A new species of lizard that finds itself at home—and very much camouflaged—on limestone rocks and jagged pinnacles has been discovered in central Laos.
Granted, spotting it in the photo is relatively easy, but imagine looking over a larger area of rock trying to spot one. You can see how well it blends in to its surroundings.
“Wow. It’s almost invisible in the rock,” one commenter stated in the Facebook post by Peter Brakels, who contributed to the discovery announced in Zoological Research. “No wonder the species hadn’t been discovered until now.”
The unique new species and genus of agamid lizard was discovered in the karstic (irregular limestone) massifs of Khammouan Province.
“Congratulations to the whole team,” Brakels wrote on Facebook. “With special thanks to Santi Xayyasith for discovering this amazing new agamid lizard in Laos.
“This work would have not been possible with the support from Sitthivong Saly our local Herpetologist here in Laos. Obviously, all of the co-authors contributed equally and were invaluable. Please have a read through of this unique and amazing discovery.”
The scientific name of the new species is Laodracon carsticola.
“Wow. Imagine if humans had the ability to camouflage themselves in such this manner,” another commenter wrote.
Photos courtesy of Zoological Research.