Wahlberg's Kalahari gecko

Wahlberg's Kalahari gecko (Pachydactylus wahlbergii), also known commonly as the Kalahari ground gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is native to southern Africa.

Wahlberg's Kalahari gecko
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Family: Gekkonidae
Genus: Pachydactylus
Species:
P. wahlbergii
Binomial name
Pachydactylus wahlbergii
W. Peters, 1869
Synonyms[1]
  • Colopus wahlbergii
    W. Peters, 1869
  • Colopus kalaharicus
    V. FitzSimons, 1932
  • Colopus marshalli
    V. FitzSimons, 1959
  • Pachydactylus wahlbergii
    — Heinicke et al., 2017

Etymology

The specific name, wahlbergii, is in honor of Swedish naturalist Johan August Wahlberg.[2]

Geographic range

P. wahlbergii is found in Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa.[1]

Description

P. wahlbergii is small, elongate, and pretty. Snout-to-vent length (SVL) of adults is 4.5–5 cm (1.8–2.0 in).[3]

Reproduction

P. wahlbergii is oviparous.[1] The adult female lays a clutch of two eggs.[3]

Subspecies

The genus contains two subspecies, including the nominotypical subspecies, which are recognized as being valid:[1]

  • Pachydactylus wahlbergii furcifer Haacke, 1976
  • Pachydactylus wahlbergii wahlbergii W. Peters, 1869

References
  1. Pachydactylus wahlbergii at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database
  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. (Colopus wahlbergii, p. 278).
  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. (Colopus wahlbergii, pp. 238-239 + Plate 80).

Further reading
  • Boulenger GA (1885). Catalogue of the Lizards in the British Museum (Natural History). Second Edition. Volume I. Geckonidæ ... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xii + 436 pp. + Plates I-XXXII. (Colopus wahlbergii, p. 208).
  • Haacke WD (1976). "The burrowing geckos of southern Africa, 3 (Reptilia: Gekkonidae). Annotated taxonomic account (cont.) D. Genus Colopus Peters". Annals of the Transvaal Museum 30: 29–39. (Colopus wahlbergii furcifer, new subspecies).
  • Peters W (1869). "Eine Mittheilung über neue Gattungen und Arten von Eidechsen ". Monatsberichte der Königlich Preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften zur Berlin 1869: 57-66 + one plate. (Colopus wahlbergii, new species, p. 57 + figures 1, 1a-1f). (in German and Latin).



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