1858, British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace discovered the giant bee on his last day exploring Bacan, a tropical Indonesian island. He described the bee as "a large, black wasp-like insect, with immense jaws like a stag beetle." Despite its size, Wallace's giant bee was not seen again until 1981.
Photos: The 'most wanted' species rediscovered in the wild
Wallace's giant bee: This is one of the first images of a living Wallace's giant bee. It is the world's largest knowing living bee species -- approximately four times larger than a European honey bee (shown here as a composite for comparison). In 1858, British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace discovered the giant bee on his last day exploring Bacan, a tropical Indonesian island. He described the bee as "a large, black wasp-like insect, with immense jaws like a stag beetle." Despite its size, Wallace's giant bee was not seen again until 1981.
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<strong>Wallace's giant bee</strong>: Here, natural history photographer Clay Bolt takes the first ever photos of a living Wallace's giant bee at her nest, found in an active termite mound in the Moluccas islands of Indonesia. The female giant bee makes her nest in the mounds by lining it with sticky tree resin to protect it from termites.