Frank Glaw has helped find and describe several new species of chameleons in Madagascar that were unknown to science, including Furcifer timoni, named after his son Timon.
We asked Frank how one describes a new species of chameleon. Where do you look? And what do you do if you think you’ve found one? ‘
Here are the steps that Frank and his fellow scientists take. Scientists take these same steps when they describe new species of insects, fish, and many other organisms.
Did you know? Around the world, many species are unknown to science, but may be known to local people. People living in Madagascar may have known about some of these chameleons long before Frank and his team carried out their fieldwork.
Step 1: Do background research in the library and museum.
Frank says, “The first step to discovering a new species is to know the available literature about the chameleon species, which has been described previously.”
The scientific literature Frank refers to is all the scientific papers, books, and other information one can find about chameleons in the place where you are looking for new species. This information can be hundreds of years old and is often written in different languages.
Step 2: Study the type specimens of chameleons that may be related to the species you hope to describe.
Type specimens are the actual preserved sample of an organism that scientists use to describe a new species. Type specimens are often stored at natural history museums. You might have to visit one or more museums to look at all the type specimens you need.
Step 3: Prepare for a field expedition. Organize how to pay and get permission to carry out research.
The next step is getting ready to go into the field to look for new chameleon species.
Field expeditions to remote places in Madagascar can be expensive, so you have to figure out how to pay for them. Frank applies for scientific grants to pay for his team’s expeditions. He also applies to the Madagascan wildlife authorities for permits to go to the field sites and collect chameleon specimens.
Step 4: Now the fun part starts. It’s expedition time!
Where do you start looking for undescribed chameleon species? Frank explains: “The best places to look for unknown species of chameleons are remote rainforests on high mountains or limestone massifs in dry forest regions, where nobody or only a few people have searched for reptiles previously.” A massif is a small group of mountains isolated from other groups of mountains. The massifs where Frank explores for an undescribed chameleon species are made from limestone.
When you go looking for chameleons is just as important as where. “The best time is a season with some rain when the chameleons are active and easier to find,” explains Frank. You don’t want to go at the peak of the rainy season though, because of cyclones. Cyclones are tropical storms that can unleash so much rain that they threaten the whole expedition.
Step 5: What to do if you think you’ve found a new chameleon.
After tromping through the forests and massifs and looking for chameleons, Frank and his colleagues find some! What do they do now?
“If we feel that we have discovered a new species, we take photographs,” explains Frank. “We then attach a label with a number and take a tissue sample of each individual for genetic studies, before we preserve the specimens in ethanol solution, where they can be stored for hundreds of years.”
Step 6: Take specimens and photos back to your laboratory.
Frank takes the chameleon specimens and photos he collected in the field back to his laboratory. He measures the chameleon samples’ bodies in many different ways; these measurements are known as morphological data. He sequences the DNA of the genetic samples from the chameleon and compares them to known species of chameleons. He measures the osteological characters of the chameleon samples, meaning its skeleton and bony structures.
“If the analysis of morphological, osteological, and genetic characters in the lab finds distinct differences with related chameleon species, a new species is identified,” explains Frank.
Step 7: Present your findings for peer review.
Now Frank and his colleagues present their proposed new species to the scientific world. They write an article, in which they describe the new species, compare it with the known species, and give the species a new scientific name.
They submit the article to a scientific journal, where it is reviewed by colleagues. This is called peer review. After some revision, hopefully the article will be accepted for publication. When the article is published, the new species is officially described.
We also asked Frank for advice about how people can help protect chameleons and their forest habitats in Madagascar.
Frank suggests that “Young people in Madagascar can take photos of chameleons and upload them on iNaturalist together with the corresponding GPS coordinates of the locality, where the photo was taken. iNaturalist is an internet platform with millions of photographs of animals and plants from all over the world, which are identified by experts to species level (if possible). Uploading photos is helpful to increase the knowledge on the distribution of species, especially when these photos were taken in still unstudied or poorly known areas.”
“Young people can also help to protect rainforests and dry forests by telling parents, friends, and other people that the widespread ‘slash and burn’ agriculture is destroying Madagascar’s unique biodiversity,” Frank says.
“Young people outside of Madagascar can support awareness about the unique biodiversity of this island country by sharing information about International Chameleon Day.”
Educator tip: If you thought you had discovered a new species, what steps would you take next? Discuss how scientists collect evidence, compare specimens, and share their findings for review.
Edited by David Brown
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