''Teratoscincus'' 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 ...

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 commonly referred to as wonder geckos or frog-eyed geckos; it is the only genus within the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end botanical subfamily names with "-oideae", and zo ...

Teratoscincinae of the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Sphaerodactylidae The Sphaerodactylidae are a Family (biology), 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 fam ...

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), ...

in the genus ''Teratoscincus'' are found from the

Arabian Peninsula The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...

Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...

, the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

, and

Oman Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...

, west across southern Asia in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

, and

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

, north to

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan is a landlocked country in Central Asia bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the south and southwest and the Caspian Sea to the west. Ash ...

Uzbekistan , image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg , image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg , symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem , national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...

, and

Tajikistan Tajikistan, officially the Republic of Tajikistan, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Dushanbe is the capital city, capital and most populous city. Tajikistan borders Afghanistan to the Afghanistan–Tajikistan border, south, Uzbekistan to ...

Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...

and

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. The genus consists of nine

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), ...

Member species

The genus ''Teratoscincus'' contains the following nine species which are recognized as being valid.. www.reptile-database.org. *''

Teratoscincus bedriagai ''Teratoscincus bedriagai'', also known commonly as Bedraiga's wonder gecko or Bedriaga's plate-tailed gecko, is a small species of lizard in the family Sphaerodactylidae. The species is native to Central and Western Asia. Etymology The specif ...

'' – Bedriaga's wonder gecko, Bedriaga's plate-tailed gecko *''

Teratoscincus keyserlingii The Persian wonder gecko (''Teratoscincus keyserlingii)'', also known commonly as the giant frog-eyed gecko and Keyserling's wonder gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Sphaerodactylidae. The species is native to western Asia. Etymology T ...

'' –

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

wonder gecko *''

Teratoscincus mesriensis ''Teratoscincus mesriensis'' is a species of gecko, a lizard in the family Sphaerodactylidae. The species is endemic to Iran. Etymology The specific name, ''mesriensis'', is a Latinized toponymic adjective, meaning "from Mesr", the village near ...

'' *'' Teratoscincus microlepis'' – small-scaled wonder gecko *''

Teratoscincus przewalskii Przewalski's wonder gecko (''Teratoscincus przewalskii)'' is a species of lizard in the family Sphaerodactylidae. The species is endemic to East Asia. Etymology The specific name, ''przewalskii'', is in honor of Russian explorer and naturalist ...

'' – Przewalski's wonder gecko *''

Teratoscincus roborowskii ''Teratoscincus roborowskii'', commonly known as the Tibetan wonder gecko or Turpan wonder gecko, is a species of gecko in the Family (biology), family Sphaerodactylidae. The species is Endemism, endemic to the Turpan Depression in Xinjiang, nor ...

'' *''

Teratoscincus rustamowi ''Teratoscincus rustamowi'' is a small species of gecko, a lizard in the family Sphaerodactylidae. The species is endemic to Uzbekistan. Description The maximum recorded snout-to-vent length (SVL) for ''T. rustamowi'' is . Reproduction ''T. rus ...

'' *''

Teratoscincus scincus ''Teratoscincus scincus'', commonly referred to as the common wonder gecko or the frog-eyed gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Sphaerodactylidae. The species is native to arid parts of Asia and has special adaptations which suit it to ...

'' – common wonder gecko, frog-eyed gecko *'' Teratoscincus sistanense'' ''

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 originally described in a genus other than ''Teratoscincus''.

In captivity

''T. roborowskii'' is frequently found in the exotic animal trade. It is suitable for keeping in a desert

vivarium A vivarium (; or vivariums) is an area, usually enclosed, for keeping and raising animals or plants for observation or research. Water-based vivaria may have open tops providing they are not connected to other water bodies. An animal enclosur ...

References

External links

''Teratoscincus scincus'' captive care
Reptiles of Central Asia Fauna of Pakistan Taxa named by Alexander Strauch {{gecko-stub

Member species

In captivity

References

Further reading

External links