North Highland Forest Trust (NHFT) said the species was important to rare insects and a key component in healthy wild habitats.

BBC: Bid to boost 'charismatic' tree

The site is critical for the survival of several species of endangered waterbirds, to which the key threat is large-scale egg and chick collection by villagers.

UNESCO: OFFICE IN PHNOM PENH

Thus it may be the key which explains how prions are able to jump so effectively across the species barrier.

BBC: Prions damage brain tissue

"A key finding of our analysis was that the most highly threatened species tend to relatively cheap to save on account of their small range sizes, such as the Razo lark, which lives on the island of Razo in the Cape Verde islands, " said Mr McCarthy.

BBC: Science & Environment

By analysing where these differences occur in the animals' genomes, it is possible to get an insight into the two species' histories - the timing of key events in their evolution.

BBC: NEWS | Science/Nature | Evolution's human and chimp twist