Discussion Session on Thriving Cities: Focus on Urban Reptiles
In the heart of New Zealand, a significant event is set to unfold on July 23, 2025, as the 'Thriving Cities' webinar delves into the fascinating world of urban lizards. This webinar, scheduled from 12:00 pm to 12:30 pm, is open to all and can be registered for at [www.waikato.ac.nz/news-events/events/find-event/thriving-cities-webinar-series-urban-lizards/](http://www.waikato.ac.nz/news-events/events/find-event/thriving-cities-webinar-series-urban-lizards/).
The webinar, designed for councils, planners, researchers, ecologists, and wildlife enthusiasts, promises to share cutting-edge research, case studies, and practical insights on lizard conservation in urban spaces. The event will be co-presented by two esteemed experts in the field: **Nicky Nelson**, Dean of STEM at Victoria University of Wellington, and **Chris Woolley**, a post-doctoral fellow with a joint appointment at Victoria University of Wellington and Zealandia.
**Nicky Nelson**, with over 20 years of expertise in lizard ecology and evolution, will share her extensive knowledge, while **Chris Woolley**, who leads conservation and monitoring of urban lizards in New Zealand, will provide valuable insights into the conservation and monitoring of these fascinating creatures in urban environments.
The webinar aims to shed light on how lizards survive in New Zealand's urban environments and what their presence reveals about the health of urban ecosystems. One of the activities during the webinar is the 'Similarities and differences: skinks and geckos', which uses a Venn diagram to illustrate key characteristics and observations.
In addition to the webinar, there are other related projects, such as 'Skink Spotter NZ', an online citizen science project that identifies skinks in time-lapse image sequences, and 'Create a lizard-friendly habitat', which provides ideas for attracting skinks and geckos to school grounds. The data from these projects will inform scientists about the link between skink behavior and weather conditions.
To further enhance your observation skills, the webinar also suggests the activity 'Observation: learning to see'. This activity encourages participants to develop a keen eye for detail, which is crucial in studying and understanding lizards in urban environments.
The 'Thriving Cities' webinar is a nationwide event, offering a unique opportunity for everyone interested in lizards, urban ecosystems, and conservation to learn from experts and contribute to the conversation. So, mark your calendars for July 23, 2025, and join the 'Thriving Cities' webinar to explore the captivating world of urban lizards.
- In addition to the urban lizard webinar, the 'Skink Spotter NZ' and 'Create a lizard-friendly habitat' projects are also centered around environmental-science, inviting citizens to participate in real-world research and better understand the link between skink behavior and weather conditions.
- As part of the 'Thriving Cities' webinar series, science enthusiasts will gain insights from esteemed experts in the fields of science, health-and-wellness, fitness-and-exercise, and environmental-science, as Nicky Nelson and Chris Woolley discuss the conservation and monitoring of urban lizards, as well as their impact on the health of urban ecosystems.
