Good Uroplatus article...
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miguel camacho!
New member
The article barely gets into the interesting stuff before basically saying "they squeak loudly." It hardly brushes up against any real substance that one might glean about Uroplatus anatomy, relying on sources that most non-academic people are not going to be able to access. Almost insultingly, it wraps up with "lots more on leaf-tailed geckos to come." I can only assume he meant from the scientific community, because his blog never did more than briefly mention the genus since publishing this article in 2010 (even after moving to SciAm).
I'm almost willing to bet we'll never understand the ecology of most Uroplatus, much less the ecological role of these briefly described adaptations. Unfortunately, it seems like basic ecology and natural/life history have fallen to the wayside for anything but the most model-suited species, which are researched ad nauseam. Don't get me wrong, I fully understand the reasons behind this, but I'm also frustrated at the fact that understanding some of the basics of species ecology (which are necessary for effective conservation) fall so far behind cutting-edge modelling and other types of hypothesis testing. We've become so focused on such small details that we've lost sight of the bigger picture.
Wow, I'll end my rant.
I'm almost willing to bet we'll never understand the ecology of most Uroplatus, much less the ecological role of these briefly described adaptations. Unfortunately, it seems like basic ecology and natural/life history have fallen to the wayside for anything but the most model-suited species, which are researched ad nauseam. Don't get me wrong, I fully understand the reasons behind this, but I'm also frustrated at the fact that understanding some of the basics of species ecology (which are necessary for effective conservation) fall so far behind cutting-edge modelling and other types of hypothesis testing. We've become so focused on such small details that we've lost sight of the bigger picture.
Wow, I'll end my rant.
Last edited:
the moof
New member
Working on it, Mike! I'm actually planning an expedition to Marojejy in August - hopefully I'll be able to find several Uroplatus and document something of their field ecology (as well as take specimens for taxonomic work because these are some of the aff. ebenaui species), although the expedition is primarily targeted at frogs.
Riverside Reptiles
Administrator (HMFIC)
I didn't intend to give the impression that it's the be all end all of leaf tail literature.
But many experienced Uroplatus breeders including Luis and Kevin Smith seemed to quite enjoy it when they posted it on Facebook.
So, I thought that there might be some folks here on GU that would enjoy it as well and thus, I decided to share.
But many experienced Uroplatus breeders including Luis and Kevin Smith seemed to quite enjoy it when they posted it on Facebook.
So, I thought that there might be some folks here on GU that would enjoy it as well and thus, I decided to share.
Hi Mark,
In 2011we found aff. phantasticus at lower altitudes (Camp Marojejia) and aff. ebenaui was found by a guide near camp Simpona at 1250m. Unfortunately we didn't take pictures of their mouth.
When you intend to go to the top: good luck, you'll need it :biggrin: