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Rare ‘flying Lizard’ Sighted In Nigeria by sinkhole: 4:18pm On Oct 10, 2015
A rare species of lizard, known as
Neon blue-tailed tree lizard, has
been spotted in a forest in Eket,
Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria, about 49
years after it was first reported to
have been seen in Nigeria.
Known by its scientific name,
Holaspis guentheri, the lizard is
recorded in Global Biodiversity
Information Facility to have first
been sighted in Nigeria, at Ijebu-
Ode, Ogun State, in March, 1966 by
an English conservationist, H. B.
Wesselman.
It is popularly called flying lizard
because of the way it glides from
one tree trunk to another, to feed
on insects or escape from
predators.
Very colourful in nature, the flying
lizard looks like the five-line skink.
A Senior Lecturer, Wildlife
Resources Management, University
of Uyo, Dr. Edem A. Eniang,
sighted the lizard in Akai Edoho
forest, Eket, where he had
accompanied a fellow Uniuyo
lecturer, Prof. Kingsley Akpabio,
for a UNDP-sponsored biodiversity
research project.
“As soon as I saw it I realised that I
have never seen this kind of lizard
before in my life. In fact, I shouted
on a female student in our team to
bring me a better camera because
she was helping to hold my camera
bag. But because of the way I
screamed with excitement she ran
in the opposite direction, probably
thinking I saw a snake,” Dr. Eniang
told PREMIUM TIMES.
Mr. Eniang succeeded in capturing
images of the lizard from a
distance of about 10 metres from
the ground, using a small under-
water camera which he said wasn’t
good enough for such photography.
But then, for several months he had
difficulty identifying what specie of
lizard it was until he emailed its
pictures to a world renowned
herpetologist in the Institute of
Vertebrate Zoology, University of
Rome, Italy, Prof Luca Luiselli, who
identified it as flying lizard.
Another rare species of lizard
sighted and photographed by Mr.
Eniang the same moment he
spotted the flying lizard is yet to be
identified.
“It’s a great sighting,” Prof.
Luiselli told Dr. Eniang in a
response to his email.
Prof. Akpabio, a lecturer in
Uniuyo’s Department of Botany and
also the team-lead for the UNDP
Environment Project, corroborated
Dr. Eniang’s claims on the sighting
of the flying lizard in Akai Edoho
forest, adding that the sighting of
the rare lizard had increased his
concern over the continuous
destruction of the forest by people
in the local communities.
Mr. Eniang said both him and Prof.
Akpabio had since visited the
forest thrice, but not really to look
out for the flying lizard.
“We can’t determine their
population in that forest unless we
do intensive search,” Mr. Eniang
said.
He explained how significant the
sighting of the lizard is to Nigeria
and the global community.
“It shows that this lizard is still
alive in Nigeria, and not extinct.
Also, it adds to the global spread
because it is endemic to West
Africa, and to some extent, East
Africa. It is not even a global
species.
“I can assure you, this lizard has
great potentials to boost the eco-
tourism in Akwa Ibom State, and
maybe a further impetus to
encourage the government and
people of Akwa Ibom State to set
up a protected area, maybe a
national park, a biosphere reserve,
a nature reserve or world heritage
site because we must know that
Akwa Ibom falls within the
continuous tropical rainforest zone
that is classified as biodiversity
hotspot for the world, from the
gulf of Guinea all the way down to
the Sanagha River in Cameroun.”
Dr. Eniang, from Itu Local
Government Area of Akwa Ibom
State, has spent 20 years in active
field biological research as
herpetologist.
The West African zebra gecko,
otherwise known as Hemidactylus
eniangii, is named in his honour for
being the first person to collect the
rare species of gecko nine years
ago.

www.premiumtimesng.com/features-and-interviews/191309-features-rare-flying-lizard-sighted-in-nigeria.html

Re: Rare ‘flying Lizard’ Sighted In Nigeria by jascon1(m): 4:22pm On Oct 10, 2015
No be only sighted?
Re: Rare ‘flying Lizard’ Sighted In Nigeria by Tallesty1(m): 4:27pm On Oct 10, 2015
Have seen it many times.
Re: Rare ‘flying Lizard’ Sighted In Nigeria by sinkhole: 4:28pm On Oct 10, 2015
jascon1:
No be only sighted?
If a thing like this is sited in western world, that area will be turned into a tourist site but here, people will be looking for the lizard to kill and eat!
Re: Rare ‘flying Lizard’ Sighted In Nigeria by sinkhole: 4:31pm On Oct 10, 2015
Tallesty1:
Have seen it many times.
Them you missed out on voyage of discorvery. Have you read what Ralph Emerson Waldo said about a stranger saying our latent conviction? That is what has just happened to you.
Re: Rare ‘flying Lizard’ Sighted In Nigeria by LieDetector(m): 4:41pm On Oct 10, 2015
You didn't upload any picture.


Gerarahia mehn!

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