Pachydactylus vansoni

Van Son's thick-toed gecko
In the Soutpansberg, South Africa
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1) [1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Gekkota
Family:	Gekkonidae
Genus:	Pachydactylus
Species:	P. vansoni
Binomial name
Pachydactylus vansoni V. FitzSimons,1933
range
Synonyms
Pachydactylus capensis vansoni V. Fitzsimons 1933 [1] [2] Pachtdactylus vansoni — Bauer & Good, 1996 [2]

Pachydactylus vansoni, commonly known as Van Son's gecko or Van Son's thick-toed gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is endemic to Southern Africa.

Etymology

The specific name, vansoni, is in honor of Russian-born Dutch entomologist Georges Van Son (1898-1967), who worked at the Transvaal Museum (1925-1967). ^[3]

Geographic range

P. vansoni is distributed in Lesotho, Mozambique, South Africa, Eswatini, and Zimbabwe. The geographic range of this species is estimated to be larger than 100,000 km² (38,610 sq mi). ^[1]

Habitat

The preferred natural habitats of P. vansoni are grassland and savanna, at altitudes from sea level to 2,300 m (7,500 ft). ^[1]

Reproduction

P. vansoni is oviparous. ^[2]

References

1. Bates, M.F.; Bauer, A.M. (2018). "Pachydactylus vansoni". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2018 e.T174124A115657940. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T174124A115657940.en . Retrieved 19 November 2021.
2. "Pachydactylus vansoni Fitzsimons, 1933. The Reptile Database" . Retrieved 15 November 2014.
3. 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. (Pachydactylus vansoni, pp. 272-273).

Further reading

• Barts M, Colacicco F (2015). "Die Dickfingergeckos des südlichen Afrikas. Tiel XVII: Pachydactylus vansoni FITZSIMONS, 1933 ". Sauria37 (1): 41–48. (in German).
• Branch, Bill (2004). Field Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Southern Africa. Third Revised edition, Second impression. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 399 pp. ISBN   0-88359-042-5. (Pachydactylus vansoni, pp. 262–263 + Plate 83).
• FitzSimons VFM (1933). "Descriptions of Five New Lizards from the Transvaal and Southern Rhodesia". Annals of the Transvaal Museum15 (2): 273–280. (Pachydactylus capensis vansoni, new subspecies).
• Girard F (2013). "Pachydactylus vansoni FitzSimons, 1933, Van Son's Thick-toed Gecko. Captive Breeding". African Herp News (60): 19–20.
• Rösler H (1993). "Contributions to the knowledge of African geckos (Reptilia: Sauria: Gekkonidae). 1. Records of a five year period of maintenance and reproduction of Pachydactylus vansoni FitzSimons 1933". Journal of the Herpetological Association of Africa42 (1): 13–19.
• Rösler H (2000). "Kommentierte Liste der rezent, subrezent und fossil bekannten Geckotaxa (Reptilia: Gekkonomorpha)". Gekkota2: 28–153. (Pachydactylus vansoni, p. 99). (in German).

External links

• Photographs at Biodiversityexplorer.org