''Lygodactylus'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of diurnal

gecko Geckos are small, mostly carnivorous lizards that have a wide distribution, found on every continent except Antarctica. Belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, geckos are found in warm climates. They range from . Geckos are unique among lizards ...

s with 82

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

. They are commonly referred to as dwarf geckos. They are mainly found in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

and

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

although two species are found in

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

. ''Lygodactylus picturatus'', the best known species, is found in

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

and commonly known as the white-headed dwarf gecko. Recently, illegal importation from

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

of brightly colored (and critically-endangered), ''

Lygodactylus williamsi ''Lygodactylus williamsi'' is a critically endangered species of lizard in the Family (biology), family Gekkonidae. The species is Endemism, endemic to a small area of Tanzania. Common names include turquoise dwarf gecko, William's dwarf gecko a ...

,'' known as electric blue geckos, has been gaining attention for ''Lygodactylus'' geckos in the reptile trade. Since all trade in wild-caught ''Lygodactylus williamsi'' is illegal, shipments of these geckos are often intentionally mislabelled as ''Lygodactylus'' spp. or as ''

Lygodactylus capensis The Cape dwarf gecko (''Lygodactylus capensis''; 'lygodactylus' = 'flexible fingers') is a species of dwarf gecko found in the woodlands and forests of central and southern Africa. It also occurs commonly in towns and cities and is sometimes k ...

''.CITES Proposal for inclusion
/ref> As some customs officials have difficulty identifying members of this genus,
''Lygodactylus'' spp. identification guide
has been published online by

CITES CITES (shorter acronym for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals from the threats of inte ...

Species

Species in alphabetical order by

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 ...

: *''

Lygodactylus angolensis The Angola dwarf gecko (''Lygodactylus angolensis'') is a species of gecko native to southern Africa, where geckos in general have a high diversity. It is likely that they originated from Madagascar. They have been found in Angola, Zimbabwe, Tanz ...

Bocage Bocage (, ) is a terrain of mixed woodland and pasture characteristic of parts of northern France, southern England, Ireland, the Netherlands, northern Spain and northern Germany, in regions where pastoral farming is the dominant land use. ' ...

, 1896 – Angola dwarf gecko *''

Lygodactylus angularis The angulated dwarf gecko (''Lygodactylus angularis'') is a species of gecko native to southern Zaire and Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is ...

'' Günther, 1893 – angulated dwarf gecko *''

Lygodactylus arnoulti Pasteur's dwarf gecko (''Lygodactylus arnoulti''), also commonly known as Arnoult's gecko, is a species of gecko, a lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is native to Madagascar. Etymology The specific name, ''arnoulti'', is in honor of ...

'' G. Pasteur, 1965 – Pasteur's dwarf gecko, Arnoult's dwarf gecko *''

Lygodactylus baptistai ''Lygodactylus baptistai'' is a species of gecko endemic to Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Po ...

'' Marques, Ceríaco, Buehler, Bandeira, Janota & Bauer, 2020 *''

Lygodactylus bernardi Bernard's dwarf gecko (''Lygodactylus bernardi''), also commonly known as FitzSimons' dwarf gecko, is a species of gecko, a lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is endemic to Zimbabwe. Etymology The specific name, ''bernardi'', is in h ...

'' V. FitzSimons, 1958 – Bernard's dwarf gecko, FitzSimon's dwarf gecko *''

Lygodactylus bivittis The tiny scaled gecko (''Lygodactylus bivittis'') is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is endemic to Madagascar. Taxonomy ''L. bivittis'' was formerly placed in a monotypic genus ''Microscalabotes''. However, molecular da ...

'' ( W. Peters, 1883) – tiny scaled gecko *'' Lygodactylus blancae'' G. Pasteur, 1995 ‡ Lygodactylus conraui2

*'' Lygodactylus blanci'' G. Pasteur, 1967 ‡ – Blanc's dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus bonsi'' G. Pasteur, 1962 – Bons's dwarf day gecko *'' Lygodactylus bradfieldi'' Hewitt, 1932 – Bradfield's dwarf gecko *''

Lygodactylus broadleyi ''Lygodactylus'' is a genus of diurnal geckos with 82 species. They are commonly referred to as dwarf geckos. They are mainly found in Africa and Madagascar although two species are found in South America. ''Lygodactylus picturatus'', the best ...

'' G. Pasteur, 1995 – Broadley's dwarf gecko *''

'' (

A. Smith A is the first letter of the Latin and English alphabet. A may also refer to: Science and technology Quantities and units * ''a'', a measure for the attraction between particles in the Van der Waals equation * ''A'' value, a measure of s ...

, 1849) – Cape dwarf gecko, common dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus chobiensis'' V. FitzSimons, 1932 – Okavango dwarf gecko, Chobe dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus conradti''

Matschie Matschie is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Christoph Matschie (born 1961), German politician * (born 1953), German photographer * Paul Matschie (1861–1926), German zoologist {{surname German-language surnames ...

, 1892 – Matschie's dwarf gecko, Conradt's dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus conraui'' Tornier, 1902 – Cameroon dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus decaryi''

Angel An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...

, 1930 – Angel's dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus depressus'' K.P. Schmidt, 1919 – Zaire dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus expectatus'' G. Pasteur & C. Blanc, 1967 – Ambilobe dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus fischeri'' Boulenger, 1890 –

Fischer's Fischer's (Japanese: フィッシャーズ, ''Fisshāzu'') are a Japanese YouTuber group belonging to the multi-channel network UUUM consisting of 6 members: Silk Road, Masai, Ndaho, Motoki, Zakao and Dāma. As of February 2022, Fischer's was th ...

dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus fritzi'' Vences, Multzsch, Gippner, Miralles, Crottini, Gehring, Rakotoarison, Ratsoavina, Glaw & Scherz, 2022 *''

Lygodactylus grandisonae ''Lygodactylus grandisonae'', also known commonly as Bunty's dwarf gecko, Grandison's dwarf gecko, and the Kenya dwarf gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is native to East Africa and the Horn of Africa. Etymolo ...

'' G. Pasteur, 1962 – Kenya dwarf gecko, Bunty's dwarf gecko, Grandison's dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus graniticolus'' Jacobsen, 1992 – granite dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus gravis'' G. Pasteur, 1965 – Usambara dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus grotei'' Sternfeld, 1911 – Grote's dwarf gecko *''

Lygodactylus guibei The western dwarf gecko (''Lygodactylus guibei)'', also known commonly as Guibé's dwarf day gecko, is a small species of gecko, a lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is endemic to Madagascar. Etymology The specific name, ''guibei'', i ...

'' G. Pasteur, 1965 – western dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus gutturalis'' (Bocage, 1873) – Uganda dwarf gecko, chevron-throated dwarf gecko *''

Lygodactylus hapei ''Lygodactylus hapei'' is a species of gecko endemic to Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the sout ...

'' Vences, Multzsch, Gippner, Miralles, Crottini, Gehring, Rakotoarison, Ratsoavina, Glaw & Scherz, 2022 *''

Lygodactylus heeneni ''Lygodactylus heeneni'' is a species of gecko found in Zaire and Zambia. It has also been classified as a subspecies of angulated dwarf gecko. References

Lygodactylus Reptiles described in 1933 {{lygodactylus-stub ...

de Witte ''De Witte'' or ''Dewitte'' is Dutch language, Dutch and Flemish language, Flemish for "The White" and may refer to: * The noble family "de Witte" (from Antwerpen) Surname * André de Witte (1944–2021), Belgian bishop in Brazil * Bruno de Witte ...

, 1933 *'' Lygodactylus heterurus'' Boettger, 1913 – Boettger's dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus hodikazo'' Vences, Multzsch, Gippner, Miralles, Crottini, Gehring, Rakotoarison, Ratsoavina, Glaw & Scherz, 2022 *'' Lygodactylus incognitus'' Jacobsen, 1992 – cryptic dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus inexpectatus'' G. Pasteur, 1965 – Dar es Salaam dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus insularis'' Boettger, 1913 – insular dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus intermedius'' G. Pasteur, 1995 *''

Lygodactylus karamoja ''Lygodactylus karamoja'' is a species of dwarf gecko discovered in Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by ...

'' 2023 – Lobón-Rovira et al. Karamoja dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus keniensis''

Parker Parker may refer to: People * Parker (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Parker (surname), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname Arts and entertainment * ''Parke ...

, 1936 – Parker's dwarf gecko, Kenya dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus kimhowelli'' G. Pasteur, 1995 – Kim Howell's dwarf gecko, Tanzanian dwarf gecko, zebra dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus klemmeri'' G. Pasteur, 1965 – Malagasy dwarf gecko, Klemmer's dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus klugei'' ( H.M. Smith, R.L. Martin &

Swain Swain, Swains or Swain's may refer to: Places * Swain Islands, Antarctica * Swain's Island (Newfoundland and Labrador), Canada * Swains Island, an atoll in the Tokelau chain, American Samoa * Swain County, North Carolina, United States * Swains ...

, 1977) – Kluge's dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus laterimaculatus'' G. Pasteur, 1964 – side-spotted dwarf gecko *''

Lygodactylus lawrencei Lawrence's dwarf gecko (''Lygodactylus lawrencei)'' is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is native to Southern Africa. Etymology The specific name, ''lawrencei'', is in honor of South African entomologist Reginald Frederi ...

'' Hewitt, 1926 – Lawrence's dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus lobeke'' – Lobeke dwarf gecko *''

Lygodactylus luteopicturatus The yellow-headed dwarf gecko or dwarf yellow-headed gecko (''Lygodactylus luteopicturatus'') is a small species of dwarf gecko found in the rocky areas of southern Kenya, Somalia (maybe as an introduced species), eastern Tanzania, and Zanzibar ...

'' G. Pasteur, 1964 – dwarf yellow-headed gecko, yellow-headed dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus madagascariensis'' (Boettger, 1881) – Madagascar dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus manni'' Loveridge, 1928 – Mann's dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus methueni'' V. FitzSimons, 1937 – Methuen's dwarf gecko, Woodbrush dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus miops'' Günther, 1891 – Günther's dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus mirabilis'' (G. Pasteur, 1962) *'' Lygodactylus mombasicus'' Loveridge, 1935 – white-headed dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus montanus'' G. Pasteur, 1965 – Mount Ivohibe gecko *'' Lygodactylus montiscaeruli'' Jacobsen, 1992 – Makgabeng dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus nigropunctatus'' Jacobsen, 1992 – black-spotted dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus nyaneka'' Marques, Ceríaco, Buehler, Bandeira, Janota & Bauer, 2020 *'' Lygodactylus ocellatus''

Roux Roux () is a mixture of flour and fat cooked together and used to thicken sauces. Roux is typically made from equal parts of flour and fat by weight. The flour is added to the melted fat or Cooking oil, oil on the stove top, blended until smoo ...

, 1907 – ocellated dwarf gecko, spotted dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus ornatus'' G. Pasteur, 1965 – ornate dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus pauliani'' G. Pasteur & C. Blanc, 1991 – ornate dwarf gecko White-headed dwarf gecko

*''

Lygodactylus petteri ''Lygodactylus petteri'', Petter’s dwarf gecko, is a species of gecko endemic to Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral ...

'' Pasteur & C. Blanc, 1967 – Petter’s dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus picturatus'' (W. Peters, 1871) – white-headed dwarf gecko, painted dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus pictus'' (W. Peters, 1883) – robust dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus rarus'' G. Pasteur & C. Blanc, 1973 – thin dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus regulus'' Portik, Travers, Bauer &

Branch A branch, also called a ramus in botany, is a stem that grows off from another stem, or when structures like veins in leaves are divided into smaller veins. History and etymology In Old English, there are numerous words for branch, includ ...

, 2013 – prince dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus rex'' Broadley, 1963 – king dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus roavolana''

Puente Puente, a word meaning ''bridge'' in Spanish language, may refer to: People * Puente (surname) Places *La Puente, California, USA *Puente Alto, city and commune of Chile *Puente de Ixtla, city in Mexico *Puente Genil, village in the Spanish provi ...

, Glaw, Vieites & Vences, 2009 *''

Lygodactylus roellae ''Lygodactylus roellae'' is a species of gecko endemic to Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the so ...

'' Vences, Multzsch, Gippner, Miralles, Crottini, Gehring, Rakotoarison, Ratsoavina, Glaw & Scherz, 2022 *'' Lygodactylus salvi'' Vences, Multzsch, Gippner, Miralles, Crottini, Gehring, Rakotoarison, Ratsoavina, Glaw & Scherz, 2022 *'' Lygodactylus scheffleri'' Sternfeld, 1912 – Scheffler's dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus scorteccii'' G. Pasteur, 1959 – Scortecci's dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus somalicus'' Loveridge, 1935 – Somali dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus soutpansbergensis'' Jacobsen, 1994 – Soutpansberg dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus stevensoni'' Hewitt, 1926 – Stevenson's dwarf gecko *''

Lygodactylus tantsaha ''Lygodactylus tantsaha'' is a species of gecko endemic to Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the s ...

'' Vences, Multzsch, Gippner, Miralles, Crottini, Gehring, Rakotoarison, Ratsoavina, Glaw & Scherz, 2022 *'' Lygodactylus tchokwe'' Marques, Ceríaco, Buehler, Bandeira, Janota & Bauer, 2020 *'' Lygodactylus thomensis'' (W. Peters, 1881) – Annobon dwarf gecko *''

Lygodactylus tolampyae Grandidier's dwarf gecko (''Lygodactylus tolampyae'') is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is endemic to Madagascar. Etymology The specific name, ''tolampyae'', may refer to Ambatolampy, a city in Madagascar. Grandidier g ...

'' (

Grandidier Grandidier is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Alfred Grandidier (1836–1921), French naturalist and explorer *Ernest Grandidier (1833–1912), French industrialist, naturalist, and art collector, brother of Alfred *Guillaume G ...

, 1872) – Grandidier's dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus tsavoensis'' Malonza, Bauer, Granthon, D. Williams & Wojnowski, 2019 – Tsavo dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus tuberosus''

Mertens __NOTOC__ Mertens () is a surname of Flanders, Flemish origin, meaning "son of Merten" (Martin (name), Martin). It is the fifth most common name in Belgium with 18,518 people in 2008. Geographical distribution As of 2014, 43.4% of all known bearer ...

, 1965 *''

Lygodactylus ulli ''Lygodactylus ulli'' is a species of gecko endemic to Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the south ...

'' Vences, Multzsch, Gippner, Miralles, Crottini, Gehring, Rakotoarison, Ratsoavina, Glaw & Scherz, 2022 *'' Lygodactylus verticillatus'' Mocquard, 1895 – Mocquard's dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus viscatus'' ( Vaillant, 1873) – Howell's dwarf gecko, Copal dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus waterbergensis'' Jacobsen, 1992 – Waterberg dwarf gecko *'' Lygodactylus wetzeli'' (H.M. Smith, R.L. Martin & Swain, 1977) – South American dwarf gecko *''

'' Loveridge, 1952 – Williams' dwarf gecko, turquoise dwarf gecko, electric blue gecko *'' Lygodactylus winki'' Vences, Multzsch, Gippner, Miralles, Crottini, Gehring, Rakotoarison, Ratsoavina, Glaw & Scherz, 2022 *'' Lygodactylus wojnowskii'' Malonza, Granthon & D. Williams, 2016 – Mt. Kenya dwarf gecko ‡ ''L. blancae'' (

feminine Femininity (also called womanliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and Gender roles, roles generally associated with women and girls. Femininity can be understood as Social construction of gender, socially constructed, and there is also s ...

genitive In grammar, the genitive case ( abbreviated ) is the grammatical case that marks a word, usually a noun, as modifying another word, also usually a noun—thus indicating an attributive relationship of one noun to the other noun. A genitive can ...

singular Singular may refer to: * Singular, the grammatical number that denotes a unit quantity, as opposed to the plural and other forms * Singular or sounder, a group of boar, see List of animal names * Singular (band), a Thai jazz pop duo *'' Singula ...

) is named for (Ms) Françoise Blanc, a

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

geneticist A geneticist is a biologist or physician who studies genetics, the science of genes, heredity, and variation of organisms. A geneticist can be employed as a scientist or a lecturer. Geneticists may perform general research on genetic process ...

; but ''L. blanci'' (masculine, genitive, singular) is named for (Mr.) Charles Pierre Blanc, a French

herpetologist Herpetology (from Ancient Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is a branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, salamanders, and caecilians (Gymnophiona)) and reptiles (in ...

. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Lygodactylus blancae'' and ''L. blanci'', p. 26). ''

Nota bene ( ; plural: ) is the Latin language, Latin phrase meaning ''note well''. In manuscripts, ''nota bene'' is abbreviated in upper-case as NB and N.B., and in lower-case as n.b. and nb; the editorial usages of ''nota bene'' and ''notate bene'' fi ...

'': A

binomial authority In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin grammatical forms, altho ...

in parentheses indicates that the species was original described in a genus other than ''Lygodactylus''.

Species

References

Further reading