| Lucasium byrnei | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Family: | Diplodactylidae |
| Genus: | Lucasium |
| Species: | L. byrnei |
| Binomial name | |
| Lucasium byrnei (A. H. S. Lucas & C. Frost, 1896) | |
| Synonyms [1] | |
| |
Lucasium byrnei, also known commonly as the gibber gecko, Byrne's gecko, and the pink-blotched gecko, is a species of small, nocturnal lizard in the family Diplodactylidae. The species is endemic to Australia.
The specific name, byrnei, is in honour of Australian telegraph official P.M. "Paddy" Byrne. [2]
Up to 80 mm (3.1 in) in total length (including tail), the gibber gecko is a pale, creamy-fawn to reddish-brown or dark brown colour above, with scattered darker flecks and spots and some tiny pale dots, and usually with a distinct series of four or five conspicuous, irregular, W-shaped dark brown transverse bars or blotches between nape and hindlimbs. [3]
It has a short, convex head with a rounded snout; the ear-opening is very small and rounded. Its rostral scale is very low and is about four times as broad as high, without a median cleft. Scales on the throat are minute and granular, whereas abdominal scales are flat, roundish, juxtaposed, and a little smaller than the dorsal tubercles. The gibber gecko's tail is cylindrical and tapering, with rings of scales that are convex above and flat and subquadrangular beneath. The male of the species has three or four blunt spines on each side of the base of the tail. [4]
The gibber gecko is terrestrial, hiding in ground litter, holes and ground crevices during the day, and emerging at night to forage in open areas. It is found in a wide range of habitats from mallee and open woodland to saltbush and sandy desert. [3] Due to the delicate surface architecture of its apical plates, it is considered unlikely that the gibber gecko would actively burrow, and instead it would be expected to be restricted to occupying previously excavated burrows or other retreats. [5]
The gibber gecko is found in central New South Wales and its southern interior, the eastern half of South Australia, and extending into adjacent border regions of Queensland and the Northern Territory. [3]
The gibber gecko is insectivorous, with its natural diet comprising small spiders, ants, cockroaches, crickets, termites, and moths. [6]
The family Gekkonidae comprises 111 species in Australia which are normally no larger than 150 mm (5.9 in) in snout-to-vent length (SVL) with five digits that bear circular toe pads. [7] The family is separated into two subfamilies: Gekkoninae and Diplodactylinae. These subfamilies are further broken down into many genera, of which the following genera are found in Australia: Diplodactylus , Gehyra , Hemidactylus , Heteronotia , Lepidodactylus , Nactus , Nephrurus , Oedura , Phyllurus , Pseudothecadactylus , Rhynchoedura , Saltuarius , Strophurus , and Underwoodisaurus . [8] The gibber gecko was originally described by Arthur Henry Shakespeare Lucas and Charles Frost in 1896 as Diplodactylus byrnei in the subfamily Diplodactylinae and further in the genus Diplodactylus which can be identified by the lack of caudal glands, the presence of small, retractable claws, and digits that lie flat on the ground. [3]
Diplodactylus is a genus of geckos of the family Diplodactylidae from Australia. They are sometimes called stone geckos or fat-tailed geckos. Member species are morphologically similar but genetically distinct.
The beaded gecko is a gecko endemic to Australia.
The western beaked gecko is a species of gecko found throughout the interior of Australia.
Diplodactylinae is a subfamily in the family Diplodactylidae sensu lato. In some classifications, it is equivalent to family Diplodactylidae, which is in the infraorder Gekkota. There are 142 species in seventeen genera.
Diplodactylus vittatus, commonly known as the eastern stone gecko, stone gecko, and wood gecko, is a species of diplodactylid lizards that occurs in forest, shrubland and arid regions across Australia. It is widespread across the states of Queensland, Victoria and New South Wales, commonly found in dry peripheral bushlands. This gecko can be kept as a pet or seen within zoo enclosures.
The Carphodactylidae, informally known as the southern padless geckos, are a family of geckos, lizards in the infraorder Gekkota. The family consists of 32 described species in 7 genera, all of which are endemic to Australia. They belong to the superfamily Pygopodoidea, an ancient group of east Gondwanan geckos now only found in Australasia. Despite their well-developed limbs, molecular phylogenies have demonstrated that Carphodactylidae is the sister group to Pygopodidae, a highly specialized family of legless lizards.
The Diplodactylidae are a family in the suborder Gekkota (geckos), with over 150 species in 25 genera. These geckos occur in Australia, New Zealand, and New Caledonia. Diplodactylids are the most ecologically diverse and widespread family of geckos in both Australia and New Caledonia, and are the only family of geckos found in New Zealand. Three diplodactylid genera have recently been split into multiple new genera
Lucasium steindachneri, commonly called the box-patterned gecko or Steindachner's gecko, is a species of nocturnal, medium-sized lizard in the family Diplodactylidae. The species has a pale strip with three patches of brown along its back. This gecko is terrestrial and only found in arid and semi-arid areas of continental Australia.
Lucasium stenodactylum, also known as the crowned gecko or pale-snouted ground gecko, is a species of gecko from Australia.
Diplodactylus tessellatus, commonly known as the tessellated gecko, is a small terrestrial lizard found distributed in inland New South Wales, Queensland, Northern Territory, South Australia and the north western corner of Victoria. The tessellated gecko is one of 26 species in the genus Diplodactylus all of which are confined to continental Australia. A small gecko varying in colour from grey to rich reddish-brown with a highly variable dorsal pattern.
Strophurus intermedius, also known commonly as the eastern spiny-tailed gecko or the southern spiny-tailed gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Diplodactylidae. The species is endemic to semi-arid regions of Australia in New South Wales, Northern Territory, South Australia, Victoria and Western Australia, in mallee shrubland and woodland habitats.
The variable fat-tailed gecko or burrow-plug gecko is a diplodactylid gecko endemic to central and arid inland areas of Australia. Widespread across the continent, the variable fat-tailed is most commonly found in sandy desert habitats dominated by Spinifex grasses. They have also been bred in captivity by zoos and as pets.
Lucasium is a genus of lizards, sometimes called ground geckos, in the family Diplodactylidae. The genus is endemic to Australia, and it includes 14 species.
Main's ground gecko is a species of gecko, a lizard in the family Diplodactylidae. The species is endemic to Australia.
The short-tailed striped gecko, also known commonly as McMillan's spiny-tailed gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Diplodactylidae. The species is endemic to Australia.
The Exmouth spiny-tailed gecko, also known commonly as Rankin's spiny-tailed gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Diplodactylidae. The species is endemic to Western Australia.
Strophurus taenicauda, also known commonly as the golden spiny-tailed gecko or the golden-tailed gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Diplodactylidae. The species is endemic to eastern Australia. Three subspecies are recognized.
Strophurus williamsi, also known commonly as the eastern spiny-tailed gecko, the soft-spined gecko, and Williams' spiny-tailed gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Diplodactylidae. The species is endemic to semi-arid regions of eastern Australia including Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia. it has become a popular species as a pet for its distinctive tail features. S.williamsi has been grouped within a clade of seven other species that are believed to have diverged from their ancestors around 16 million years ago S.williamsi can be distinguished from closer relatives by arboreality and diurnal (day-active) activity.
The gibber earless dragon, also known as the smooth-snouted earless dragon, is a species of agamid lizard endemic to Australia. It is one of a documented species of the genus Tympanocryptis, a group of small terrestrial lizards that feed off invertebrates and are characterised by the absence of an external ear structure.
