Cochran's croaking gecko (''Aristelliger cochranae''), also commonly known as Cochran's Caribbean gecko and the Navassa gecko, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), 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 ...

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 al ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Sphaerodactylidae The Sphaerodactylidae are a family of geckos (Gekkota) distributed in North America, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean, as well as in Southern Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, and into Central Asia. The family contains 12 ...

. The species was described in 1931 by

Chapman Grant Chapman Grant (March 27, 1887 – January 5, 1983) was an American herpetologist, historian, and publisher. He was the last living grandson of United States President Ulysses S. Grant. He was married and had two children, one of whom survived him ...

and named after notable American

herpetologist Herpetology (from Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning " reptile" or "creeping animal") is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, toads, salamanders, newts, and caecilians (gymnophiona)) and r ...

and artist

Doris Mable Cochran Doris Mable Cochran (May 18, 1898 – May 22, 1968) was an American herpetologist and custodian of the American Natural Collection at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., for many years. Life Born in North Girard, Pennsylvania, she gr ...

. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore, Maryland: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Aristelliger cochranae'', pp. 55-56). The species received one of its common names from the loud croaking call of the male during the mating period.

Description

''A. cochranae'' has a snout to vent length (SVL) up to in males and in females. www.reptile-database.org. It has relatively short and massive legs. The colour of its body varies from beige brown to chestnut red and the back exhibits light spots. A dark chestnut crossband extends from the snout to the head, the nape, and the eyes. The largest part of the tail is dark grey to black. The hatchlings have clear white crossbands on the tail.

Occurrence and biology

Cochran's croaking gecko 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 els ...

Navassa Island Navassa Island (; ht, Lanavaz; french: l'île de la Navasse, sometimes ) is a small uninhabited island in the Caribbean Sea. Located northeast of Jamaica, south of Cuba, and west of Jérémie on the Tiburon Peninsula of Haiti, it is subject to ...

, an island between

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

and

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of Hispan ...

. It is relatively common despite its small habitat of 5.2 km² (2 sq mi). It is

nocturnal Nocturnality is an ethology, animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnality, diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have ...

and

arboreal Arboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some animals may scale trees only occasionally, but others are exclusively arboreal. The habitats pose num ...

, which means that it lives and preys entirely on the branches or under the bark of ficus trees or fan palms (''

Thrinax morrisii ''Leucothrinax morrisii'', the Key thatch palm, is a small palm which is native to the Greater Antilles (except Jamaica), northern Lesser Antilles, The Bahamas and Florida and the Florida Keys in the United States. Until 2008 it was known as ...

'' ). Its diet consists of insects.

References

External links

Herpetology of Navassa Island, West IndiesRelationship of Diet and Prey Availability in ''Aristelliger cochranae'', a Gecko from Navassa Island, West Indies
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2861337 Aristelliger Lizards of the Caribbean Reptiles of Haiti Endemic fauna of Navassa Island Reptiles described in 1931 Taxa named by Chapman Grant

Description

Occurrence and biology

References

Further reading

External links