Chondrodactylus fitzsimonsi

Chondrodactylus fitzsimonsi, also known as Fitzsimons's thick-toed gecko or the button-scaled gecko, is a species of gecko, a lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is endemic to southwestern Africa.

Chondrodactylus fitzsimonsi
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Family: Gekkonidae
Genus: Chondrodactylus
Species:
C. fitzsimonsi
Binomial name
Chondrodactylus fitzsimonsi
(Loveridge, 1947)
Synonyms[1]
  • Pachydactylus laevigatus tesselatus
    V. FitzSimons, 1938
  • Pachydactylus laevigatus fitzsimonsi
    Loveridge, 1947
    (nomen novum)
  • Pachydactylus fitzsimonsi
    — Benyr, 1995
  • Chondrodactylus fitzsimonsi
    — Bauer & Lamb, 2005

Etymology

The specific name, fitzsimonsi, is in honor of South African herpetologist Vivian Frederick Maynard FitzSimons.[2]

Geographic range

C. fitzsimonsi is found in Angola and Namibia.[1]

Description

C. fitzsimonsi is a large, heavy-bodied gecko. Adults average 6.5 to 8.5 cm (2.6 to 3.3 in) snout-to-vent length (SVL). The record size is a male 9.0 cm (3.5 in) SVL. Dorsally, it is olive-colored, with four or five dark undulating crossbands. Ventrally, it is white.[3]

Habitat

The preferred habitat of C. fitzsimonsi is rocky outcrops in arid savanna or in semidesert.[3]

References
  1. "Chondrodactylus fitzsimonsi ". The Reptile Database. Retrieved 2017-11-11.
  2. 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. ("FitzSimons, V.", p. 91).
  3. 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 fitzsimonsi, p. 255 + Plate 84).

Further reading
  • Bauer AM, Lamb T (2005). "Phylogenetic relationships of southern African geckos in the Pachydactylus group (Squamata: Gekkonidae)". African J. Herpetol. 54 (2): 105–129. (Chondrodactylus fitzsimonsi, new combination).
  • Loveridge A (1947). "Revision of the African Lizards of the Family Gekkonidae". Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool. Harvard 98 (1): 1-46. (Pachydactylus laevigatus fitzsimonsi, new name, pp. 400–401).


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