Jackie Chan Gecko

Jackie Chan Gecko

Subject – Environment

Context – A gecko named Jackie Chan in the Western Ghats

Concept –

• A new revision of Cnemaspis geckos (day gecko) in the Western Ghats has described 12 new species, including ones named, among others, after Jackie Chan and dragons from Game of Thrones and Lord of the Rings. Of the 12 species, 10 were found in southern Western Ghats.
• The paper, ‘Diversifying on the Ark: multiple new endemic lineages of dwarf geckos from the Western Ghats provide insights into the systematics and biogeography of South Asian Cnemaspis (Reptilia: Squamata)’.
• At present, there are 85 known species within SA, although the number continues to increase rapidly with focused surveys and rigorous taxonomic work,” the paper says, adding however that most studies lack sufficient sampling in the Western Ghats (WG), where the genus has its greatest diversity.
• Historically, species have been described on the basis of morphology for centuries. “However, in the last couple of decades, genetic data has shown that morphology might not tell the whole story i.e., some species might be deeply genetically separated without looking any different from each other. Hence, today we try and use a combination of genetic data, geographical separation and morphological distinctiveness to determine whether something is a new species.”
• “Typically, species are named for a morphological character, a geographical location or after someone well known in the field (such as Cnemaspiswallaceii, after Alfred Russel Wallace). However, sometimes its also fun to name them after cultural or musical icons.
• The researchers have pointed out that despite being one of the world’s “hottest biodiversity hotspots”, the Western Ghats have undergone substantial habitat loss and degradation due to changes in landuse patterns, and it has been suggested that significant parts of it will be urbanised by 2030 due to population expansion and development.