A Stellenbosch University (SU) student’s research project will be the first study conducted with a focus on the effects of water loss on South African lizards and predicting their vulnerability to climate change. This was according to Gerhard Wiese, a masters in zoology student at SU.
This study will enhance the predictions regarding the vulnerability of South African lizards when exposed to extreme temperatures, said prof Susana Clusella-Trullas, Wiese’s supervisor.
Stellenbosch student Gerhard Wiese recently received a grant to work on his research project, which will be the first study conducted focusing on the effects that water loss has on different species of South African reptiles and their vulnerability to climate change. He is excited about the research project because it will give recognition to more African researchers in the herpetology field, he stated. PHOTO: Michelle Grobbelaar
“We know very little about the quantity of water that lizards lose when it gets warm,” said Wiese. “I am trying to measure how resistant each species is to dehydration as air temperatures increase.”
Wiese does this by bringing field animals to the lab, exposing them to set temperatures and using a machine to measure the water vapour being released by them, he explained.
Wiese chose to do the research project because “studying water loss will be highly informative, especially since there aren’t that many studies that have looked into it yet”, he said.
He was recently awarded a research grant from The Herpetological Association of Africa (HAA) for the study, said Wiese. The HAA is an organisation dedicated to researching reptiles and amphibians according to its website.
The R15 000 grant will specifically go towards buying gas cylinders for the experiments and buying crickets to feed the animals in the lab, said Wiese.
The highest ranking
“This is fantastic news for an MSc postgraduate student,” said Clusella-Trullas.
A number of independent reviewers were asked to rank the grant applications, said Bryan Maritz, a member of HAA committee.
“[Wiese’s] research identified a well-defined question regarding African herpetology and identified how he might be able to answer that question with the funds that we were offering,” stated Maritz.
Gerhard Wiese’s highest qualities are tenacity and thinking outside the box, said prof Susana Clusella-Trullas, Wiese’s supervisor. PHOTO: Michelle Grobbelaar
Appreciating the under-appreciated
Wiese told SMF News that he completed his undergraduate and honours degrees in zoology at the University of Pretoria. He became interested in amphibians and reptiles because he always liked “under-appreciated and charismatic animals”, he stated.
Wiese has been working on a broad group of animals – such as chameleons and skinks – for the research project, he said.
A Stellenbosch University masters of zoology student, Gerhard Wiese, titled his research project “Rates of body water: a new currency for predicting vulnerability of lizards to warming?” This was according to Wiese. He was awarded a R15 000 research grant from the Herpetological Association of Africa (HAA), stated Wiese. PHOTO: Michelle Grobbelaar