''Cnemaspis alwisi'', also known
commonly as Alwis' day gecko or Alwis's day gecko, is a
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
of diurnal
lizard
Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia alt ...
in the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
Gekkonidae
Gekkonidae (the common geckos) is the largest family of geckos, containing over 950 described species in 64 genera. Members of the Gekkonidae comprise many of the most widespread gecko species, including house geckos (''Hemidactylus''), tokay ge ...
. The species is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to the island of
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
.
Etymology
The
specific name, ''alwisi'', is in honor of Sri Lankan zoologist
Lyn de Alwis (1930–2006) for his work in wildlife conservation.
[ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael M (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . ''Cnemaspis alwisi'', p. 7).]
Description
Adults of ''C. alwisi'' have a
snout-to-vent length (SVL) of .
Reproduction
''C. alwisi'' is
oviparous
Oviparous animals are animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive method of most fish, amphibians, most reptiles, and all pterosaurs, dinosaurs (including birds), and ...
.
[
]
References
Further reading
* Somaweera R, Somaweera N (2009). ''Lizards of Sri Lanka, A Colour Guide with Field Keys''. Frankfurt am Main: Edition Chimaira / Serpents Tale. 304 pp. .
* Wickramasinghe LJM, Munindradasa DAI (200&). "Review of the genus ''Cnemaspis'' Strauch, 1887 (Sauria: Gekkonidae) in Sri Lanka with the description of five new species". ''Zootaxa'' 1490: 1–63. (''Cnemaspis alwisi'', new species, pp. 5–6).
External links
Photo at flickr
Cnemaspis
Endemic fauna of Sri Lanka
Reptiles of Sri Lanka
Reptiles described in 2007
{{Cnemaspis-stub