In May and June of 2019, I traveled to Uzbekistan with Dr. Jesse Grismer (La Sierra University), Jack Lapin (University of Kansas), Dr. Natalia Ananjeva, and Dr. Roman Nazarov. We had the goal of assessing and sampling species endemic to the Ferghana Valley in eastern Uzbekistan. The valley is nestled between the Alay Mountain and Tien Shen Mountain Ranges, and is filled with incredibly fertile soil. However, the biodiversity of the region is threatened by agricultural growth, as well as urbanization in other parts of the country. The rolling sand dune systems are being removed to plant crops and create fish farms, which is reducing the fluidity of the dune systems. Sand is also being removed from the valley to be used in concrete for developing other parts of the country. As a result, species that need loose sand soil are losing habitat because the dune systems are being stabilized. We spent several days in the Valley collecting non-destructive tissue samples from endangered species such as Teratoscincus rustamowi and Phrynocephalus struchi, both which are endemic to the Ferghana. These samples will be used to assess population health in the dune systems, and estimate the genetic diversity still remaining, and how drastically habitat destruction has impacted the both species.
After leaving the Ferghana we traveled back through the capital and south through the ancient city of Samarqand and through to Termez. The climate between Tashkent (the captial) and southern Uzbekistan is quite stark. Upon leaving the state of Samarkand, and entering Qashqadaryo you drop out of the mountains on a highway and descend into a more arid environment speckled with broken mountain ranges. Along the way we collected Laudakia, Pseudotrapelus, and many more Phrynocephalus species. Eventually we moved northwest to Bukara for a respite and on to the center of the Kyzylkum Desert. We finished our trip in the Nurata Mountains south of Aydar Lake.
The herpetofauna of Uzbekistan is quite incredible. There are genera typical to the tropics southeast of Uzbekistan such as Boiga and Lycodon. Additionally, you get things more closely related to African taxa such as Pseudotrapelus. By far the most fun critters to catch are the monitors, Varanus griseus, that roam the deserts of Uzbekistan during the hottest part of the day. We were most successful catching them while traveling between camps, because you can see them from the van, and in a flurry of movement everyone leaps from the vehicle to run down the lizard.
Matt Buehler 