Muller's velvet gecko (''Homopholis mulleri'') is a
species of
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 Gekkonidae. The species is
endemic to
South Africa.
Etymology
The
specific name Specific name may refer to:
* in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database
In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules:
* Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...
, ''mulleri'', is in honor of South African amateur
herpetologist Douglas Muller.
[Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Homopholis mulleri'', p. 185).]
Geographic range
''H. mulleri'' is found in the province of
Limpopo, South Africa.
[ 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. . (''Homopholis mulleri'', p. 245 + Plate 90).]
Habitat
The preferred habitat of ''H. mulleri'' is open
veld, where it shelters in holes and under the loose bark of trees such as ''
Sclerocarya birrea'' and ''
Senegalia nigrescens
''Senegalia nigrescens'', the knobthorn, is a deciduous African tree, growing up to 18 m tall, that is found in savanna regions from West Africa to South Africa. The tree is resistant to drought, not resistant to frost and its hard wood is r ...
''.
[
]
Description
Dorsally, ''H. mulleri'' is light brown to dark gray, with darker and lighter markings. Ventrally, it is white.[
Females may attain a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of . Males are smaller, attaining SVL.][
]
Reproduction
''H. mulleri'' 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
* Broadley, Donald G.; Jackman, Todd R.; Bauer Aaron M. (2014). "A review of the genus ''Homopholis'' Boulenger Boulenger is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Benjamin Boulenger (born 1990), French footballer
* Edward George Boulenger (1888–1946), British zoologist, director of aquarium at London Zoo
* George Albert Boulenger (1858–1 ...
(Reptilia: Squamata: Gekkonidae) in southern Africa". ''African Journal of Herpetology'' 63 (2): 109–126.
* Visser J (1987). "A new ''Homopholis'' (Sauria, Gekkonidae) from the northern Transvaal with a discussion of some generic characters". ''South African Journal of Zoology'' 22 (2): 110–114. (''Homopholis mulleri'', new species). (in English, plus abstract in Afrikaans).
mulleri
Reptiles of South Africa
Reptiles described in 1987
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot
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