Lygodactylus

Lygodactylus
Lygodactylus luteopicturatus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Sauria
Infraorder: Gekkota
Family: Gekkonidae
Subfamily: Gekkoninae
Genus: Lygodactylus
Gray, 1864[1][2]
Species

c. 60 sp., see text

Lygodactylus is a genus of diurnal geckos with approximately 60 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, importation from Tanzania of brightly colored Lygodactylus williamsi, known as electric blue geckos, has been gaining attention for Lygodactylus geckos in the reptile trade.

Species

Species in alphabetical order by specific name:[2]

Lygodactylus picturatus in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The tail has been lost 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.[4]

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

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lygodactylus.
Wikispecies has information related to: Lygodactylus
  1. 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. 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. (Lygodactylus blancae and L. blanci, p. 26).

Further reading


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