Auckland green gecko | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Order: | Squamata |
Infraorder: | Gekkota |
Family: | Diplodactylidae |
Genus: | Naultinus |
Species: | N. elegans |
Binomial name | |
Naultinus elegans Gray, 1842 | |
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Distribution of the Auckland green gecko on the North Island map Known native range | |
Synonyms | |
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The Auckland green gecko (Naultinus elegans), also known as the elegant gecko, [3] is a species of gecko found only in the northern half of the North Island of New Zealand, except north of Whangaroa.
The species was described by John Edward Gray in 1842. [4] In 1872, Frederick Hutton described the Nelson green gecko as a subspecies, Naultinus elegans stellatus, [5] which was elevated to species status in 1982. [6] In 1980, the Wellington green gecko was synonymised as a subspecies of Naultinus elegans, with the Auckland green gecko being referred to as Naultinus elegans elegans and the Wellington green gecko as Naultinus elegans punctatus. [7] In 2014 the species name was standardised as Naultinus punctatus. [8] The Wellington green gecko is found in the southern half of the North Island, and can hybridise with the Auckland green gecko in places where their ranges overlap.
Gray's original text (the type description) reads as follows:
Thumbs clawed: green, rather paler beneath; streak along the under lip, the ears, two arched stripes on the top of the head, irregular shaped spots on each side of the back and hind legs, interrupted streak along each side of the body and tail, white, with a narrow black edge, with a cross series of 3 compressed larger scales at the base of the tail. [4]
The species can grow up to 75 mm (3.0 in) in length, and is recognisable by its bright green colouration. [3]
Apart from range, the Auckland green gecko differs from the Wellington green gecko in that it is marginally smaller and more slender in build and also the undersurfaces of the feet and toes in elegans are coloured grey green, while they are yellow in colouration in the latter species.
The species is found in the upper half of the North Island, except north of Whangaroa, as well as four of the islands of the Hauraki Gulf. [3]
In 2012 the Department of Conservation classified the Auckland green gecko as At Risk under the New Zealand Threat Classification System. It was judged as meeting the criteria for At Risk threat status as a result of it having a low to high ongoing or predicted decline. [1]
Hoplodactylus is a genus of geckos in the family Diplodactylidae. The genus is endemic to New Zealand, one of the seven genera of geckos found only in New Zealand. Hoplodactylus comprises two species of large to gigantic brownish lizards.
Naultinus is a genus of geckos that are endemic to New Zealand. On account of their striking colouration, species in the genus Naultinus are commonly known as green geckos. There are nine described species in the genus. Species in the genus share a number of traits that set them apart as quite different from the rest of the world's two thousand odd gecko species, which are generally brown in colour, ovivaparous, short-lived and nocturnal. In contrast, Naultinus are green, ovovivaparous, live up to 30 years or more and are strictly diurnal. New Zealand has a temperate, maritime climate, and in terms of distribution Naultinus is one of the southernmost gecko genera in the world — some species live in habitats in the South Island which receive regular snowfall in winter. Animals in this genus possess several physiological and behavioural adaptations to cope with these periods of low temperatures and adverse weather.
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