Rare lizard calls Laughlin home

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Nathan Maysonet
  • 47th Flying Training Wing Public Affairs
LAUGHLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  The spot tailed earless lizard is a rare species of reptile once widely found across Southern Texas which is now steadily disappearing, leading many researchers to scramble to find the creature.

From March 18 to 19, one of those searches led The Nature Conservancy, a nonprofit conservation organization, to Laughlin in the hopes of finding the small creature.

"I got a call from Charles Duran, a vertebrate zoologist with the organization, and he told me that the lizard might have been spotted near the South Compass Pad on the airfield," said Danny Yandell, 47th Civil Engineer Squadron integrated natural resources manager. "He asked if he could come out to base and do a survey here."

The 47th CES agreed to help because studies like this are part of their responsibility in managing Laughlin's natural resources, explained Yandell. The lizard, and various other creatures that call Laughlin home are a part of those resources and so Duran arrived on base with the full support of Laughlin to seek out the elusive lizard.

"Everyone I met here was supportive of what I was doing," said Duran. "Everyone was as excited by my search as I was to be working here."

Yandell and Duran began their search of the grounds just beyond the airfield and after some time, the two men found not just one but five of the lizards southeast of the fire training area on the airfield.

Duran explained that he did not even expect to find one of the lizards, let alone a strong community of them here especially since they are so rare.

"It was unbelievable," said Duran. "Just seeing them move about the dry and flat land at the end of the runway, moving in and out of little burrows, tells us more than we ever knew about them."

After photographing the lizards' activities, Duran retrieved one for further study at the Fort Worth Zoo in Fort Worth, Texas, and explained that this was the first specimen of this subspecies collected since 1991, which was also collected here at Laughlin's auxiliary air field at Spofford.

After collecting the lizard, Duran left Laughlin to compile his findings and prepare for a larger investigation of the area with a team of biologists.

Duran's team will coordinate with the 47th CES to visit in April. They will conduct a number of surveys including a vegetation study and soil sampling to learn more about the lizard, explained Yandell.

"Conducting surveys like this helps us understand that we operate in a very complex environment. These surveys play a part in the goals set by our Integrated Natural Resources Management Plan," said Yandell. "We have always supported partnerships that help to maintain quality management of our natural resources."