Australian thick-tailed geckos [1] ( lat. Underwoodisaurus ) - a genus of reptiles from the family Carphodactylidae . The generic name is given in honor of the British herpetologist Garth Underwood .
| Australian tailed geckos | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Australian tailed gecko | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| International scientific name | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Underwoodisaurus Wermuth , 1965 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Content
- 1 Description
- 2 Lifestyle
- 3 Reproduction
- 4 Distribution
- 5 Classification
- 6 Literature
- 7 Notes
Description
The total length of representatives of this genus ranges from 8 cm. Sexual dimorphism is observed - males are always smaller than females. The skin is orange or dark yellow in color with numerous bright spots of various sizes. The tail is clearly separated from the body. A feature of this genus is the presence of a very thick tail. Paws are long and thin, eyes are large.
Lifestyle
Inhabit deserts and semi-deserts . Often live in bushes and thickets. In the afternoon they rest under the leaves and stones. They feed on crickets , cockroaches and spiders . They eat 1 time in 3-4 days. When in danger, they make sounds resembling barking or hissing. The greatest danger to them is snakes .
Reproduction
These are egg-laying reptiles. The mating season begins in July. The female lays at least 2 eggs, making up to 10 clutches per year. Eggs burrow underground. After 65 days, young geckos appear.
Distribution
They are endemic to Australia .
Classification
As of May 2019, 2 species are included in the genus [2] :
- Underwoodisaurus milii (Bory de Saint-Vincent, 1823) - Australian thick-tailed gecko
- Underwoodisaurus seorsus Oughty & Oliver, 2011
Literature
- Wermuth, 1965: Liste der rezenten Amphibien und Reptilien, Gekkonidae, Pygopodidae, Xantusidae. Das Tierreich, vol. 80, p. 1-246.
- Doughty, Paul; Oliver, Paul M. (August 31, 2011), A new species of Underwoodisaurus (Squamata: Gekkota: Carphodactylidae) from the Pilbara region of Western Australia (PDF), Zootaxa , 30 (10): 20–30, retrieved April 3, 2012
- 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 . ( Underwoodisaurus , p. 270).
- Cogger, Harold G. (1994). Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia (5th ed.) . Australia: Reed. pp. 275–276. ISBN 978-0730100881 .
Notes
- ↑ Ananyeva N. B. , Borkin L. Ya. , Darevsky I.S. , Orlov N.L. The five-language dictionary of animal names. Amphibians and reptiles. Latin, Russian, English, German, French. / edited by Acad. V. E. Sokolova . - M .: Rus. Yaz., 1988 .-- S. 204. - 10,500 copies. - ISBN 5-200-00232-X .
- ↑ The Reptile Database: Underwoodisaurus