A snail-eating turtle found in a food market and a bat that would not look out of place in a Star Wars film are among 115 new species discovered in the Greater Mekong region.

A report from conservation charity WWF reveals three new mammals, 11 amphibians, two fish, 11 reptiles and 88 plants were found by scientists in Cambodia, Laos, Burma, Thailand and Vietnam in 2016.

They include an extremely rare crocodile lizard, two species of mole living among a network of streams and rivers and a vibrantly coloured frog which is one of five new species discovered in the same forest in northern Vietnam.

The snail-eating turtle was not discovered in a river or forest but in a market in north-east Thailand, having been caught in a nearby canal by shopkeepers.

The mountain horseshoe bat was found in the evergreen forests of Laos and Thailand, and has a horseshoe-shaped facial structure reminiscent of characters from the famous cantina scene in Star Wars, WWF said.

Many of the new finds are already threatened by habitat destruction, the creation of new infrastructure, poaching and the illegal wildlife trade, the conservation charity warned.

Stuart Chapman, WWF regional representative for Greater Mekong, said the discovery of "more than two new species a week, and 2,500 in the past 20 years, speaks to how incredibly important the Greater Mekong is".

He added: "The species in the Greater Mekong deserve protection from unscrupulous collectors who are willing to pay thousands of dollars or more for the rarest, most unique and most endangered species."

Illegal wildlife markets in the region operated "with impunity in open view" so it was critical that governments improved enforcement against poaching and closed the markets, he said.

Among the new species documented in the report are:

:: A mountain horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus monticolus), found in the forests of mountainous Laos and Thailand. It took 10 years to determine it was a new species, with a horseshoe-shaped facial structure, known as a noseleaf.

:: A Vietnamese crocodile lizard (Shinisaurus crocodilurus vietnamensis), which lives in freshwater and forest habitats of south China and northern Vietnam. It is threatened by habitat destruction, coal mining and collection for pets and as few as 200 could remain in Vietnam. A comic-strip character has been created to explain to children the importance of protecting it.

:: A snail-eating turtle (Malayemys isan), identified in a market in north-east Thailand. It is threatened by infrastructure, such as dikes and dams, and needs to be protected under Thai law, conservationists said.

:: Two moles (Euroscaptor orlovi and Euroscaptor kuznetsovi), which were discovered in a network of streams and rivers in northern Vietnam. It is thought they can maintain stable populations and escape poachers because they live underground in protected areas.

:: A vibrantly coloured frog (Odorrana Mutschmanni), which is threatened by quarrying for cement and road construction. The frog's "karst" forest home needs new protection, WWF said.

:: A loach (Schistura kampucheensis) fish from Cambodia with striking black and brown stripes on its elongated body.

:: A frog and four plant species from Burma (Myanmar) which is opening up to scientific exploration, with expectations it could be home to hundreds of undiscovered species.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.