(MENAFN- Muscat Daily) A new house gecko species said to be the smallest in mainland Arabia has been discovered in Oman.
Called Hemidactylus minutus the species lives in rocky environments close to the Arabian Sea coast and is found between Asylah in northeast Oman and Dhofar.
'The new species is characterised morphologically by its very small size and that is why its scientific name is H. minutus as it is the smallest Hemidactylus in mainland Arabia' said Dr Salvador Carranza the lead Spanish researcher studying reptiles of Oman.
With this new addition Oman's list of terrestrial reptiles now includes 91 species of which 13 are endemic to the country. This new species discovered is nearly endemic to Oman and also found near the border with Yemen.
The species was discovered by a group of researchers led by Dr Carranza from the Institute of Evolutionary Biology in Barcelona Spain.
He along with his team discovered the new species in coastal Oman and eastern Yemen as part of the 2013 project 'Field Study for the Conservation of the Reptiles of Oman' funded by the Ministry of Environment and Climate Affairs.
Dr Carranza has been carrying out research on reptile fauna in the country since 2004. Recently he described eight new species of geckos from Oman; seven of them endemic to the country.
'As this work is still ongoing the description of new species for the country and production of important information for conservation management should follow' said Dr Carranza.
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