Latest news with #BlydeRondavelGecko
BBC News
4 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Hide-and-Seek Champ: Gecko Found After 33 Years!
Researchers from the Endangered Wildlife Trust have discovered a type of gecko that hasn't been seen in more than 30 years. Since the Blyde Rondavel flat gecko was identified in 1991, where this little lizard has been hiding has been a mystery. Now, the Trust says that two of its researchers have found specimens of the mysterious gecko in South Africa. The researchers discovered it in a remote canyon in after they were dropped off there by a helicopter. This lizard was was first identified after it was found in a canyon in the Mpumalanga Province in northeastern South Africa in researchers Darren Pietersen and John Davies returned to the same canyon determined to solve the mystery. In the end, it only took them three days camping on the outcrop to find the geckos. "And when we did, we were elated to say the least," said Pietersen. What is a "lost species"? The species until now has been listed as "lost" as it hadn't been recorded for more than 10 years. However rather than extinct, the lizard has been registered as 'data deficient' by The International Union for Conservation of Nature, the authority on endangered was because not enough was known to say for sure if it was Darren Pietersen who found the lizard said: "I've always loved the species that others wouldn't study because they're harder to find or obscure."
The Independent
15-05-2025
- Science
- The Independent
‘Lost' species rediscovered after more than three decades
A "lost" lizard species, the Blyde Rondavel flat gecko, has been rediscovered in South Africa 's Blyde River Canyon after 34 years. It was first identified in 1991, but not seen again. That led to it being thought extinct, as well as its existence as a distinct species being questioned, as some believed it to be a juvenile of another species. Researchers from the Endangered Wildlife Trust located and photographed several specimens in April 2025, confirming its distinct species status. The development follows other recent rediscoveries by the EWT, including a mole, butterfly, lizard, and frog. The collected data, including tissue samples, will help confirm the gecko's unique classification and contribute to its conservation.
The Independent
15-05-2025
- Science
- The Independent
Tiny lizard thought to be extinct rediscovered after 34 years
A gecko species not seen for over 30 years and feared extinct has been rediscovered in a remote South African canyon. Researchers from the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) have located specimens of the elusive Blyde Rondavel flat gecko, a species first identified in 1991 in Mpumalanga Province's Blyde River Canyon but not seen since. The gecko's existence has been shrouded in mystery for decades. Some scientists questioned whether the two male specimens originally found were actually juveniles of another species, leading to speculation about its true status. EWT researchers Darren Pietersen and John Davies embarked on an expedition in April to the same canyon, determined to find the gecko and resolve the long-standing debate. The rediscovery confirmed the gecko as a distinct species. Because the Blyde Rondavel gecko hadn't been recorded for more than 10 years, it was considered a 'lost' species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature, the authority on threatened species, listed it as data deficient, meaning not enough was known to say for sure if it was extinct. 'Having a species that is data deficient annoys me," Dr Pietersen said. "I've always loved the species that others wouldn't study because they're harder to find or obscure.' The research trip was two years in the making after they registered at least six applications for permits to go, Dr Pietersen said. They were dropped off on the top of one of the canyon's landmark circular rocky outcrops, which have sheer cliffs more than 100 metres high that can't easily be climbed and where the geckos were thought most likely to be. It was the exact same outcrop where the geckos were found in 1991. The researchers only had three days camping on the outcrop to find the geckos, which are around 8-9 centimetres long when fully grown. 'And when we did, we were elated to say the least,' said Dr Pietersen. He said they saw 20-30 specimens and captured and photographed seven, giving the world a glimpse of a lost gecko three decades in the making. The Endangered Wildlife Trust said the data they collected, including tissue samples, should allow them to confirm it is a distinct species. The trust said the gecko was the fifth animal they had rediscovered in recent years. A mole that lives in sand dunes was found in 2021 after having not been seen for more than 80 years, and a butterfly, a lizard and a frog species have also been found again in the last four years after being lost to conservationists for decades. They all show how much there is still to learn about the world's biodiversity, the Endangered Wildlife Trust said.
The Independent
14-05-2025
- Science
- The Independent
This flat-bodied South African gecko was a 'lost' species. It's been found again after 34 years
Researchers who were dropped off by helicopter in a largely inaccessible and remote canyon in South Africa say they have discovered a type of gecko that hadn't been seen in more than 30 years and was thought to be extinct — or maybe to have never existed at all. The Endangered Wildlife Trust said Wednesday that two of their researchers had found specimens of the Blyde Rondavel flat gecko, which was first identified in the same canyon in Mpumalanga Province in northeastern South Africa in 1991 only to not be seen again. Mystery surrounded the little lizard over the next three decades — was it extinct or were the two male specimens originally found actually just juveniles from another gecko species, as some suggested? Researchers Darren Pietersen and John Davies returned to the same site last month determined to find the Blyde Rondavel flat gecko again and solve the conservation conundrum that had rankled Pietersen. Because the Blyde Rondavel gecko hadn't been recorded for more than 10 years, it was considered a 'lost' species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature, the authority on threatened species, listed it as data deficient, meaning not enough was known to say for sure if it was extinct. 'Having a species that is data deficient annoys me," said Pietersen. "I've always loved the species that others wouldn't study because they're harder to find or obscure.' The research trip was two years in the making after they registered at least six applications for permits to go, Pietersen said. They were dropped off on the top of one of the canyon's landmark circular rocky outcrops, which have sheer cliffs more than 100 meters high that can't easily be climbed and where the geckos were thought most likely to be. It was the exact same outcrop where the geckos were found in 1991. Pietersen and Davies only had three days camping on the outcrop to find the geckos, which are around 8-9 centimeters long when fully grown. 'And when we did, we were elated to say the least,' said Pietersen. He said they saw 20-30 specimens and captured and photographed seven, giving the world a glimpse of a lost gecko three decades in the making. The Endangered Wildlife Trust said the data they collected, including tissue samples, should allow them to confirm it is a distinct species. The trust said the gecko was the fifth animal they had rediscovered in recent years. A mole that lives in sand dunes was found in 2021 after having not been seen for more than 80 years, and a butterfly, a lizard and a frog species have also been found again in the last four years after being lost to conservationists for decades. They all show how much there is still to learn about the world's biodiversity, the Endangered Wildlife Trust said. ___
