Uroplatus UVB Data Project

G

geckochick

New member
wow! i just joined this forum and i wish i'd been on earlier... will you be posting the data here? i soo wish i could be the researcher, what an awesome project! i will be paying great attention and if you plan another trip let me know, i would love to help out via $.
 
miguel camacho!

miguel camacho!

New member
Once again, the trip has not has not been made yet by Bill Love, the person intended to gather the data. The data/pics you've seen are by someone that (at least to my knowledge) was not sponsored by this endeavor, but has been kind enough to share his findings.
 
Scott F

Scott F

New member
Kurt,


Do you have any collected data, you can share in regards to U. phantasticus (similar to your post with the U. sikorae photo above).

A couple of U.phantasticus habitat shots would also be great.
 
jadrig

jadrig

New member
Hmmm...I would hate to be the barer of bad news, but I just talked to Bill Love at show in Raleigh...I don't think that this is going to come to fruition.

I personally believe that if anyone is going to go to Madagascar in search of Uroplatus...they should be going their to retrieve tissue samples/GPS plots for genetic barcoding purposes. This is probably the only thing worth donating money towards at this point.
Joe
 
miguel camacho!

miguel camacho!

New member
That's pretty lame. Bill got on board, so what's the deal? Is he not taking his ecotourist groups out to Madagascar anymore, or does he just not want to take the time and effort to gather a little UVB data?

I'm really wishing I was a geneticist now so I could pursue grants for travel there, because I'd be more than happy to take samples. I just don't have the knowledge or equipment in my lab to get into genetic analysis.

Bummer.
 
jadrig

jadrig

New member
Yeah Mike, I hear ya on that one. When I was working in a Lab at Duke University...we were doing genetic barcoding for bacteria/algae in Urban/Agricultural streams (74 of them).
There are actually disposable kits that you can buy for around $100.00 where you can extract the DNA. You just need lab facilities to read/print the data.
Down the hall from my laboratory, there were big posters with DNA data for panther chameleons throughout Madagascar. I never got to talk to those people, but wished I had.

If I had posted on here two weeks ago, I would have remembered exactly what Bill's reasoning was...
I think it was more of a combination of things...Madagascar politics being the main obstacle.
 
miguel camacho!

miguel camacho!

New member
I don't know what I was thinking when I said I didn't have the equipment in my lab. I actually do, however, there's still that issue hovering about: money to get there, then money to run the samples. But thenagain even if I had the money, I'm not really interested in butting into Bauer and Raxworthy's territory (especially seeing as my knowledge gap remains).
 
the moof

the moof

New member
Time for me to revive this thread after five years of inactivity.

I am leaving for fieldwork in northern Madagascar on the 8th of December. I would be happy to take a UV meter with me, and gather some data on any and all Uroplatus specimens I come across (which will hopefully be numerous).

I am likely to encounter U. cf. ebenaui, U. sikorae, and U. henkeli on this trip. My next trips will probably take me to Marojejy, Montagne d'Ambre, Ranomafana, Andasibe, Masoala and Makira, so cumulativley over the next few years I may be able to gather all of the data you guys are looking for.

If you are happy for me to take the UV meter on this trip, it would be my pleasure.

Best regards,
Mark
 
Elizabeth Freer

Elizabeth Freer

Well-known member
Go for it, Mark. First hand UV info on the species you mention will be valuable.

Good wishes for your doctorate studies. Is your trip part of them?
 
Tamara

Tamara

New member
It would be great if you could deliver that information, Mark, i'm sure those readings will be helpfull to a lot of leaftail enthousiasts.

Wish you a wonderfull trip, and hope you may find lot's of them. :)

Cheers.
 
miguel camacho!

miguel camacho!

New member
Alright, everyone. If we get mobilized on this quickly enough, we can make sure Mark has a UVB meter to gather some data. That means we need people to come through with their pledges, and they need to do it fast.

The question is: how do we do this? Suggest Mark use or create a paypal account so we can all donate? Time is of the utmost importance here. We need to collect the donations and get them to Mark with enough time that the meter will be shipped to him in time. Can we do this?! I hope so!
 
the moof

the moof

New member
Good news folks! Markus Roesch has sent me his UV meter for me to take along on my trip! I'll be able to gather data this year on a few Uroplatus species (and some other geckos). In the future, it might be good to have a project UV meter, but at least for now, borrowing Markus' is a good solution.

Cheers,
Mark
 
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