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North-Western Journal of Zoology Vol. 3, No. 2, 2007 – Short Note
Eremias arguta deserti (Reptilia: Lacertidae)
is not extinct from Romanian Moldavia
Iulian GHERGHEL1, Alexandru STRUGARIU2 and Teodor GLAVAN3
1. Piatra Neamţ Technical College, Stefan cel Mare Str. Nr. 67, 610101, Piatra Neamt, Romania,
Phone No: (004) 0741 307 799, E-mail: iuliangherghel@gmail.com
2. “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University, Faculty of Biology, Carol I Blvd. Nr. 20 A, 700506, Iaşi, Romania.
Phone No : (004) 0740 161 182, E-mail: alex.strugariu@gmail.com
3. Romanian Ornithological Society (SOR), Galaţi Branch, Gării Str. Nr. 59-61, Bl. 1A, Ap. 97, 800217, Galati,
Romania. Phone No: (004) 0729 112 932, E-mail: theodor_glavan@yahoo.com
Abstract. The present paper proves that the endangered steppe runner (Eremias arguta
deserti) still exists in the “Hanu Conachi River Sand Dunes” Nature Reserve. Prior to this
study it had not been recorded for almost 40 years and had been reported as extinct in
this region by the Romanian Red Data Book of Vertebrates. However, the majority of its
natural habitat has been destroyed by the Robinia pseudoacacia plantations from the
reserve. In order to ensure the survival of Eremias arguta deserti in the reserve, and in
Romanian Moldavia, urgent measures have to be taken to reconstruct its natural habitat
through the development of a management plan under the supervision and guidance of
experts. At present, the steppe runner population from Hanu Conachi is extremely
threatened.
Key Words: Steppe runner, Hanu Conachi, sand dunes, anthropogenic impact, Robinia
pseudoacacia plantations, Galaţi County
The steppe runner (Eremias arguta
deserti Gmelin, 1789) occupies a vast
territory, being common in northern
Caucasus, southern European Russia,
Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and
south-eastern Romania (Fuhn &
Vancea 1961, Fuhn 1960, Chirikova &
Kolbinez 2003). In Romania, this
species has previously been reported
from the sand dunes of the Danube
Delta (the islands of Letea, Caraorman,
Sărăturile, Sfântu Gheorghe, Peri-
teasca, Chituc; Fuhn & Vancea 1969,
Fuhn 1969, Iftime 2005), the sandy
beaches at Vadu (Covaciu-Marcov et al
2006a), both Enisala and Jurilocva
(Iftime 2005) and from southern
Moldavia at Hanu Conachi (Băcescu
1937, Fuhn & Vancea 1961, Fuhn 1969)
(fig.1). The population from southern
Moldavia was recently catalogued as
extinct in the Romanian red data book
of vertebrates (Iftime 2005). Across its
wide range, the steppe runner mostly
inhabits steppe regions with loess and
wormwood (Artemisia absinthium)
(Fuhn 1969). However, in Romania it
is only encountered on sand dunes,
which are covered with rare vege-
tation, especially xerophilious species
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Oradea, Romania
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Gherghel, I. et al. 116
(Euphorbia sp., Juncus sp., Elymus sp.,
Salix repens) (Fuhn & Vancea 1961,
Iftime 2005).
E. a. deserti has not been recoded in
Moldavia since 1969 (Fuhn 1969). This
fact is also probably due to the fact
that no known attempts to identify
this species in the “Hanu Conachi
River Sand Dunes” Nature Reserve
have been made until 2001 and 2005,
when, following those studies, it was
officially considered extinct within the
area (Iftime 2001, 2005). Only one
other herpetological study has been
carried out in the area since then, but it
did not cover the territory in which E.
arguta deserti has been known to occur
and, as a result, could not confirm its
presence or absence in the area
(Covaciu-Marcov et al. 2006b).
Figure no. 1 A - Distribution of Eremias arguta deserti in Romania (after Iftime 2005, modified:
1. Grindul Letea; 2. Grindul Caraorman; 3. Grindul Sărăturile, Sfântul Gheorghe; 4, 5. Grindul
Periteaşca; 6. Enisala; 7. Jurilovca; 8. Grindul Chituc; 9. Vadu; 10. Hanu Conachi – present study).
B - The location of the area in which we identified Eremias arguta deserti : The “birch cluster” (Pâlcul cu
Mesteceni) from the “Hanu Conachi River Sand Dunes” Nature Reserve
Between the 13th -14th of august
2007, at the invitation of the Romanian
Ornithological Society and the Galaţi
Forestry Department, we organized a
herpetological investigation in the
“Hanu Conachi River Sand Dunes”
Nature Reserve, with the aim of
establishing if Eremias arguta deserti
(fig.2) is still present in the area, the
presence of the steppe runner being
one of the main reasons for which the
nature reserve was first declared.
Numerous transects were investigated
in all types of habitat (with special
attention paid to the areas with sandy
soil) and a relatively large part of the
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Eremias arguta deserti is not extinct from Romanian Moldavia 117
N West J Zool, 3, 2007
reserve was searched. After several
failed attempts to find the steppe
runner in several scientifically im-
portant parts of the reserve (e.g. “Du-
nele cu Salix” = the Dunes with Salix),
we found it strictly localized in the
centre of the reserve (fig.3). In total, we
captured 16 juvenile and one adult
Eremias arguta deserti in the area
known as “Pâlcul cu Mesteceni” (= the
Birch Cluster). The animals were
photographed and released into their
habitat. However, we must mention
that one juvenile steppe runner was
accidentally killed by one of the
forestry workers which guided and
helped us during out survey. The
animal was preserved and sub-
sequently donated to the Natural
History Museum of Iaşi (MINJ),
Romania by A.S.
The area in which the steppe
runner was identified is located at an
altitude of 19 m a.s.l. and the
geographical coordinates are: 45033'48''
N; 27034'56'' E (fig.1). On the sand
dunes from the “Birch Cluster”, the
steppe runner is found in sympatry
with the green lizard (Lacerta viridis),
these being the only reptile species
which we identified in the area. Past
publications have also reported the
presence of the large whip snake
(Dolichophis caspius) in the reserve but
this species has not been found in the
area since 1937 and is considered to be
extinct from the region (reviewed by
Iftime 2005, Strugariu & Gherghel
2007). The green toad (Bufo viridis) was
also recorded by us from the outskirts
of the reserve.
In spite of our efforts, we could not
identify any other Eremias arguta
deserti populations inside the Reserve,
this is likely to be a consequence of the
fact that the majority of the species’
natural habitat has been destroyed and
replaced with the Robinia pseudoacacia
plantations. Even in the areas where
sand dunes still exist (e.g. “Dunele cu
Salix”= the Dunes with Salix), the
vegetation is very rare or it is too
dense and mostly formed by Poaceae
species or young R. pseudoacacia, which
are slowly advancing towards the
areas which are still covered by sand
dunes.
The “Hanu Conachi River Sand
Dunes” Nature Reserve occupies a
surface area of 199.3 Ha and is situated
south-west from the locality of Hanu
Conachi (Galaţi County, Romania). At
present, the reserve is mostly covered
by Robinia pseudoacacia and Pinus nigra
which were planted by the Galaţi
Forestry Department in the 1980’s (I.
Manolache, pers. comm. 2007). The
planting of these forests are
responsible for the disappearance of
the native sand dunes. In the past, the
sand dunes were present in the shape
of strips of variable widths (0,5 – 1
km), up to 4.2 km in length, with a N-S
orientation. Nowadays, sand dunes
can be found in very few isolated
areas, with each of these not exceeding
a 2 Ha in size. Several tree species,
relicts of the former native habitat,
appear isolated in the reserve: Quercus
sp. (which can be found inside the R.
pseudoacacia plantation), Salix rosmarin-
ifolia (in the “Dunes with Salix”), and
Betula pendula (in the area known as
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Gherghel, I. et al. 118
the “birch cluster”). The sand dune
vegetation is rare and mostly com-
posed of xerophilious species (Stippa
sp., Festuca sp.). The climate of the area
is continental, with average multi-
annual temperatures of 110C, with the
average temperature in July exceeding
220C. There is a very low level of pre-
cipitation, with average annual values
of 400 mm. The reserve is situated at
altitudes of between 14 m a.s.l. in the
southern areas of the Reserve to 20.5 m
a.s.l. in its central area.
Figure no.2 Adult E. a. deserti from
“Hanu Conachi”
(photo by Al. Strugariu 2007)
Figure no.3 A - Aspect of the “Hanu Conachi River Sand Dunes” Nature Reserve
with R. pseudoacacia plantations (photo by Al. Strugariu 2006)
B – The steppe runner habitat inside the reserve (photo by Al. Strugariu 2007)
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Eremias arguta deserti is not extinct from Romanian Moldavia 119
N West J Zool, 3, 2007
During our survey, we have
observed that the typical sand dune
habitat for Eremias arguta deserti,
described in the literature (Fuhn &
Vancea 1961, Fuhn 1969) have been
almost completely destroyed by the
planting of Robinia pseudoacacia within
the Hanu Conachi reserve (fig.3). The
steppe runner is strictly protected in
Romania through the Law 462/2001,
being included in Annex 4, and it is
considered a species of national
interest which demands strict
protection through the OUG 57/2007,
where it is included in annex 4b. It is
thought that the populations of
Eremias arguta deserti from Romania
comprise less than 5000 individuals
and, therefore it is considered to be an
endangered species at a national level
(Iftime 2005).
We consider that the R. pseudoacacia
plantations are the main cause for the
destruction of the habitat of the steppe
runner in the “Hanu Conachi River
Sand Dunes” Nature Reserve.
Therefore, we recommend that a long
term management plan should be
conceived, in order to clear the
plantation areas, under the careful
supervision of experts. The aim of this
plan would be to reconstruct the
native natural habitats that once
existed in the area. At present, taking
all of the above into consideration, we
consider the Eremias arguta deserti
population from southern Moldavia to
be in a critical state. Also, we suggest
that further, more detailed research
should be performed in the areas
surrounding of the “Hanu Conachi
River Sand Dunes” Nature Reserve in
order to establish the eventual pre-
sence of potential habitats or other
populations of the steppe runner.
Ackowledgements. The present study was
made with the help of the Hanu Conachi
Forestry Department which offered us bedding
and transportation during our stay in the area,
as well as guidance in the field and background
information on the reserve. We also thank
Alexandru Iftime (Grigore Antipa Natural
History Museum, Bucharest) for the offered
literature.
References
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herpetological data for the Romanian fauna
and some proposals of natural reserves with
concern to them. Revista ştiinţifică “V.
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Covaciu-Marcov, S.D., Ghira, I., Cicort-Lucaciu,
A.Şt., Sas, I., Strugariu, A., Bogdan, H.V.
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