Landscapes in Southeast Asia once thought to preserve ancient species are now revealed as centers of biodiversity and evolution. Recent discoveries of nearly 200 gecko species in karst ecosystems, characterized by caves, cliffs, and sinkholes, highlight their dynamic role in shaping life. These geckos, with their specialized bodies adapted to karst conditions, are examples of speciation thriving in these unique environments.
Landscapes in Southeast Asia once thought to stifle biological evolution may instead stoke its fires.
Karst ecosystems have been referred to as arks of biodiversity, a term that highlights their biological richness but also implies they merely preserve ancient lineages. These landscapes, with their isolated caves, cliffs and sinkholes, were thought to shelter species from extinction without contributing much to evolution.
But the discovery over the past several years of nearly 200 gecko species in such regions reveals that karsts are far from stagnant. “They’re not museums, but centers of speciation,” says evolutionary biologist Lee Grismer of La Sierra University in Riverside, Calif.genus, like this newfound one from Cambodia, are uniquely adapted to thrive in the karst landscapes in Southeast Asia. Their specialized bodies allow them to cling to sheer rock faces.
The true extent of gecko diversity in the karsts remains unknown. Grismer and his colleagues have surveyed only about 20 percent of the formations in western Cambodia, and he plans to return there and to Myanmar in 2025. “It wouldn’t surprise me if there are another 200 species out there.”
GEOCOLOGY BIODIVERSITY EVOLUTION KARST ECOSYSTEMS SPECIATION
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