Biologist’s Uzbekistan expedition nets long-sought, tiny gecko

  Biology  

RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- They fanned out over Uzbekistan’s Kyzylkum Desert in the dead of night, keeping in sight of each other’s flashlights, straining to listen in the cool wind for the telltale click, click, click.

<p> A scene from the Kyzylkum Desert where the team finally nabbed the Southern even-fingered Gecko which hadn’t been found since 1963. </p>

A scene from the Kyzylkum Desert where the team finally nabbed the Southern even-fingered Gecko which hadn’t been found since 1963.

<p> A Macro Viper in the mountains of Uzbekistan. </p>

A Macro Viper in the mountains of Uzbekistan.

<p> The Fergana Valley in Uzbekistan has a number of endemic threatened sand dune adapted species like the Fergana Sand Lizard, above, and the Rustamov Frog Eye Gecko, below, whose habitat is threatened by fishery developments. The Grismer lab is studying the genetic effects of this fragmentation. </p>

The Fergana Valley in Uzbekistan has a number of endemic threatened sand dune adapted species like the Fergana Sand Lizard, above, and the Rustamov Frog Eye Gecko, below, whose habitat is threatened by fishery developments. The Grismer lab is studying the genetic effects of this fragmentation.

<p> The Deseret Monitor Lizard is a threatened species in Uzbekistan and Roman Nazarov (holding a male) and the Grismer lab are using genomics to help manage this species. </p>

The Deseret Monitor Lizard is a threatened species in Uzbekistan and Roman Nazarov (holding a male) and the Grismer lab are using genomics to help manage this species.

<p> The team spent 10 days surveying the unique habitats along the Afghanistan border. The many species they found include the Saw-scaled Viper, below. </p>

The team spent 10 days surveying the unique habitats along the Afghanistan border. The many species they found include the Saw-scaled Viper, below.

<p> On the way to the Kyzylkum Desert and sites on the Afghanistan border the team stopped in Bukhara and Samarkand to refill on supplies and to appreciate some of the rich history and culture of Uzbekistan cities along the famous Silk Road, the ancient world's superhighway. </p>

On the way to the Kyzylkum Desert and sites on the Afghanistan border the team stopped in Bukhara and Samarkand to refill on supplies and to appreciate some of the rich history and culture of Uzbekistan cities along the famous Silk Road, the ancient world's superhighway.

<p> Here is the Phrynocephalus interscapularis gecko species which lives on sand dunes near Afghanistan. </p>

Here is the Phrynocephalus interscapularis gecko species which lives on sand dunes near Afghanistan.

<p> The Phrynocephalus raddei lizard, which lives on gravel, found near the Afghan border. </p>

The Phrynocephalus raddei lizard, which lives on gravel, found near the Afghan border.

<p> Auburn University doctoral student Matt Buehleris working through mud stone tunnels in the Fergana Valley while looking for new localities of Strauch’s even-fingered geckos. </p>

Auburn University doctoral student Matt Buehleris working through mud stone tunnels in the Fergana Valley while looking for new localities of Strauch’s even-fingered geckos.

The expeditionary force of herpetologists from the United States and Russia were crisscrossing the sands of the desert in the Central Asian country on a mission to find their elusive quarry -- a two-and-a half-inch Southern even-fingered gecko which hadn’t been captured in that region since 1963.

The small, light green and white banded gecko makes a subtle clicking sound when it vocalizes. Whenever the scientists heard what sounded like the gecko’s tiny call, they would turn off their lights and try to move toward the direction of the sound before snapping their lights back on in an effort to spotlight the miniature animal. It was often a false alarm.

“We spent multiple nights hiking for hours from sundown until six in the morning looking for these things and not finding them. It was rough,” said Jesse Grismer, assistant biology professor at La Sierra University.

The elusive two-and-a half-inch Southern even-fingered gecko resting on herpetologist Roman Nazarov's hand, the first time the creature was captured in the Uzbekistan region since 1963.

The research team camping in the desert during their trek around Uzbekistan.

Funded by a portion of a $20,000 grant from the National Geographic Society, in 2019 Grismer together with former University of Kansas undergraduate Jack Lapin, Auburn University doctoral student Matt Buehler and noted Russian herpetologists Roman Nazarov and Natalia Ananjeva along with Roman’s son trekked through regions of Uzbekistan and along the Afghanistan border.

At times following old routes charted by Russian explorers in the 1800s, the team aimed to find the Southern even-fingered gecko which hadn’t been captured in 57 years toward helping conserve the species in Uzbekistan. They also wanted to investigate the impact of fractured habitats that are home to endangered and endemic lizard and gecko species in the Fergana Valley where increased textile developments and fisheries are pushing some animals to the brink. Scientific data documenting impacts of fragmentation on animal species can be used to lobby the government for the protection of habitat.

The team netted a diverse and valuable trove of tissue samples and specimens from species native to Uzbekistan, many of which are stored in La Sierra’s biology lab for future research. La Sierra undergraduate biology students began conducting DNA extractions last year and had planned to start gene sequencing this spring. Grismer had also planned a return trip this year to Russia and Uzbekistan to pick up samples he’d left behind in Nazarov’s care. But the rapid expansion of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent closure of the campus has delayed the trip and shuttered ongoing research which in turn has delayed the acquisition of genetic data and subsequent publication of scientific results. 

“I didn’t expect to get this awesome field program with such great people where I could be working in Uzbekistan and Central Asia for the next 10 or 20 years." -- Jesse Grismer, Assistant Professor of Biology

The collaborative hunt

Back in the Kyzylkum Desert, as the scientists sat in the sand in an area where Nazarov had heard the Southern even-fingered gecko’s clicking cry, Grismer tracked it to a bush, shined his light and there it was. After Grismer grabbed it, the scientists took a photo of the tiny creature resting on Roman’s hand. “Oh my goodness, we were actually shaking with adrenaline that we had it,” Grismer said.

While in Uzbekistan, the scientists collaborated in helping each other pursue individual team members’ research projects. A portion of the trip was dedicated toward helping Nazarov and Ananjeva, scientists respectively of the Zoological Museum of Moscow University and the Russian Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg, conduct their own species investigations for breeding and taxonomy purposes, including the capture and study of the Southern even-fingered gecko. They joined Grismer through his prior association with Ananjeva and she in turn asked to bring along the Chinese scientists who were interested in gathering samples from the same areas.

“Any time you do field work there is safety in numbers, especially in the desert,” Grismer said. “It’s a team, everyone is there for a goal and that’s why you have to choose those people carefully.”

In eastern Uzbekistan’s Fergana Valley, Grismer’s objective was to map the ways in which the area’s fragmented habitats have affected endangered and endemic species’ genetics and use the data to help conserve ecosystems. These include the sand dune-adapted Fergana Sand Lizard and the Rustamov Frog Eye Gecko whose habitat is threatened by fishery developments. Likewise, the native Strauch’s even-fingered gecko is found only in unique valley mudstone habitat that is ground for textiles.

However, Grismer discovered upon arrival that the habitats of concern were much more fractured than expected within the vast, 8,500-square-mile valley which reaches into neighboring Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. With a dearth of species documentation and a lack of local knowledge in the uniqueness of the animals, his goals proved a more formidable task. “I was not anticipating the depth of work that was still there to be done,” he said. This fact will require many return trips if Grismer is to accomplish his objectives, but he will have as close collaborators top Russian scientists whose knowledge of the region will prove invaluable.

Life on the trail

The most important aspect of any far-ranging international scientific expedition occurs many months before airline tickets are purchased. “The first thing I always tell people is that an adventure is the result of poor planning,” Grismer quipped. “Planning is key. Fifty percent of your trip can take place before you even leave. You have field check lists depending on where you’re going to go,” that will include such items as sunscreen, athletic tape for blisters and good shoes, a jacket for the mountains, and loose clothes for back at camp.

With Nazarov’s 13-year-old son joining the group as well as Lapin who would experience his first international field trip, detailed preparation was even more important. “You just have to anticipate the environment, what those conditions will be like, and talk with people who are familiar with the region,” said Grismer.

Planning of the expedition’s routes began two years in advance. In November 2017, Grismer and his wife Melinda spent Thanksgiving break in St. Petersburg, Russia in meetings with Nazarov and Ananjeva, discussing the elusive species they hoped to capture and study. They pored over old explorer journals to find paths into remote regions. Ananjeva is an experienced herpetologist in that part of the world and Nazarov comes from a line of well-known Russian and Uzbekistani scientists and adventurers. They both drew upon their extensive knowledge of the vast area. “The route was ultimately determined by what we wanted to catch,” Grismer said.

The U.S.-Russia team began their three-week trek after flying on May 20, 2019 to Tashkent, the 2.3 million-population capital of Uzbekistan. They fit themselves and their gear into two SUVs and set out a day later toward the Fergana Valley. With the Chinese scientific team following, their journey around Uzbekistan covered roughly 1,118 miles roundtrip.

Left to right, herpetologists Jesse Grismer, Natalia Ananjeva of the Russian Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg and Roman Nazarov of the Zoological Museum of Moscow University in Uzbekistan during their 2019 scientific expedition. 

“I would be very remiss if I did not point out what loving people the Uzbeki people are,” Grismer added, while noting with humor that the locals did not like his beard. Before finding the Southern even-fingered gecko in the Kyzylkum Desert, the scientists searched in other regions including directly along the Afghanistan border. They spent 10 days there surveying unique habitats for other animals as well, finding a Saw-scaled Viper, Radde’s Toadheaded Agama, and Red-shoulder Toadheaded Agama. While exploring, they remained vigilant of the location of the national boundary, aware of the general hostilities toward Americans in that area, noted Grismer.

The team’s nightly accommodations were wide-ranging. They camped under the stars 70-80 percent of the time, and otherwise bunked with local families through Nazarov’s connections. They stayed in two hotels when passing through larger towns and also made use of a nature conservancy facility and an old Russian military base. While stopping for supplies in the cities of Bukhara and Samarkand they were able to take in some of the rich cultural and historical sights.

In addition to proving a successful scientific mission through the variety of species studied and sampled, the expedition also resulted in a close bond between the American and Russian scientists who are planning future cross-collaborations.

“I didn’t expect to get this awesome field program with such great people where I could be working in Uzbekistan and Central Asia for the next 10 or 20 years with Roman and Natalia,” Grismer said. “It will be so cool and exciting.”

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