Cape dwarf gecko

Cape dwarf gecko
Gauteng, South Africa
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Family:	Gekkonidae
Genus:	Lygodactylus
Species:	L. capensis
Binomial name
Lygodactylus capensis (Smith, 1849)
Subspecies
L. c. grotei Sternfeld, 1911[1] L. c. capensis (Smith, 1849) L. c. pakenhami Loveridge, 1941
Synonyms
Hemidactylus capensis[1] Lygodactylus ngamiensis Lygodactylus strigatus

The Cape dwarf gecko (Lygodactylus capensis) is a species of dwarf gecko found in the woodlands and forests of central and southern Africa (Republic of South Africa, Botswana, Swaziland, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zambia, Angola, Namibia, Mozambique, Tanzania, Pemba Island).^[1] They are often seen on garden walls in towns and cities.

Description

Length (snout to vent length) is 39 mm for males, 43 mm for females. Throat is stippled with grey or brown while the belly is cream coloured. The back is grey-brown with dark streak from snout to shoulder or beyond.^[2] Its tail is remarkable for having the underside covered in adhesive lamellae enabling its use as a fifth limb. ^[3] When moulting it actively assists the process by detaching skin flakes and consuming them. It is sometimes kept as a pet.

References

1. Lygodactylus capensis, The Reptile Database
2. Branch, Bill. (1998). Field Guide to Snakes and Other Reptiles of Southern Africa. Third revised edition. Sanibel Is., Florida:Ralph Curtis Books Publ.
3. Rose, Walter (1962). The Reptiles and Amphibians of Southern Africa Maskew Miller.

• Smith, A. (1848). Illustrations of the zoology of South Africa, Reptilia. Smith, Elder & Co., London.
• Spawls, S.; Howell, K.; Drewes, R.C. & Ashe, J. (2001). A field guide to the reptiles of East Africa. Academic Press, 543 pp.

External links

• Media related to Lygodactylus capensis at Wikimedia Commons
• Lygodactylus capensis, GeckoList