''Hemidactylus graniticolus'' is a cryptic rock-dwelling species of large gecko found in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. The holotype was described from hills near Harohalli village in the Bangalore Rural District,

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

.Ishan Agarwal, Varad B. Giri & Aaron M. Bauer (2011): A new cryptic rock-dwelling ''Hemidactylus'' (Squamata: Gekkonidae) from south India. Zootaxa (2011) 2765: 21–37

Etymology

The species is named ''graniticolus'' because it dwells upon the

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...

rock formations.

References

Hemidactylus Lizards of Asia Reptiles of India Reptiles described in 2011 {{Hemidactylus-stub