Many animals declared ‘extinct’, but some of those animals have been ‘rediscovered,’ according to Mother Nature Network (MNN). These species are called Lazarus Taxon, in paleontology, a Lazarus Taxon is a Taxon that disappears for one or more periods from the fossil record, only to appear again later.  The following animals are just 8 of those animal species:

1. Coelacanth   

“Coelacanth are an ancient order of fish believed to have gone extinct at the end of the Cretaceous period,” according to MNN. The Cretaceous period was about 65 million years ago. This fish was rediscovered in 1938 off the east coast of Africa.

2. Bermuda Petrel     

“The dramatic rediscovery of the Bermuda Petrel has become one of the most inspiring stories in the history of nature conservation. Believed extinct for 330 years, the birds had not been seen since the 1620s. Then, in 1951, 18 nesting pairs were found on remote rocky islets in Castle Harbor. Even so, they are still battling extinction today with a global population just over 250 individuals,” reported bicsecns.wordpress.com.

3. Chacoan Peccary     

“The Chacoan Peccary, a species that resembles a pig but cannot legally be domesticated, was first described in 1930 based only on fossil records, no true sightings, and was believed to be extinct. But in 1975, this theory was proved to be false when the Chacoan Peccary was sighted in Chaco region of Paraguay. Today there are around 3,000 known individuals,” stated worldlandtrust.org

4. Lord Howe Island stick insect    

Sometimes known as “land lobsters” or “walking sausages” this insect is considered the rarest insect in the world. “Believed extinct since 1930 after being wiped off its only known native habitat on Lord Howe Island, the enormous insect was rediscovered in 2001 when fewer than 30 individuals were found living underneath a single shrub on the small islet of Ball’s Pyramid, the world’s tallest and most isolated sea stack,” stated MNN

5. Monito Del Monte     

MNN reported, “The Monito Del Monte is a remarkable marsupial believed to have been extinct about for 11 million years until one was discovered in thick bamboo in the southern Andes.”

6. La Palma giant lizard    

“This lizard was extinct for 500 years before it was rediscovered in 2007. One was found in the La Palma region of the Canary Islands,” reported arkive.org, “The lone discovered individual had an estimated age of 4 years old and was about a foot long. New expeditions to the area are planned in hopes of finding a breeding population. “

7. Takahe  

The Takahe is a flightless bird that used to be native to New Zealand before they were pronounced extinct. “However, after a carefully planned search effort, the bird was rediscovered in 1948 near Lake Anau. This rare, odd-looking bird remains endangered today, with only 225 individuals remaining,” According to MNN.

8. Cuban Solenodon   

This is an extremely rare species that has only been caught 37 times in the wild. No individuals were found from 1890 to 1974 until the Cuban solenodon was most recent sighted in 2003.