Lygodactylus

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Lygodactylus
Dwarf Yellow-headed gecko edit.jpg
Lygodactylus luteopicturatus
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Family: Gekkonidae
Subfamily: Uroplatinae
Genus: Lygodactylus
Gray, 1864 [1] [2]
Diversity
82 spp.

Lygodactylus is a genus of diurnal geckos with 82 species. They are commonly referred to as dwarf geckos. They are mainly found in Africa and Madagascar although two species are found in South America. Lygodactylus picturatus, the best known species, is found in Kenya and commonly known as the white-headed dwarf gecko. [3] Recently, illegal importation from Tanzania of brightly colored (and critically-endangered), Lygodactylus williamsi, known as electric blue geckos, has been gaining attention for Lygodactylus geckos in the reptile trade.

Contents

Since all trade in wild-caught Lygodactylus williamsi is illegal, shipments of these geckos are often intentionally mislabelled as Lygodactylus spp. or as Lygodactylus capensis . [4] As some customs officials have difficulty identifying members of this genus, [4] a Lygodactylus spp. identification guide has been published online by CITES. [5]

Species

Species in alphabetical order by specific name: [2]

Lygodactylus picturatus in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The tail has been detached due to a self-defense mechanism known as autotomy. White-headed dwarf gecko.jpg
Lygodactylus picturatus in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The tail has been detached due to a self-defense mechanism known as autotomy.

L. blancae (feminine, genitive, singular) is named for (Ms) Françoise Blanc, a French geneticist; but L. blanci (masculine, genitive, singular) is named for (Mr.) Charles Pierre Blanc, a French herpetologist. [7]

Nota bene : A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was original described in a genus other than Lygodactylus.

Related Research Articles

<i>Paroedura</i> Genus of lizards

Paroedura is a genus of geckos, endemic to Madagascar and the Comoros. These geckos are typically terrestrial, though the young of most species can climb until they are too heavy for their feet to support.

<i>Uroplatus</i> Genus of lizards

Uroplatus is a genus of geckos, commonly referred to as leaf-tail geckos or flat-tailed geckos, which are endemic to Madagascar and its coastal islands, such as Nosy Be. They are nocturnal, insectivorous lizards found exclusively in primary and secondary forest.

<i>Paragehyra</i> Genus of reptiles

Paragehyra is a genus of lizards in the family Gekkonidae (geckos). The genus is endemic to Madagascar.

<i>Calumma</i> Genus of lizards

Calumma is a genus of chameleons, highly adapted and specialised lizards, in the family Chamaeleonidae. The genus is endemic to the island of Madagascar. One species, formerly known as Calumma tigris, was transferred to the genus Archaius in 2010, upon the discovery of its closer relation to Rieppeleon—one of several genera referred to collectively as "leaf" or "pygmy" chameleons—rather than to Calumma. The earliest known fossil of the genus is of Calumma benovskyi, from early Miocene Kenya, showing that the genus likely originated on mainland East Africa. The genus includes one of the heaviest and longest chameleon species, the Parson's chameleon.

<i>Cophyla</i> Genus of amphibians

Cophyla is a genus of microhylid frogs endemic to Madagascar.

<i>Stumpffia</i> Genus of amphibians

Stumpffia is a genus of microhylid frogs that are endemic to Madagascar. They are mostly brown frogs that typically live among leaf litter. S. contumelia has a snout–vent length of about 8–9 mm (0.31–0.35 in), making it one of the world's smallest frogs, and several others in the genus are only slightly larger. The largest species is no more than 28 mm (1.1 in).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blanc's dwarf gecko</span> Species of lizard

Blanc's dwarf gecko is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is native to central Madagascar. They are the least known species of dwarf geckos in Madagascar. Blanc's dwarf geckos are one out of eleven gecko species that are protected in Madagascar. Hence, collecting them is only allowed with an appropriate permit.

<i>Rhombophryne</i> Genus of amphibians

Rhombophryne is a genus of microhylid frogs endemic to Madagascar. It is currently estimated to include more than 23 species, but only 20 of these are currently described. The common name 'diamond frog' has been proposed and used for members of this genus.

<i>Gephyromantis</i> Genus of amphibians

Gephyromantis is a frog genus in the mantellid subfamily Mantellinae. This genus is restricted to Madagascar. At present it contains 45 species divided into six subgenera.

<i>Lygodactylus blancae</i> Species of lizard

Lygodactylus blancae is a species of gecko, a lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is endemic to Madagascar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malagasy dwarf gecko</span> Species of lizard

The Malagasy dwarf gecko, also known commonly as Klemmer's dwarf gecko, is a species of gecko, a lizard in the family Gekkonidae.

<i>Lygodactylus pauliani</i> Species of lizard

Lygodactylus pauliani is a species of gecko, a lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is endemic to Madagascar.

Paragehyra felicitae is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is endemic to Madagascar.

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Mocquard's Madagascar ground gecko is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. It is a moderately-sized reptile reaching just over 7 cm (2.8 in) in snout–vent length. The species is endemic to southeastern Madagascar, where it can be found on the ground or climbing tree trunks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ibity ground gecko</span> Species of lizard

The Ibity ground gecko is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. Though initially described in 1998 as a subspecies of the Mocquard's Madagascar ground gecko, it has been recognized as a distinct species within the species complex since 2008. It is endemic to Ibity and Itremo in the Central Highlands of Madagascar, and is named after Mount Ibity where it was first discovered.

Achille Philippe Raselimanana is a Malagasy herpetologist.

<i>Paroedura guibeae</i> Species of lizard

Paroedura guibeae, Guibé's ground gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species was formerly synonymized with Paroedura bastardi, but a study in 2021 found that it represents a separate species within the species complex. It is endemic to Madagascar.

<i>Paroedura rennerae</i> Species of lizard

Paroedura rennerae is a species of lizards in the family of the Gekkonidae. Members of this species were formerly assigned to Paroedura bastardi, but a study in 2021 found that they represent a separate species within the species complex. It is endemic to Madagascar, where it occurs in a variety of habitats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louis du Preez</span> South African professor of zoology

Louis Heyns Du Preez is a South African professor of zoology who specialises in parasitology and herpetology at the North-West University. Du Preez is best known for his research on South African frog species, writing a widely used wildlife guide for the frogs of Southern Africa, and contributions to global parasitology with special focus studies on polystome worms. His contributions to polystome research have led to a recently discovered Malagasy frog species, Blommersia dupreezi, being named in his honour.

References

  1. "Lygodactylus ". ITIS (Integrated Taxonomic Information System). www.itis.gov.
  2. 1 2 Lygodactylus at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database
  3. "Lygodactylus picturatus White-headed Dwarf Gecko". Wildherps.com. Retrieved 2007-04-05.
  4. 1 2 CITES Proposal for inclusion
  5. TRAFFIC (2011). How to identify Lygodactylus williamsi: A photographic guide to the turquoise dwarf gecko. In: Wildlife Trade Handbook. TRAFFIC East/Southern Africa and the Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. 11–17.
  6. Marques, Mariana P.; Ceríaco, Luis M.P.; Buehler, Matthew D.; Bandeira, Suzana A.; Janota, Joyce M.; Bauer, Aaron M. (2020). "A revision of the Dwarf Geckos, genus Lygodactylus (Squamata: Gekkonidae), from Angola, with the description of three new species". Zootaxa. 4853 (3): 301–352. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4853.3.1. ISSN   1175-5334. PMID   33056364. S2CID   222841571.
  7. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN   978-1-4214-0135-5. (Lygodactylus blancae and L. blanci, p. 26).

Further reading