A New Mountain Horned Dragon Species: Acanthosaura syrax

Episode #157 of Daffy’s Round Table!

On this episode, I’m joined by Poramad Trivalairat and Chris to talk about the discovery and description of one of the newest species of mountain horned dragon, Acanthosaura syrax.

Por has now been involved in describing three different species of Acanthosaura, including Acanthosaura aurantiacrista in 2020, Acanthosaura meridiona in 2022, and Acanthosaura syrax in 2026.

The story behind syrax is especially cool because Por and Chris were not originally out looking for a new lizard species. Chris researches leeches and parasites associated with reptiles, and the two of them were actually out searching for leeches when they came across the animals that would eventually be described as Acanthosaura syrax.

We talk about how researchers decide that an animal may represent a new species, what happens after that initial suspicion, and the steps involved in formally describing and naming a species.

We also get into Acanthosaura in Thailand more broadly, including where these animals are living, the temperatures and habitats they experience in the wild, what they are actually eating, and what field observations can teach us about the way we understand mountain horned dragons in captivity.

Por also gives us a little hint that syrax may not be the last new Acanthosaura species we hear about, with a few more potentially being worked on right now.

Acanthosaura people, you're going to love this episode!

Huge thank you to Exo Terra for sponsoring this podcast and making this episode possible. Exo Terra makes quality products for our pet reptiles to make them feel at home.

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