''Lygodactylus pauliani'' 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
gecko
Geckos are small, mostly carnivorous lizards that have a wide distribution, found on every continent except Antarctica. Belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, geckos are found in warm climates throughout the world. They range from .
Geckos ar ...
, a
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. 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
Madagascar
Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East 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 ...
, ''pauliani'', is in honor of French entomologist
Renaud Paulian
Renaud Paulian (28 May 1913, Neuilly-sur-Seine - 16 August 2003, Bordeaux) was a
French naturalist . He was a specialist in Coleoptera notably Scarabaeoidea
Scarabaeoidea is a superfamily of beetles, the only subgroup of the infraorder Scar ...
.
[Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Lygodactylus pauliani'', p. 201).]
Geographic range
''L. pauliani'' is found in southeastern Madagascar. The
holotype
A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of several ...
was collected at an elevation of .
[
]
Habitat
The natural habitat
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
s of ''L. pauliani'' are forest
A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...
, grassland
A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natur ...
, rocky areas, and shrubland
Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It m ...
.[
]
Reproduction
''L. pauliani'' 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
* Glaw F, Vences M (1994). ''A Fieldguide to the Amphibians and Reptiles of Madagascar, Second Edition''. Cologne, Germany: Vences & Glaw Verlag / Serpents Tale. 480 pp. . (''Lygodactylus pauliani'', p. 284).
*Krüger, Jens (2001). "''Die madagassischen Gekkoniden. Teil II. Die Geckos der Gattung ''Lygodactylus'' Gray
Grey (more common in British English) or gray (more common in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning literally that it is "without color", because it can be composed o ...
1864 (Reptilia: Sauria: Gekkonidae)''". ''Gekkota'' 3: 3-28. (in German).
* Pasteur G, Blanc CP (1991). "''Un lézard parthénogénétique à Madagascar? Description de ''Lygodactylus pauliani sp. nov.'' (Reptilia: Gekkonidae)''". ''Bulletin du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris'' 13 (1-2): 209–215. (''Lygodactylus pauliani'', new species). (in French).
*Röll, Beate; Pröhl, Heike; Hoffmann, Klaus-Peter (2010). "Multigene phylogenetic analysis of ''Lygodactylus'' dwarf geckos (Squamata: Gekkonidae)". ''Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution'' 56 (1): 327–335.
* Rösler H (2000). "''Kommentierte Liste der rezent, subrezent und fossil bekannten Gekkotaxa (Reptilia: Gekkonomorpha)''". ''Gekkota'' 2: 28–153. (''Lygodactylus pauliani'', p. 94). (in German).
Lygodactylus
Reptiles described in 1991
Reptiles of Madagascar
Endemic fauna of Madagascar
Taxa named by Charles Pierre Blanc
{{Lygodactylus-stub