Citizen Science Assisted Monitoring Provides New Data Concerning the Distribution of the Bulgarian Bent-toed Gecko, Mediodactylus danilewskii (Gekkonidae, Squamata), in North-East Bulgaria

Abstract

The Bulgarian Bent-toed Gecko (Mediodactylus danilewskii Strauch, 1887) is one of the two species of geckos inhabiting the territory of Bulgaria. In the recent years, new information on its distribution was published and big amount of data were collected. We organized an information platform for sharing data on the biology and live-range of M. danilewskii in North-East Bulgaria. This gecko is a highly synanthropic species which is often observed by citizens. Here we report on four new observation spots and also confirm the presence of the species from recently published localities. All data were recorded by volunteers, hence we discuss on the methods for documentation of the specimens and the critical role of the citizen science to assess the range of distribution of the species.

Keywords

• volunteers
• observation
• documentation
• population
• new locality
• gecko