Russian space sex lizards have died; does John Oliver know?

A group of geckos shot into space by Russia to monitor their sex habits in zero gravity have died.

The geckos, made famous largely by a segment during “Last Week Tonight With John Oliver,” were found dead inside a capsule when the Foton-M satellite carrying them landed Monday, the Information Telegraph Agency of Russia reported.

Early theories have the geckos -- five females and one male -- freezing to death, according to the Interfax wire service.

The geckos were put in the spotlight when Russia’s space agency lost contact with the satellite carrying them. News stations around the U.S. reported the bizarre experiment and the loss of communication, but it was the former reporter for “The Daily Show”-turned-new-HBO star who really sold the tale.

In July, Oliver ran a segment on his show demanding that the Russians do everything in their power to retrieve the capsule full of mating geckos.

With the hashtag #GoGetThoseGeckos, Oliver told his audience, with the help of multiple celebrity cameos, to write the Russian government on its official website and demand the geckos be returned to Earth safely. The hashtag began trending worldwide shortly after the show aired.

It is unclear how the HBO series star will react, but if it is anything like his initial reporting of the geckos plight, it should be pretty emotional and hilarious.

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