Australia is truly a biodiversity hotspot and is home to many endemic species. Among them, the little-known “earless dragon” was rediscovered just a year ago. Here’s what you need to know about this tiny lizard that scientists are working hard to save.
In 2019, scientists in Canberra counted several hundred specimens of this lizard in the wild. This year, they only found 11. The earless dragon, an endemic species in Australia, has light brown skin striped with long white bands. Lacking ears and functional eardrums, it measures 15 centimeters as an adult. Australia is home to four species, with three classified as “critically endangered” – the most threatened category – and the fourth as “endangered.”
Without conservation measures, the critically endangered dragons will likely be extinct within the next 20 years. However, “if we manage their conservation properly, we can bring them back,” hopes Bernd Gruber, a professor at the University of Canberra, who is working towards this goal.
Australia is home to thousands of unique animal species, including 1,130 species of reptiles found nowhere else in the world. Victims of climate change, the proliferation of invasive plants and animals, and the destruction of their habitats – in 2019, forest fires burned over 19 million hectares – Australia’s endemic species are in a critical situation. A hundred species of Australia’s endemic flora and fauna have disappeared in the last 300 years. To avoid such a fate for the earless dragons, several conservation programs have been implemented in the country, with up to 90 animals planned to be released into the wild.
A Rescue Under Pressure
Mr. Gruber oversees one of these programs in the Canberra region, where compartments house each lizard, providing grass, a burrow, and a heat lamp. The mating of the specimens is particularly tricky. As females prefer to choose their partner, scientists have to present several males until they accept one. They also need to determine – through genetic analyses – which lizards are compatible and ensure the genetic diversity of their offspring. Mr. Gruber takes care of about twenty baby lizards, just hatched. Three weeks ago, the scientists had not seen their eggs. “There is a sense of hope when you look at them,” he tells AFP.
These reptiles live exclusively in temperate grasslands, an habitat that urban sprawl has almost completely destroyed, explains the campaign manager.The Australian Conservation Foundation’s spokesperson, Peta Bulling, mentions that only 0.5% of the grasslands from the time of European colonization remain. She highlights that the earless dragons play a significant role in managing invertebrate populations in the ecosystem. These dragons live in burrows in the ground, which helps aerate the soil. Bulling emphasizes the importance of protecting habitats where these specialized lizards can be reintroduced, as they are not quick to adapt to changes despite being well-suited to their current habitats. Recently, scientists discovered a small number of another earless dragon species for the first time in 50 years in a secret location to ensure their protection.