A preliminary report on the distribution of lizards in Qatar

We have updated the list of the lizard species present in Qatar and produced the first distribution maps based on two field surveys in 2012 and 2013. We used the QND95/Qatar National Grid with a grid of 10 × 10 km squares for mapping. Our results show the occurrence of 21 lizard species in Qatar, from the 15 species indicated in the last biodiversity report conducted in 2004. The most abundant family found in Qatar is Gekkonidae with nine species (Bunopus tuberculatus, Cyrtopodion scabrum, Hemidactylus robustus, H. flaviviridis, H. persicus, Stenodactylus arabicus, S. slevini, S. doriae, Pseudoceramodactylus khobarensis), followed by Lacertidae with four species (Acanthodactylus schmidti, A. opheodurus, Mesalina brevirostris, M. adramitana), Agamidae with three species (Trapelus flavimaculatus, Uromastyx aegyptia, Phrynocephalus arabicus), Scincidae with two species (Scincus mitranus, Trachylepis septemtaeniata), and Varanidae (Varanus griseus), Sphaerodactylidae (Pristurus rupestris) and Trogonophiidae (Diplometopon zarudnyi) with one species each. The species richness fluctuated largely across Qatar between one and eleven species per grid square. We believe that the lizard fauna records in Qatar are still incomplete and that additional studies are required. However, our study here fills a gap concerning lizard biodiversity knowledge in the Gulf Region. © Dan Cogǎlniceanu et al.Peer Reviewe

Chemical signals in desert lizards: Are femoral gland secretions of male and female spiny-tailed lizards, Uromastyx aegyptia microlepis adapted to arid conditions?

Many lizards use femoral gland secretions in intraspecific chemical communication, but specific compounds have been identified in only a few species. Chemical composition of secretions may depend on phylogeny, but it may also evolve to maximize efficacy of signals in a given environment. In deserts, the extreme dry and hot environmental conditions are hostile for chemical signals and, therefore, we expected desert lizards to have secretions with highly stable compounds. Using GC-MS, we identified 74 lipophilic compounds in femoral secretions of male and female spiny-tailed lizards, Uromastyx aegyptia microlepis (Fam. Agamidae), from the Qatar desert. Compounds included mainly steroids and fatty acids, but also terpenoids, ketones, tocopherol, aldehydes and alcohols. We found differences between males and females; males had higher proportions of fatty acids and tocopherol, but lower proportions of ketones than females. Contrary to expectations, the most abundant compounds were not stable in the desert climatic conditions at the surface. However, secretions could be rather adapted to microclimatic conditions inside burrows where these lizards spend long periods of time. We suggest that in addition to phylogenetic and environmental characteristics, we should know the ecology of a lizard species before making generalizations on the potential characteristics of its chemical signals.Financial support was provided by the Spanish projects MICIIN-CGL2011-24150/BOS and MINECO CGL2014-53523-P and by the project #QF.00.307.722011.QE11 of the Qatar Foundation.Peer Reviewe

Recent mtDNA haplotype diversification in Adesmia cancellata(Coleoptera, Tenebrionidae) across the peninsular desert of Qatar

The darkling beetle Adesmia cancellata Solier, 1835 (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) with a wide distribution throughout the Arabian Desert, is considered a dominant arthropod in the Qatari desert. To gain insight into the processes that have favored the success of the species in such an extreme environment, we have reconstructed its demographic and evolutionary history through phylogenetic and phylogeographic approaches. We performed a preliminary phylogenetic analysis including samples from the four subgenera within Adesmia. The analysis recovered two main clades that included species inhabiting the Arabian Desert and the Maghreb/North Africa region, reflecting a parallel evolutionary history of the two clades along a West–East axis. In one of these clades, Adesmia cancellata from Qatar and Adesmia maroccana from Morocco clustered together with the Onymacris samples from Namib, rendering Adesmia paraphyletic. Phylogeographic patterns were inferred through the analysis of mitochondrial genetic diversity in 33 populations distributed across Qatar. We framed the evolutionary history of the species during the Quaternary glaciations. Our results revealed strong mitochondrial homogeneity and an absence of geographical structure in the studied area. Habitat fragmentation and microhabitat preferences do not seem to be relevant factors in patterning the population genetic structure or in disrupting the cohesiveness of the species throughout the peninsula. A well-differentiated haplotype, however, was found in three individuals from Al Otouriyah. This rare haplotype could correspond to a retained ancestral polymorphism, suggesting that a large population of A. cancellata persisted in the area during the Plesitocene with recurrently expansions and colonizations following the marine transgression/regression cycles. Alternatively, the polymorphism could be representing remnants of past introductions. The lack of geographic structure of mtDNA across Qatar, the relatively low diversity and a recent temporal estimate of haplotype MRCAs, could be indicating then that the species colonized the Qatar peninsula recently, probably during the late Pleistocene. The successive erosion of the genetic diversity by cyclical population bottlenecks caused by the marine transgression/regressions cycles related to glacial/interglacial periods could account for the low levels of differentiation observed. In any case, the species has experienced a demographic growth since 30,000–25,000 yrs ago, probably coupled to the increase of aridity conditions in the area. A. cancellata can be considered a good example of the importance of past aridity episodes for population growth and diversification within the group, which has led darkling beetles to become one of the most impressive evolutionary radiations in desert biotas worldwide.Peer reviewe