It often happens with new species discoveries that the new animal was not what was being searched for in the first place, as happened here with the new rodent being found while doing studies on the Philippine eagle. I predict that many cryptids are going to be uncovered in this way in the future, with forestry workers or biologists studying the area or known animals, and happening across quite another creature altogether.

I feel this spin off effect is of great importance. You might not get a whole lot of mainstream interest into searching for, say, hairy hominids, but you’re likely to have a good chance of getting it for studying habitats or new or endangered animals. Every new discovery like this, no matter how small, that gets scientific funding into studying an area holds potentially enormous benefits for uncovering more cryptids.

A Synopsis of the Mammalian Fauna of the Philippine Islands