Acanthodactylus blanfordii

Acanthodactylus blanfordii, commonly called Blanford's fringe-fingered lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Lacertidae. The species is endemic to the Middle East and India. Recent genetic studies have reclassified Acanthodactylus blanfordii into a newly recognized blanfordii group within the Eastern clade of Acanthodactylus. This group is genetically distinct from the cantoris group, where A. blanfordii was previously placed based solely on morphological characteristics.

Blanford's fringe-fingered lizard
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Family:	Lacertidae
Genus:	Acanthodactylus
Species:	A. blanfordii
Binomial name
Acanthodactylus blanfordii Boulenger, 1918
Synonyms[1][2]
Acanthodactylus cantoris var. blanfordii Boulenger, 1918 Acanthodactylus blanfordi [sic] — Salvador, 1982 Acanthodactylus blanfordii — Das, 1996

Geographic range

Acanthodactylus blanfordii is found in SE Iran, S Afghanistan, SW Pakistan, N Oman (Muscat region), and India.^[1]

The type locality is "Perse et Béloutchistan ".^[1]

Etymology

Both the specific name, blanfordii, and the common name, Blanford's fringe-fingered lizard, are in honor of English naturalist William Thomas Blanford (1832 - 1905), member of the Geological Survey of India.^[3]

Reproduction

A. blanfordii is oviparous.^[1]

References

1. Species Acanthodactylus blanfordii at The Reptile Database . www.reptile-database.org
2. Salvador (1982).
3. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Acanthodactylus blanfordii, p. 27).

Further reading

• Boulenger GA (1918). "Sur les lézards du genre Acanthodactylus Wiegm." Bull. Soc. zool. France 43: 143-155. (Acanthodactylus cantoris var. blanfordii, new variation, p. 154). (in French).
• Salvador A (1982). "A revision of the lizards of the genus Acanthodactylus (Sauria: Lacertidae)". Bonner Zoologische Monographien (16): 1-167. ("Acanthodactylus blanfordi [sic]", pp. 151–155, Figures 103-105, Map 31).