Australian researchers have recently found more than 1,000 new species in the underground of the Australian Outback and estimate around 3,500 beneath.

The researchers, who were looking for invertebrates in underground cavities beneath the river, instead found spiders, beetles, worms and other small crustacean creatures in the holes.

"When the discovery was first made, we didn't really believe it," said team leader Andy Austin, professor of biology at the Australian Centre for Evolutionary Biology & Biodiversity at the University of Adelaide. "We thought maybe it was unique to just three or four locations."

According to Austin, some these small invertebrates that were in aquatic environments may have taken refuge in subterranean environments when Australia, which was once like a rainforest, began drying out around 15 million years ago.

According to researchers, finding the species will help in better understanding the biodiversity under the desert and its origins at the same time protect these creatures. With Australia's active mining industry, the mining companies should prove that their work will not affect the survival of these species.

Austin said that many mining companies work actively with the researchers so that they understand the environment they're drilling into.

Thousands of invertebrates are still likely to be discovered not only in the Australian Outback, but also in other continents, like Africa and South America, Austin said.

"If you start multiplying this on a global basis there's likely to be massive diversity that will be uncovered in coming decades," he said.