''Saltuarius moritzi'', also known
commonly as the New England leaf-tailed gecko or Moritz's leaf-tailed gecko, 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 ...
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 ...
. The species is native to
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 ...
.
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 ...
, ''moritzi'', is in honor of Australian herpetologist
Craig Moritz __NOTOC__
Craig may refer to:
Geology
*Craig (landform), a rocky hill or mountain often having large casims or sharp intentations.
People (and fictional characters)
*Craig (surname)
*Craig (given name)
Places
Scotland
*Craig, Angus, aka Barony of ...
.
[Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Saltuarius moritzi'', p. 183).]
Geographic range
''S. moritzi'' 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 the
New England Tablelands in
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
.
Habitat
The preferred
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 ''S. moritzi'' are closed forests, wet sclerophyll forests, and rocky escarpments, gorges, and outcrops.
[
]
Description
''S. moritzi'' may attain a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of .[
]
Reproduction
''S. moritzi'' 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
* Cogger HG (2014). ''Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, Seventh Edition''. Clayton, Victoria, Australia: CSIRO Publishing. xxx + 1,033 pp. .
* Couper, Patrick J.; Sadlier, Ross A.; Shea, Glenn M.; Worthington Wilmer, Jessica (2009). "A Reassessment of ''Saltuarius swaini'' (Lacertilia: Diplodactylidae) in Southeastern Queensland and New South Wales; Two New Taxa, Phylogeny, Biogeography and Conservation". ''Records of the Australian Museum'' 60 (1): 87–118. (''Saltuarius moritzi'', new species, pp. 99–105, Figures 12A, 12B, 12C).
*Wilson, Steve; Swan, Gerry (2013). ''A Complete Guide to Reptiles of Australia, Fourth Edition''. Sydney: New Holland Publishers. 522 pp. .
Saltuarius
Geckos of Australia
Endemic fauna of Australia
Reptiles described in 2008
Taxa named by Patrick J. Couper
Taxa named by Ross Allen Sadlier
Taxa named by Glenn Michael Shea
Taxa named by Jessica Worthington Wilmer
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