The Barrington leaf-toed gecko (''Phyllodactylus barringtonensis'') 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
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 ...
Phyllodactylidae
The Phyllodactylidae are a family of geckos (Gekkota) consisting of over 150 species in 10 genera, distributed throughout the New World, North Africa, Europe and the Middle East. The family was first delineated based on a molecular phylogenetic ...
. 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
Santa Fe Island
Santa Fe Island (Spanish: ''Isla Santa Fe''), also called Barrington Island after admiral Samuel Barrington, is a small island of which lies in the centre of the Galápagos archipelago, to the south-east of Santa Cruz Island. Visitor access is ...
in the
Galapagos.
Etymology
The
specific name, ''barringtonensis'', refers to Barrington Island, which is an alternate name for Santa Fe Island.
Habitat
The preferred 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 ...
of ''P. barringtonensis'' is dry
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 ...
, at altitudes from sea level to .
Description
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 ...
of ''P. barringtonensis'' has a
snout-to-vent length (SVL) of .
[ Van Denburgh (1912).]
Reproduction
''P. barringtonensis'' 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
* Rösler H (2000). "''Kommentierte Liste der rezent, subrezent und fossil bekkanten Geckotaxa (Reptilia: Gekkonomorpha)''". ''Gekkota'' 2: 28–153. (''Phyllodactylus barringtonensis'', p. 103). (in German).
* Torres-Carvajal O, Rodríguez-Guerra A, Chaves JA (2016). "Present diversity of Galápagos leaf-toed geckos (Phyllodactylidae: ''Phyllodactylus'') stems from three independent colonization events". ''Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution'' 103: 1–5.
* Van Denburgh J (1912). "Expedition of the California Academy of Sciences to the Galapagos Islands 1905–1906. VI. The Geckos of the Galapagos Archipelago". ''Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences, Fourth Series'' 1: 405–430. (''Phyllodactylus barringtonensis'', new species, pp. 418–420).
Phyllodactylus
Endemic reptiles of the Galápagos Islands
Reptiles of Ecuador
Reptiles described in 1912
{{gecko-stub