The demise of a wonder: evolutionary history and conservation assessments of the Wonder Gecko Teratoscincus keyserlingii (Gekkota, Sphaerodactylidae) in Arabia

Effective biodiversity conservation planning starts with the genetic
characterization within and among focal populations, in order to
understand the likely impact of threats for ensuring the long-term
viability of the species. The Wonder Gecko, Teratoscincus keyserlingii, is
one of nine members of the genus. The species is distributed in Iran,
Afghanistan and Pakistan, with a small isolated population in the United
Arab Emirates (UAE), where it is classified nationally as Critically
Endangered. Within its Arabian range, anthropogenic activity is
directly linked to the species’ decline, highly localized and severely
fragmented populations. Here we describe the evolutionary history of
Teratoscincus, by reconstructing its phylogenetic relationships and
estimating its divergence times and ancestral biogeography. For
conservation implications of T. keyserlingii we evaluate the genetic
structure of the Arabian population using genomic data. The presentstudy
supports the monophyly of most species and reveals considerable
intraspecific variability in T. microlepis and T. keyserlingii, which
necessitate broad systematic revisions. The UAE population of T.
keyserlingii likely arrived from southern Iran during the Pleistocene and
no internal structure was recovered within, implying a single population
status. Regional conservation of T. keyserlingii requires improved land
management and natural habitat restoration in the species’ present
distribution, and the expansion of current protected areas, or the
establishment of new areas with suitable habitats for the species, mostly
in northern Abu Dhabi Emirate.