Sphaerodactylus fantasticus
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Sphaerodactylus fantasticus |
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| Sphaerodactylus fantasticus | ||||||||||||
| Duméril & Bibron , 1836 |
The Sphaerodactylus fantasticus is a kind of the puffer-finger geckos ( Sphaerodactylus ) and belongs to the family of the Sphaerodactylidae .
features
Sphaerodactylus fantasticus is a very small gecko species and reaches a head-torso length of up to 28 mm, the total length is up to 45 mm. The back scales are keeled, the scales in the middle of the back are granular, the scales on the whitish to gray colored side of the abdomen can be both smooth and keeled. The brownish to rust-red colored tail, marked by lighter, dark-edged ocelles (eye spots), has keeled scales on the upper side and slightly enlarged scales in the middle. The upper side of the body is marked by light and dark spots, the head is colored light brown, has a slightly bluish shimmer and may have dark lines or spots, but certainly no pattern. On the side of the head, a pattern of dark lines runs over the crack in the mouth down to the throat.
Way of life
Sphaerodactylus fantasticus leads a diurnal lifestyle. The species actively searches for food until dusk and prey primarily on small insects and arachnids . It also shows the behavior of a cultural follower , as such it stays in huts and houses, in gardens or on plantations. Reproduction occurs through oviparity , so Sphaerodactylus fantasticus is egg-laying; individual eggs 5 to 7 millimeters in size are deposited in slightly damp crevices and similar hiding places.
Occurrence
Sphaerodactylus fantasticus is particularly common in Guadeloupe . Sphaerodactylus fantasticus anidrotus comes to the south of Guadeloupe on the island of Marie-Galante , Sphaerodactylus fantasticus fuga exclusively on the west coast of Dominica , Sphaerodactylus fantasticus hip Campomanes in East Guadeloupe on the island of La Désirade , Sphaerodactylus fantasticus Karukera within Guadeloupe, among others, in Le Gosier and on the Îles de la Petite Terre island , Sphaerodactylus fantasticus ligniservulus on the island of Montserrat , northwest of Guadeloupe , Sphaerodactylus fantasticus orescius on Basse-Terre (one of the two main islands), Sphaerodactylus fantasticus phyzacorus on the Îlesodartes tactes in the north and Sphaerodactylus fantasticus phyzacorus, among others, on the second island of Saintaropylus Main island, Grande-Terre , in front. Humid forests, forests and plantations as well as rocks, wood of all kinds and parts of human settlement areas are inhabited.
Subspecies
The following nine subspecies have been described:
- Sphaerodactylus fantasticus fantasticus Duméril & Bibron , 1836
- Sphaerodactylus fantasticus anidrotus Thomas , 1964
- Sphaerodactylus fantasticus fuga Thomas , 1964
- Sphaerodactylus fantasticus hippomanes Thomas , 1964
- Sphaerodactylus fantasticus karukera Thomas , 1964
- Sphaerodactylus fantasticus ligniservulus King , 1962
- Sphaerodactylus fantasticus orescius Thomas , 1964
- Sphaerodactylus fantasticus phyzacinus Thomas , 1964
- Sphaerodactylus fantasticus tartaropylorus Thomas , 1964
Mixed forms of the subspecies Sphaerodactylus fantasticus orescius and Sphaerodactylus fantasticus karukera have become known from the north and south of Basse-Terre .
literature
- Günther Nietzke: The terrarium animals. Construction, technical equipment and planting of the terrariums. Keeping, feeding and caring for terrarium animals. Volume 2: turtles, bridge lizards and lizards. Plants in the terrarium, fundamental questions and problems relating to the biology and ecology of reptiles, outdoor terrariums. 4th, revised and redesigned edition. Ulmer, Stuttgart 1998, ISBN 3-8001-7179-1 .
