''Phyllurus'' is a small

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

n leaf-tailed

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 ...

lizards 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 althou ...

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 ...

Carphodactylidae The Carphodactylidae, informally known as the southern padless geckos, are a family of geckos, lizards in the infraorder Gekkota. The family consists of 32 described species in 7 genera, all of which are endemic to Australia. They belong to the s ...

. Rarely seen outside their native

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 ...

, they are notable for their highly effective

camouflage Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the ...

which is in part aided by the spiny

tubercle In anatomy, a tubercle (literally 'small tuber', Latin for 'lump') is any round nodule, small eminence, or warty outgrowth found on external or internal organs of a plant or an animal. In plants A tubercle is generally a wart-like projection ...

s that cover every body part. Most member

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 ...

, except for ''P. caudiannulatus'', ''P. gulbaru'' and ''P. kabikabi'', have very flattened,

leaf A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ste ...

-shaped

tail The tail is the section at the rear end of certain kinds of animals’ bodies; in general, the term refers to a distinct, flexible appendage to the torso. It is the part of the body that corresponds roughly to the sacrum and coccyx in mammals, r ...

s. Some of these species have recently been reassigned to the genus ''

Saltuarius ''Saltuarius'' is a genus of larger Australian geckos, known collectively as leaf-tailed geckos. The genus was created in 1993 to accommodate some former members of the genus ''Phyllurus''. These geckos appear very similar to the ''Uroplatus'' g ...

''. The ''Phyllurus'' geckos resemble the ''

Uroplatus ''Uroplatus'' is a genus 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 t ...

'' geckos of

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 ...

. This is an example of

convergent evolution Convergent evolution is the independent evolution of similar features in species of different periods or epochs in time. Convergent evolution creates analogous structures that have similar form or function but were not present in the last com ...

because they are not closely related.

Species

The following species are recognized as being valid. www.reptile-database.org. *'' Phyllurus amnicola''

Couper Couper is a surname. It may refer to: * Archibald Scott Couper, scientist * Heather Couper, British astronomer * James Couper (disambiguation) * Scott Couper, American football player * William Couper (bishop), 17th-century Scottish bishop and ...

Schneider Schneider may refer to: Hospital * Schneider Children's Medical Center of Israel People * Schneider (surname) Companies and organizations * G. Schneider & Sohn, a Bavarian brewery company * Schneider Rundfunkwerke AG, the former owner of th ...

, Hoskin & Covacevich, 2000 – Mount Elliot leaf-tailed gecko *'' Phyllurus caudiannulatus'' Covacevich, 1975 – Bulburin leaf-tailed gecko *'' Phyllurus championae'' Couper, Schneider, Hoskin & Covacevich, 2000– Champion's leaf-tailed gecko *'' Phyllurus gulbaru'' Hoskin, Couper &

, 2003 – Gulbaru leaf-tailed gecko *'' Phyllurus isis'' Couper, Covacevich &

Moritz Moritz is the German equivalent of the name Maurice. It may refer to: People Given name * Saint Maurice, also called Saint Moritz, the leader of the legendary Roman Theban Legion in the 3rd century * Prince Moritz of Hesse (2007), the son of ...

, 1993 – Mount Blackwood leaf-tailed gecko *'' Phyllurus kabikabi'' Couper, Hamley & Hoskin, 2008 – Oakview leaf-tailed gecko *''

Phyllurus nepthys ''Phyllurus nepthys'', also known commonly as the Eungella leaf-tailed gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Carphodactylidae. The species is endemic to Australia. Etymology The specific name, ''nepthys'', refers to the ancient Egyptian ...

'' Couper, Covacevich & Moritz, 1993 – Eungella leaf-tailed gecko *'' Phyllurus ossa'' Couper, Covacevich & Moritz, 1993 – Mackay Coast leaf-tailed gecko *'' Phyllurus pinnaclensis'' Hoskin, Bertola &

Higgie Higgie is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Jennifer Higgie (born 1962), Australian writer *Mark Higgie (born 1957), Australian diplomat, political advisor, and intelligence analystMegan Higgie
(born 1977), New Zealand-born, A ...

, 2019 – Pinnacles leaf-tailed gecko *'' Phyllurus platurus'' (

Shaw Shaw may refer to: Places Australia *Shaw, Queensland Canada *Shaw Street, a street in Toronto England *Shaw, Berkshire, a village *Shaw, Greater Manchester, a location in the parish of Shaw and Crompton *Shaw, Swindon, a List of United Kingdom ...

, 1790) – broad-tailed gecko The northern leaf-tailed gecko (previously ''Phyllurus cornutus'' Ogilby, 1892), is now placed in the genus ''

''. ''

Nota bene (, or ; plural form ) is a Latin phrase meaning "note well". It is often abbreviated as NB, n.b., or with the ligature and first appeared in English writing . In Modern English, it is used, particularly in legal papers, to draw the atten ...

'': A

binomial authority In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than ''Phyllurus''.

Species

References

Further reading