And most of them are still undiscovered
(NEWSER) - Humanity shares the planet with roughly 8.7 million species, most of them still undiscovered, according to a new study. Researchers used complex mathematical models to tackle a question that has long puzzled scientists, identifying numerical patterns in data from 1.2 million known species, excluding viruses and microorganisms, reports the Washington Post . Previous estimates ranged from 3 million to 100 million species. Some 86% of terrestrial species and 91% of marine species are still unknown, the researchers believe. More»