Oriental leaf-toed gecko

Oriental leaf-toed gecko
Conservation status
	; Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Family:	Gekkonidae
Genus:	Hemidactylus
Species:	H. bowringii
Binomial name
	Hemidactylus bowringii; (Gray, 1845)
Synonyms
	Doryura bowringii; Gray, 1845; Hemidactylus bowringii; — Boulenger, 1885;

Last updated August 31, 2024

The Oriental leaf-toed gecko (Hemidactylus bowringii), also known commonly as the Asian smooth gecko, Bowring's gecko, Bowring's smooth gecko, and the Sikkimese dark-spotted gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is native to East Asia.

Etymology

The specific name, bowringii, is in honor of either John Charles Bowring, who was a British amateur naturalist and businessman in Hong Kong, or his father John Bowring, who was a British diplomat and a governor of Hong Kong.^[3]

Description

Boulenger (1885) described H. bowringii as follows: "Snout longer than the distance between the eye and the ear-opening, 1.4 times the diameter of the orbit; forehead slightly concave; ear-opening small, roundish. Body and limbs moderate; a slight fold of the skin along the flank. Digits free, moderately dilated, inner well developed; infradigital lamellae obliquely curved, 5 under the thumb, 7 or 8 under the fourth finger, 5 or 6 under the first toe, and 9 or 10 under the fourth toe. Upper surfaces covered with uniform small granular scales, largest on the snout, smallest on the occiput. Rostral four-sided, twice as broad as deep, with median cleft above; nostril pierced between the rostral, the first labial, and three or four nasals; 9 to 11 upper and 7 or 8 lower labials; mental large, triangular, followed by a pair of chin-shields; an outer pair of much smaller chin-shields. Abdominal scales moderate, cycloid, imbricate. Male with a series of preanal pores, interrupted mesially, composed of 13 pores on each side. Tail depressed, rounded, oval in section, covered above with uniform small scales, beneath with a median series of transversely dilated plates. Light brown above, with darker spots, having sometimes a tendency to form four longitudinal bands on the back; frequently small whitish spots on the body and limbs; a dark streak passing through the eye; tail above with small chevron-shaped markings; lower surfaces whitish.

From snout to vent 1.3 in (3.3 cm); tail 2 in (5.1 cm)." ^[4]

Geographic range

Hemidactylus bowringii is found in East Asia, including Bhutan, Nepal, southern China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Vietnam (Ha Noi; Hon Thom Island), and Japan (Ryukyu Islands = Okinawa).^[2]

Habitat

The preferred natural habitat of H. bowringii is forest, at altitudes from sea level to 1,250 m (4,100 ft), but it has also been found in plantations and around man-made structures in urban areas.^[1]

Reproduction

Hemidactylus bowringii is oviparous.^[2] Clutch size is 2–3 eggs, which hatch after 30 days of incubation.^[1]

Related Research Articles

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Hemidactylus persicus, also known as the Persian leaf-toed gecko or Persian gecko, is a species of gecko found in West Asia.

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Hemidactylus subtriedrus, also known as Jerdon's gecko or Madras blotched gecko, is a species of gecko found in India and Sri Lanka.

Hemidactylus triedrus, also known as the termite hill gecko, Dakota's leaf-toed gecko, or blotched house gecko, is a species of gecko found in South Asia. The race lankae of Sri Lanka, is now given species status and known as Hemidactylus lankae

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References

1 2 3 Wogan G, Nguyen NS, Golynsky E, Milto K, Thaksintham W, Danaisawat P, Wang Y, Shang G, Yang J, Cai B (2019). "Hemidactylus bowringii ". The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2019: https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-2.RLTS.T194106A2299360.en. Downloaded on 13 October 2021.
1 2 3 Species Hemidactylus bowringii at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.
↑ Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Hemidactylus bowringii, p. 36).
↑ Boulenger GA (1890). The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma. Reptilia and Batrachia. London: Secretary of State for India in Council. (Taylor and Francis, printers). xviii + 541 pp. (Hemidactylus bowringii, p. 93).