Tag: gecko

Understanding Tokay Gecko Development: How Environment and Family Shape Captive Welfare

A recent study published in Herpetozoa offers valuable insights that could transform how we care for these lizards.

Tokay geckos are among the most recognisable and popular reptiles in the pet trade, celebrated for their vibrant colours and vocal nature. Despite their popularity and frequent breeding in captivity, many questions about how their early environment influences their development have remained unanswered.

A recent study published in the open-access journal Herpetozoa by Dr. Birgit Szabo of the University of Ghent has shed light on these critical factors, offering valuable insights that could transform how we care for these lizards.

When asked about what inspired this investigation, they explained:

“As a very popular pet, Tokay geckos are frequently bred in captivity. It was surprising to me how little we know about very basic environmental factors that can influence development. I am very passionate about improving captive conditions for reptiles and my study provides very important basic data.”

The research focused on both pre-natal factors, such as incubation temperature and humidity, and post-natal factors, specifically whether juveniles are raised in isolation or within a family group. Dr. Szabo monitored sixteen breeding pairs, tracking where females chose to lay their eggs and how the resulting thirty hatchlings grew over their first six months of life.

Captive-bred tokay gecko (*Gekko* *gecko*). Image credit: Birgit Szabo.

One of the most remarkable findings involved how temperature influences the sex of the geckos. Traditionally, Tokay geckos are understood to have a genetic sex-determination system with distinct sex chromosomes. However, the study revealed that higher incubation temperatures actually led to a higher proportion of male hatchlings.

Reflecting on this discovery, Dr. Szabo shared:

“I was most surprised about the effect of temperature on sex development. Tokay geckos are reported to possess sex chromosomes. Therefore, I did not expect that temperature would have an effect on sex development.

However, after consulting the literature I found that sex determination is quite labile in lizards, but this is a severely understudied area of research. So, I am quite excited to have found this effect and plan further research on this topic.”

Beyond sex ratios, incubation temperature also significantly affected developmental timing and physical size. Eggs kept at warmer temperatures had a shorter incubation period, yet they produced larger hatchlings with a greater snout-vent length. Interestingly, incubation humidity did not appear to have a noticeable impact on these physical outcomes.

Female tokay gecko curling around eggs attached to the cork back wall of the enclosure; Male next to one of his offspring; Tank set-up showing shelters on the back wall, branches, life plants and a water bowl. Image credit: Birgit Szabo.

The study also revealed that mother geckos actively chose nesting sites that offered warmer and less humid microclimates compared to other areas in the enclosure, demonstrating a preference for specific nesting conditions.

Managing such a detailed study was no small feat. Dr. Szabo noted,:

“The most challenging aspect was to set up the breeding and treatments after hatching. Tokay geckos are quite large lizards and need lots of space. Coordinating the different treatments under space limitations was quite the challenge.”

After hatching, the geckos were raised either alone or in family groups of varying sizes alongside their parents and siblings. Surprisingly, the post-natal social environment did not affect the young geckos’ growth, size, or body condition. Whether raised in isolation or in a busy family group, the juveniles grew at similar rates, suggesting that captive-bred Tokay geckos are highly adaptable in their early life stages.

These findings have direct implications for reptile husbandry, emphasising the need to provide captive reptiles with choices that replicate natural gradients. Dr Szabo remarked:

“A better understanding of the thermal and humidity requirements and preferences of reptiles is one of the most important aspects of the environment that is often suboptimal in active conditions.

I hope my research will highlight their importance and lead to improved enclosure design in the future.”

Ultimately, this study challenges long-held assumptions about reptile behaviour and social structures, proving that there is much more to these creatures than meets the eye. Dr. Szabo concluded:

“Reptiles are still viewed as asocial creatures but sociality exists in this animal group. Tokay geckos perform biparental care and protect both eggs and their offspring after hatching. Despite this knowledge, there is still much to learn about their social organisation especially in respect to welfare.”

Captive-bred tokay gecko (Gekko gecko). Videos taken by Dr. Birgit Szabo.

Original source:

Szabo B (2026) The influence of the pre- and post-natal environment on Tokay gecko (Gekko gecko, Squamata, Gekkonidae) development in captivity. Herpetozoa 39: 217-228. https://doi.org/10.3897/herpetozoa.39.e165454

Lost, Hidden, and Found: The Herpetofauna of Samar’s Karst Labyrinth

A recent field study to document reptile and amphibian diversity found in Samar Natural Park (SINP) and Samar Island unveils fascinating results.

Guest Blog Post by the Research Team of Samar Island’s Herpetofauna

In the darkness of the Samar rainforest, a flash of color stopped the research team in their tracks. Their headlamps illuminated a small shrub on a worn limestone trail, revealing a tiny pink snake. With a quiet sense of triumph, Yñigo del Prado readied his camera and leaned forward to photograph the coiled serpent within the branches of the shrub.

Although unknown to del Prado’s research team at the time, their rediscovery of the rare blindsnake Ramphotyphlops marxi would become one of the significant findings of the most recent comprehensive field study to document reptile and amphibian diversity found in Samar Natural Park (SINP) and Samar Island. Indeed, first recorded by the eminent zoologist Dioscoro Rabor in 1957 and unseen since, the snake is now a key highlight of the the survey, now published in the open-access journal ZooKeys.

*Ramphotyphlops marxi* – Marx’s worm snake. (Image credit: Yñigo del Prado).

“Samar Island is a biological frontier hiding in plain sight,” remarks Arvin Diesmos, a former curator in herpetology at the National Museum of the Philippines, and present senior director at the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity. He was part of an expedition team from the Herpetological Research Collection of the University of Santo Tomas to survey the biodiversity of Samar Island Natural Park.

The primary goal of the expedition was to generate updated and comprehensive data on the terrestrial vertebrate fauna—from amphibians and reptiles to birds and mammals—that aim to strengthen the scientific foundation for the nomination of SINP to the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The diverse team of biologists was assembled by UST Assistant Professor Mae Diesmos and head of UST–HRC, to spearhead the terrestrial faunal surveys, while project was designed by Professor Eric Zerrudo, also from UST, and the director of the Center for Conservation of Cultural Property and Environment in the Tropics.

Together with biologists from the University of the Philippines in Diliman and Los Banos campus, in close partnership with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Samar provincial government, the project undertook a month-long biodiversity survey of the karst rainforest of SINP – a ~333,339 hectare protected area of intact lowland forest over limestone and a Key Biodiversity Area in the Philippines.

Karst rainforest of SINP. (Image credit: Yñigo del Prado).

At an estimated area of ca 1,310,700 ha, Samar and the nearby island of Leyte count as one of the largest islands of the Philippines. While Samar has gradually experienced progressive decline in forest cover over the last couple of decades, its interior still houses one of the largest intact labyrinths of habitats spanning karst rainforest and cave systems.

“The reptiles and amphibians in limestone karst systems have evolved in remarkable ways. Every major survey [we] conducted reveals something new, something previously undetected just hiding under the woodworks. Which tells us that Samar remains one of the most important—and often understudied, biodiversity strongholds in the eastern region of the Philippines.”
Mae Diesmos

Though, perhaps “understudied” is an overstatement. A number of biological surveys have been conducted in SINP, as referenced in the article, with some of the extensive surveys dating back as early as the 1850s.

With the benefit of hindsight, the team integrated historical records into their paper, updating species names and distributions to match current classifications. This process effectively cleared up past confusion over identification. In addition, the larger taxon-based field biologists from UST and UP, allowed for more targeted sampling of several taxonomic groups. Increasing the sampling effort subsequently led to more extraordinary discoveries.

Case in point, the team found an additional 39 new records of reptiles and amphibians that bolstered the listing in SINP to a total of 79 species, and new distribution records of three species previously unknown from the island. And of course, there was the collection of the two specimens of R. marxi, whose existence had only been known from two historical records.

Dog-toothed cat snake. (Image credit: Yñigo del Prado).
Bornean keeled pit viper. (Image credit: Yñigo del Prado).
Philippine shrub snake. (Image credit: Yñigo del Prado).

Striped leaf gecko. (Image credit: Yñigo del Prado).

Acquiring this valuable data was by no means a simple task. The herpetology team was beset by the onset of the monsoon season, meaning that dry transect walks and even dry clothing were rare. The team also faced the strong currents and high rapids of the adjacent Ulot River as they moved from one site to another, and endured sandfly-infested campsites.

Ulot River Stream. (Image credit: Yñigo del Prado).

Encounters with local herpetofauna were always a joy. In the search for unique and cryptic species of lizards and snakes, the herpetology team relied on some tried and tested methods such as targeted microhabitat sampling of decaying logs, forest litter, and stream banks to look for fossorial species. Some methods were largely improvised; collapsible fishing poles became indispensable to shake down arboreal species or at the very least, encourage them to descend from the canopies.

Some species, however, had to be approached differently, as was the case for Platymantis bayani. The species is part of a larger complex of limestone frogs that could be found in karst formations in the Philippines, and each known species is unique to the location where it is found. On more than one occasion, the herpetology team had to search through overgrown limestone crevices; in others, the group descended into the depths of massive limestone caves in the dark to search for these elusive frogs.

*Platymantis bayani* – Walter’s limestone frog. (Image credit: Yñigo del Prado).

But Filipinos are nothing if resilient, as a local adage goes. Certainly, Mae Diesmos and her team had their work cut out for them. The officials of the Samar provincial government were notably also very thorough in their coordination and movement across study sites, to ensure the safety of the team. This highlights the importance of collaborative work between research institutions and local government units and stakeholders. Research is considerably more difficult without proper funding and local coordination.

This issue is not unique to Samar. Limited and precious funding to support scientific research remains a challenge to sustain biodiversity surveys across many islands and regions of the country. Much work remains to be done because numerous areas and habitats still lack detailed biodiversity surveys. Field biologists and conservationists have, for many decades now, been locked in a dizzying and (at times) disheartening race against habitat destruction and population decline of key species.

Semper’s forest dragon. (Image credit: Yñigo del Prado).

As more field studies continue, Samar and nearby islands will likely continue to reveal even more of its hidden biodiversity. An inspiring reminder to future researchers that even in the 21^st century, the rainforest of the Philippines still holds many scientific discoveries waiting to be made.

Original source:

Diesmos MLL, del Prado YLC, Kim PMM, Caguimbal NALE, Venturina REL, Lorenzo II AN, Diesmos AC (2026) Amphibians and reptiles of Samar Island Natural Park, Philippines, with an updated checklist, a rediscovery, and new records for Samar Island. ZooKeys 1269: 303-328. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1269.173854

For more articles on zoology, visit the ZooKeys website and follow the journal on BlueSky and Facebook.

Two New Gecko Species Discovered in Vietnam, One Named After Herpetologist Prof. Dr. Thomas Ziegler

Two new species of half leaf-fingered geckos have been discovered in Vietnam, one was named in honor of the renowned herpetologist Prof. Dr. Thomas Ziegler.

Guest blog post by Minh Duc Le

The half leaf-fingered geckos (Hemiphyllodactylus) are a diverse group with more than 70 recognized species and a distribution range from southern India and Sri Lanka, through Indochina and Southeast Asia, to the western Pacific region.

As a result of its cryptic lifestyle and small body size, its diversity had been neglected until a recent surge of integrative taxonomic research, which combines different lines of evidence, most importantly molecular and morphological data.

Over the last ten years, more than 60 members of the genus (~85% of its diversity) have been newly described. Vietnam is a hot spot for new species discoveries with at least 10 congeners uncovered in recent years, including H. banaensis, H. bonkowskii, H. cattien, H. dalatensis, H. lungcuensis, H. nahangensis, H. ngocsonensis, H. vanhoensis, H. yenchauensis, and H. zugi.

Male *Hemiphyllodactylus ziegleri*. Photo credit to Anh Van Pham.

A newly published paper in ZooKeys reveals another new species within Hemiphyllodactylus, Hemiphyllodactylus ziegleri, from Copia Nature Reserve, Son La Province, northwestern Vietnam.

The new species is currently known only from this protected area, established in 2002. Although its range is estimated at less than 50 km², the area has been experiencing severe habitat degradation, primarily as a result of road construction and timber logging.

The new species honours Prof. Dr. Thomas Ziegler, a world-class herpetologist and conservation biologist of Cologne Zoo and the University of Cologne, who has made remarkable contributions to biodiversity research and conservation in Southeast Asia, especially to its the herpetofauna. Prof. Ziegler was involved in the descriptions of seven Hemiphyllodactylus species from Vietnam.

In addition to his more than three decades of engagement in taxonomic and ecological studies – spanning lizards, snakes, turtles, salamanders, frogs, and other vertebrates and invertebrates – Prof. Ziegler has made substantial contributions across herpetology broadly.

More recently, he has actively developed in-situ and ex-situ conservation measures to safeguard some of Vietnam’s most endangered species, including the Crocodile Lizard (Shinisaurus crocodilurus), the Vietnamese Knobby Newt (Tylototriton vietnamensis), the Cat Ba Leopard Gecko (Goniurosaurus catbaensis), and the Vietnamese Pond Turtle (Mauremys annamensis).

As for Hemiphyllodactylus, the current taxonomy is believed to substantially underestimate its diversity, especially in the karst ecosystem, as recent discoveries demonstrate that this particular habitat harbors a high number of cryptic species.

Adult male *Hemiphyllodactylus* *pakhaensis*. Credit to Ha HB et al., 2026

Coinciding with the publication of H. ziegleri, another karst-dwelling species – H. pakhaensis from Son La Province – was reported in ZooKeys. These discoveries bring the total species count to 12, suggesting that additional surveys in remote areas of the country and elsewhere in Southeast Asia will likely reveal many new congeners and highlight the importance of this unique, but highly imperiled ecosystem.

Original sources

Pham AV, Nguyen TQ, Pham CT, Ngo HT, Le MD (2026) Hemiphyllodactylus ziegleri sp. nov. (Squamata, Gekkonidae), a new karst-dwelling gecko species from Son La Province, Vietnam. ZooKeys 1268: 75-94. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1268.174678

Ha HB, Hoang TT, Nguyen MD, Ha NV, Luu VQ (2026) A new species of Hemiphyllodactylus Bleeker, 1860 (Squamata, Gekkonidae) from Son La Province, Vietnam. ZooKeys 1268: 163-188. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1268.177040

Hidden in sacred forests: A newly described microendemic gecko from Madagascar

Reserves managed by local communities are essential for the survival of species like P. tsaranoro.

A team of international herpetologists has described a new gecko species that has managed to hide in plain sight among the granite boulders around the western flanks of the Andringitra Massif, in south-eastern Madagascar. “Paragehyra tsaranoro is named after the Tsaranoro valley, where it was first observed,” explains first author Francesco Belluardo from the Department of Bioscience and Territory at the University of Molise (Italy). “It is not only endemic to Madagascar, but also what we describe as a microendemic species—restricted to an extremely small range.”

A close-up photo of a gecko against a blurred natural background.

In this case, P. tsaranoro has only been found in three small forest fragments, all located within approximately 15 kilometers of one another. These patches are remnants of a once-larger and continuous forest that has been destroyed by the widespread deforestation that continues to impact Madagascar’s biodiversity.

A photo of a camouflaged gecko resting on a textured stone surface, surrounded by blurred greenery in the background.

“The findings emphasise the importance of conducting research on small forest fragments, as they are essential for completing the inventory of Malagasy herpetofauna,” the researchers write in their study, which was published in the journal ZooKeys.

Given its very limited range and the ongoing threats to its habitat, the authors recommend listing this new gecko as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. Like many endemic species in Madagascar, its existence might be threatened by deforestation, which means destruction and fragmentation of its already limited habitat. The research team, composed also of Angelica Crottini, Javier Lobón-Rovira, Gonçalo M. Rosa, Franco Andreone, Malalatiana Rasoazanany, Costanza Piccoli and Ivo Oliveira Alves call for stronger support for local communities in conserving the species. In fact, most of its known range lies outside Madagascar’s network of protected areas, and the only conservation measures come from reserves managed by local communities—areas created to support sustainable livelihoods and protect local biodiversity.

A photo of a group of people sitting on a rocky ledge, surrounded by vast, dry valleys and dramatic mountains under a cloudy sky.

“Building on previous research in the region, it appears that this landscape is full of hidden biodiversity gems, including other microendemic reptile species found nowhere else in the country. These community-managed reserves act as important refuges for local wildlife,” says Belluardo. “Interestingly, many of these small forest fragments are known locally as ‘Forêts sacrées’, or sacred forests, because they host boulders that serve as ancestral tombs for the local Betsileo people. Protecting this cultural heritage has also helped safeguard local species, suggesting once again that conserving biodiversity often goes hand-in-hand with preserving cultural traditions.”

Photos by Javier Lobón-Rovira.

Research article:

Belluardo F, Piccoli C, Lobón-Rovira J, Oliveira Alves I, Rasoazanany M, Andreone F, Rosa GM, Crottini A (2025) A new microendemic gecko from the small forest fragments of south-eastern Madagascar (Squamata, Gekkonidae, Paragehyra). ZooKeys 1240: 1-38. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1240.151016

Discovering Van Gogh in the wild: scientists unveil a new gecko species

Males of the species have a yellow head and forebody and light blue spots on the back and they live in low elevation forests of the Southern Western Ghats.

You’ve probably seen nature depicted in art, but how often do you see an artwork hiding in nature?

When they saw the back of a lizard in the Southern Western Ghats, a group of scientists from the Thackeray Wildlife Foundation in India were reminded of Van Gogh’s The Starry Night. As soon as they figured out it was a new species, it was only apt to name it in honour of the famous painter.

“Cnemaspis vangoghi is named for Dutch painter Vincent Van Gogh (1853–1890) as the striking colouration of the new species is reminiscent of one of his most iconic paintings, The Starry Night,” explains Ishan Agarwal, who took part in the study to describe the new lizard. Males of the species have a yellow head and forebody and light blue spots on the back and they live among rocks and occasionally buildings and trees.

Photo by Akshay Khandekar. License CC-BY 4.0

Together with his fellow researchers Akshay Khandekar and Tejas Thackeray, they found the new species during an expedition in April 2022 to the the Southern Western Ghats in Tamil Nadu, India. Now, they have published their findings in the peer-reviewed journal ZooKeys.

“Tamil Nadu is an exceptionally biodiverse state and we expect to name well over 50 new species of lizards by the time we are done [with our expeditions]!,” Ishan Agarwal says.

From left to right: Akshay Khandekar, Tejas Thackeray, Swapnil Pawar, Ishan Agarwal, Satpal Gangalmale, Vivek Waghe.

“I also had more than 500 tick bites during that summer trip, with the highest densities in the low-elevation, dry forests of Srivilliputhur, where the new species are found,” he adds.

Cnemaspis vangoghi is a small-sized gecko that can reach 3,4 cm in length. It was described as new to science together with another species of its genus, Cnemaspis sathuragiriensis, named for its type locality the Sathuragiri Hills.

*Cnemaspis vangoghi* and *Cnemaspis sathuragiriensis*. Photos by Akshay Khandekar. License CC-BY 4.0

“The two new species are distributed in low elevation (250–400 m asl.), deciduous forests of Srivilliputhur, and add to the five previously known endemic vertebrates from Srivilliputhur-Megamalai Tiger Reserve, Tamil Nadu, India,” Ishan Agarwal explains. They are diurnal and mainly active during the cool hours of the early morning and evening, found largely on rocks. So far, they have only been found in very restricted localities, “an interesting case of micro-endemism in low-elevation species,” he notes.

Research article:

Khandekar A, Thackeray T, Agarwal I (2024) Two new species of the Cnemaspis galaxia complex (Squamata, Gekkonidae) from the eastern slopes of the southern Western Ghats. ZooKeys 1196: 209-242. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1196.117947

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Bouldering in south-central Madagascar: a new “rock-climbing” gecko species of the genus Paroedura

Thanks to recently collected samples, it was described and named after its preferred habitat, the boulders surrounded by the last remaining forests at these sites.

Named after its habitat preference, Paroedura manongavato, from the Malagasy words “manonga” (to climb) and “vato” (rock), is a bouldering expert. Part of its “home range” is also very well-known to rock climbers for its massive granitic domes. “Its description represents another step into the crux (in climbing jargon, the most difficult section of a bouldering problem) of resolving the taxonomy of the recently revised P. bastardi group, where the new species belongs, and reaching a total of 25 described species in this genus, all exclusively living in Madagascar and Comoros,” says C. Piccoli from CIBIO – Research Center in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources, Portugal. She and her team just published a paper describing the new gecko.

Thus far, this species has only been found in Anja Reserve and Tsaranoro, both of which are isolated forest patches in the arid south-central plateau of Madagascar. These sites, at a distance of ca. 25 km, have a peculiar conformation, with huge granitic boulders close to rocky cliffs and surrounded by vegetation. The survival of P. manongavato, defined as microendemic for being restricted to a very narrow distributional range, thus depends on the preservation of these small forest patches. Subsequently, the authors proposed an evaluation of its conservation status as Critically Endangered, a category designated for species threatened of extinction by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Its discovery history is long, starting during the Malagasy summer of 2010, when the first evidence of another Paroedura species was found in Anja, together with the recently described P. rennerae in 2021. Distinguishing these two species on the field is a difficult task. Both species have prominent dorsal-enlarged keeled scales and a similar dorsal pattern, although adults of P. manongavato have an overall less spiky appearance, less contrasted dorsal markings, and a smaller body size compared to P. rennerae. The need to collect more samples brought researchers A. Crottini, F. Andreone, and G. M. Rosa to return to Anja in 2014, and collect the future holotype (i.e. the name-bearing and description reference individual) of this new species. Later in 2018, F. Belluardo, J. Lobón-Rovira, and M. Rasoazanany, visited Anja and Tsaranoro again and were able to collect several tissue samples and high-resolution photos of the reptiles living in the area, including the new gecko species. This cumulative data collection was fundamental to advance with its description.

Published in the open access journal ZooKeys, this study highlights the importance of conducting herpetological inventories in Madagascar to improve our understanding of species diversity and progress with species conservation assessments. “The description of this species shows the importance of collaborative efforts when documenting biodiversity, especially for those range-restricted and isolated species at greatest risk of disappearing,” points out the leading author of this study C. Piccoli.

Research article:

Piccoli C, Belluardo F, Lobón-Rovira J, Oliveira Alves I, Rasoazanany M, Andreone F, Rosa GM, Crottini A (2023) Another step through the crux: a new microendemic rock-dwelling Paroedura (Squamata, Gekkonidae) from south-central Madagascar. ZooKeys 1181: 125-154. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1181.108134

Photos by Javier Lobón-Rovira.

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New species from a new country: A newly described gecko from Timor-Leste, the 4th youngest country in the world

For the first time, a new species of bent-toed gecko was described from the country, hinting at the unexplored diversity in the region.

Nestled amongst a chain of islands in the southern reaches of Southeast Asia, Timor-Leste occupies the eastern half of the island of Timor, the largest of the Lesser Sunda Islands that also include Bali and Komodo, the latter of which is home to the Komodo Dragon. In May 2002, Timor-Leste (officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste) became the first sovereign nation in the 21st century and is currently the 4th youngest country in the world.

A view from the road between Dili and Baucau, Timor-Leste. Photo by Graham Crumb shared under a CC BY-SA 2.0 license.

Even though the country lies in the highly biodiverse region of Wallacea, its biodiversity is relatively poorly known, partly because decades of pre-independence violence and conflict have hindered biological surveys. In August 2022, a partnership between the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (Singapore), Conservation International, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries of Timor-Leste conducted preliminary biological surveys across the eastern part of the island. The surveys specifically targeted remote and underexplored areas, such as the isolated mountain of Mundo Perdido (“Lost World” in Portuguese) and Nino Konis Santana National Park (NKS)—the first and largest national park in Timor-Leste.

An aerial view of Nino Konis Santana National Park, Timor-Leste. Photo by UN Photo/Martine Perret under a CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 license

NKS is an enormous park that covers 1,236 square kilometers of land and is mainly characterized by lowland tropical forests. In it, there are several limestone caves of archaeological importance, and it was in one of those caves that a new gecko species was found.

While surveying the Lene Hara cave during the day, a member of the research team caught a glimpse of a lizard scurrying on the ground before disappearing into a crevice. Dr. Chan Kin Onn, a herpetologist at the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum and the lead author of a study published in ZooKeys, sprung into action. Soon, he found himself wedged into a tight crevice in hopes of capturing the lizard.

Lene Hara cave, where the new species was found. Photo by Tan Heok Hui

“I couldn’t get to the lizard because the crack was too narrow, but I saw the rear half of its body and could tell that it was a bent-toed gecko from the genus Cyrtodactylus. New species of bent-toed geckos are being discovered all across Southeast Asia and due to the remoteness of the cave, the potential for this gecko to be a new species was high,” explained Dr. Chan.

Several hours later, under the cover of darkness, the team was back in the cave, this time equipped with flashlights. “Bent-toed geckos are usually nocturnal and can be skittish during the day. Our best chance at capturing them would be at night,” says Dr. Chan.True enough, after just one hour of looking, they collected ten specimens. A few weeks later, the gecko from Lena Hara cave was confirmed to be a new species based on DNA analysis and external morphological characteristics.

The new species of bent-toed gecko, Cyrtodactylus santana. Photo by Chan Kin Onn

The new species is named Cyrtodactylus santana, in reference to Nino Konis Santana National Park. The park’s name honors Nino Konis Santana, a freedom fighter who led the Falintil militia against the Indonesian occupation of Timor-Leste.

Even though past surveys have documented several populations of bent-toed geckos in Timor-Leste, none of them had been identified to the species level and thus, remain unnamed. Cyrtodactylus santana is the first bent-toed gecko in Timor-Leste formally described as a species.

NEW GECKO!
Meet: Cyrtodactylus santana • A #NewSpecies of limestone dwelling Bent-toed #Gecko (Squamata: Gekkonidae: Cyrtodactylus) from Timor-Leste SE Asia. 2023.
link:https://t.co/QlbPjnNHFx pic.twitter.com/MZRSTueM4i
— Botanics Man🧐 (@BotanicsMan) January 15, 2023

The expedition also discovered several interesting plants and crabs that are currently being examined, all of which have the potential to be new species. “We have barely scratched the surface of Timor-Leste’s biodiversity. New discoveries can have profound impacts, because Timor-Leste is a substantial landmass bounded by deep sea trenches and is located at the fringe of the Wallacean Biodiversity Hotspot and Weber’s Line, a transitional zone between Oriental and Australasian fauna” remarked the researchers. Understanding the biodiversity of Timor-Leste could provide key insights into the divergence, evolution, and distribution of species, they believe.

Research article:

Chan KO, Grismer LL, Santana F, Pinto P, Loke FW, Conaboy N (2023) Scratching the surface: a new species of Bent-toed gecko (Squamata, Gekkonidae, Cyrtodactylus) from Timor-Leste of the darmandvillei group marks the potential for future discoveries. ZooKeys 1139: 107-126. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1139.96508

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Leaves and Spines: A new spiny-tailed leaf-toed gecko from the unexplored coastal savanna of Angola

A random survey in a poorly explored region of the southern Benguela Province of Angola, led to the discovery of a unique new spiny-tailed leaf-toed gecko.

Guest blog post by Javier Lobon-Rovira

After the long, hard days of fieldwork in the arid coastal region of southern Angola, Angolan researcher Pedro Vaz Pinto and his enthusiastic son Afonso, found the best spot to spend the night before heading back home. In the area of Carivo, every night was different: after four visits to this unique place, a different gecko species always showed up to add to the growing species list.

On a random night in August 2021, they went for a routine night walks and came across this unique gecko. In shock, Pedro immediately started sharing photos with the coauthors, Werner and Javier. “Guys, I think I found a new Kolekanos” he said.

Kolekanos is a unique and iconic gecko genus in Africa and more specifically only known from southwestern Angola. Kolekanos plumicaudus was described by one of the most recognized herpetologists in Africa, the late Wulf Haacke (1936– 2021).

Feather-tailed Kolekanos was at that point a monotypic genus (only one species in the genus), known only from ~200km south of the new discovery. Immediately, we all knew that what we were looking in that photo was something different from the known K. plumicaudus. “It is a Kolekanos… but, those are spines in the tail, not feathers…” was one of the most common reactions that night. So, we started planning our next trip to the area.

Three months later we were back at Carivo, now focusing on finding more specimens of that unique gecko. After only one hour, we spotted at least six specimens among the semi-dessert vegetations and rocks. At that moment, all doubt went away. The behavior and habitat of the new gecko was completely distinctive in comparison with K. plumicaudus.

Then, with our goal achieved and based on the big success of the first night, we planned to go back through different areas to explore some of the most remote regions in Northern Namibe and southern Benguela provinces. After two days driving on impossible roads, the team reached Ekongo. That night we were tired, so we decided to have a short walk around the camp. And… there it was…! Like a ghost, this small, cryptic, and elusive gecko started showing up in every big rock boulder.

This study, now published in the journal ZooKeys, also highlights how poorly explored and understood some regions of Angola remain, even as it has been considered as an important source of diversification and endemism in West Africa.

India’s relic forests reveal a new species of leopard gecko

The Painted Leopard Gecko is already under a threat of extinction, as it is being collected for the pet trade and may even be smuggled illegally.

Deep in the forests of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh in India lives a colourful gecko species that only now revealed its true identity. Meet Eublepharis pictus, also known as the Painted Leopard Gecko.

In 2017, researchers Zeeshan A. Mirza of the National Centre for Biological Sciences in Bangalore and C. Gnaneswar of the Madras Crocodile Bank Trust in Chennai found a gecko in a water tank near a temple in Vishakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, during a field survey. Back then, they identified it as belonging to the East Indian Leopard Gecko species (Eublepharis hardwickii).

“The species appears to be common in the hill forests, but its distinctness was only confirmed by other researchers,” Zeeshan Mirza explains.

In a phylogenetic study, where they looked for the evolutionary history and relationships within and between the leopard gecko species in the genus Eublepharis, the researchers found that what had until then been considered a southern population of East Indian Leopard Geckomight be distinct enough to represent a new species.

Once they had molecular data they could work with, the team made morphological comparisons between the species, looking at specimens across natural history museums.

Map of east India showing the distribution of *E. hardwickii* (black circles) and E. pictus (blue rhombus). Image of *E. pictus* by Gnaneshwar C. H.

“These lizards have conserved morphologies and most species are quite similar in general appearance,” Zeeshan Mirza elaborates. “With a few characters based on the number of specimens examined, we described the species and named it the Painted Leopard Gecko – in Latin, Eublepharis pictus, for its colouration.” They published their discovery in the open-access scientific journal Evolutionary Systematics.

With this new addition, the gecko genus Eublepharis now contains 7 species. Two of them – E. pictus and E. satpuraensis – were described by Zeeshan Mirza.

The Painted Leopard Gecko measures 11.7 cm in length, which is somewhat large for a leopard gecko. The Brahmani River, which runs through the Eastern Ghats, separates it geographically from the East Indian Leopard Gecko, with which it shares a lot of similar traits.

The new species lives in dry evergreen forests mixed with scrub and meadows. It is strictly nocturnal, actively foraging along trails in the forest after dusk. While looking for food, it has been observed licking surfaces as it moves, which suggests it might use its tongue as a sensory organ.

Even though the Painted Leopard Gecko seems to be widespread across the state of Odisha and northern Andhra Pradesh, the researchers worry about its conservation. “The species is collected for the pet trade and even now may be smuggled illegally,” they write in their paper, which is why they refrain from giving out the exact locations where it may be found.

Painted leopard gecko ( Eublepharis pictus). Photo by Zeeshan Mirza

The authors believe the species would stand more of a chance against humans if more people knew it was actually harmless. To protect it, they suggest listing it as Near Threatened based on IUCN conservation prioritisation criteria, until more is known about the size of its populations.

Further research may also encourage better protection of biodiversity in the area. “The Eastern Ghats are severely under-surveyed, and dedicated efforts will help recognize it as a biodiversity hotspot,” the authors conclude.

Research article:

Mirza ZA, Gnaneswar C (2022) Description of a new species of leopard geckos, Eublepharis Gray, 1827 from Eastern Ghats, India with notes on Eublepharis hardwickii Gray, 1827. Evolutionary Systematics 6(1): 77-88. https://doi.org/10.3897/evolsyst.6.83290

The scaled king and his knight: 2 new giant bent-toed gecko species from New Guinea

The extremely complex geological history of New Guinea has allowed many of its animals and plants the chance to grow different enough to make a name for themselves. In the case of two newly described and unusually large gecko species – only a noble name would do. The two new species whose names respectively mean ‘knight’ and ‘king’ were discovered by a team led by Dr. Paul Oliver, The Australian National University and University of Melbourne, are described in the open-access journal ZooKeys.

Both new species belong to the world’s most diverse gecko genus Cyrtodactylus which comprises more than 200 species known to date. These reptiles are commonly called bent-toed or bow-fingered geckos due to their distinctive slender curved toes. They occur through Asia and Australia.

These 200 species vary greatly in size, build and colouration. However, one of the newly described species, called C. rex, meaning “king” in Latin, is the largest species in the genus, and among the biggest of all geckos in the world.

In general, the bent-toed geckos measure no more than 13 cm in length, yet the “gecko king” can grow up to 17 cm, with the females slightly bigger than the males. It is also characterised with upper body side covered in alternating regions of dark grey brown and medium brown. There are also variable in size and shape, but clearly defined dark grey-brown markings. All examined specimens are reported to have either four or five dark brown blotches or bands running down their original tails.

The second new species also bears a noble name – Cyrtodactyulus equestris, meaning ‘knight’ in Latin. It is also considered a giant among its relatives with its length of up to 14 cm for the females. Similarly to its larger relative, its head is large and wide, clearly distinct from the neck. Its upper side is coloured with alternating regions of light and medium brown. While in smaller individuals the patches are visibly defined by dark brown edging, such is missing in the larger ones, giving their pattern slightly faded appearance.

As a whole, the distribution of the two new geckos overlap, although the “gecko knight” is reported to prefer the relatively undisturbed hill or lower montane forests of northern New Guinea and its neighbour “the king” seems to stick to the surrounding lowlands.

While the larger size of the New Guinean bent-toed geckos seems to be an evolutionary trend, the role of potential factors such as competition, ecological diversification, isolation and dispersal remains quite a mystery.

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Original source:

Oliver PM, Richards SJ, Mumpuni, Rösler H (2016) The Knight and the King: two new species of giant bent-toed gecko (Cyrtodactylus, Gekkonidae, Squamata) from northern New Guinea, with comments on endemism in the North Papuan Mountains. ZooKeys 562: 105-130. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.562.6052