South-western spiny-tailed gecko

The south-western spiny-tailed gecko (Strophurus spinigerus), also known commonly as the soft spiny-tailed gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Diplodactylidae. The species is endemic to Australia. Two subspecies are recognized.

South-western spiny-tailed gecko
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Infraorder:	Gekkota
Family:	Diplodactylidae
Genus:	Strophurus
Species:	S. spinigerus
Binomial name
Strophurus spinigerus (Gray, 1842)
Synonyms[2]
Diplodactylus spinigerus Gray, 1842 Strophura spinigera — Gray, 1845 Phyllodactylus spinigerus — A.H.A. Duméril, 1851 Diplodactylus strophurus spinigerus — Mitchell, 1955 Strophurus spinigerus — Wells & Wellington, 1984

Geographic range

S. spinigerus is found in the southwestern part of the Australian state of Western Australia.^[1][2]

Habitat

The natural habitats of S. spinigerus are forest and shrubland.^[1]

Description

S. spinigerus may attain a total length (including tail) of 11.4 cm (4.5 in). Dorsally, it is olive-grey, speckled with black. It may have a broad zigzag black stripe along the back. The spiny tubercles on the back and tail are black. Ventrally, it is dirty white, either uniform or speckled with black.^[3]

Reproduction

S. spinigerus is oviparous.^[2]

Subspecies

Two subspecies are recognized as being valid, including the nominotypical subspecies.^[2]

• Strophurus spinigerus inornatus (Storr, 1988)
• Strophurus spinigerus spinigerus (Gray, 1842)

Nota bene: A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Strophurus.