Sphaerodactylus millepunctatus (HALLOWELL, 1861)

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Higher Taxa	Sphaerodactylidae, Gekkota, Sauria, Squamata (lizards: geckos)
Subspecies
Common Names	E: Lower Central American Geckolet, Spotted Least Gecko S: Gequillo de Puntos
Synonym	Sphaeriodactylus millepunctatus HALLOWELL 1861: 480 Sphaerodactylus continentalis WERNER 1896 Sphaerodactylus millepunctatus — TAYLOR 1956: 49 Sphaerodactylus millepunctatus — WERMUTH 1965: 170 Sphaerodactylus millepunctatus — HARRIS & KLUGE 1984: 17 Sphaerodactylus millepunctatus — KLUGE 1993 Sphaerodactylus millepunctatus — LINER 1994 Sphaerodactylus millepunctatus — KÖHLER 2000: 51 Sphaerodactylus millepunctatus — MCCRANIE & HEDGES 2012: 73 Sphaerodactylus millepunctatus — MARTÍNEZ-FONSECA et al. 2024
Distribution	Guatemala, Belize, Nicaragua (incl. Isla de Maíz Grande), Honduras, Costa Rica (from the Mosquitia region of northeastern Honduras to northern Costa Rica), Mexico (Tabasco) Type locality: Nicaragua.
Reproduction	oviparous
Types	Neotype: UMMZ 173053, original holotype: USNM 6057 (lost)
Diagnosis	Diagnosis: Sphaerodactylus millepunctatus can be distinguished from S. continentalis in having slightly larger and fewer dorsal scales (42–57, x = 51.7 ± 5.0 in 15 S. millepunctatus versus 59–70, x = 63.5 ± 3.4 in 20 S. continentalis examined for this study; see Discussion and Appendix I). Sphaerodactylus millepunctatus differs from both S. guanajae and S. leonardovaldesi in lacking a short thin pale yellow line above each pelvis, in usually having distinct dorsal spots that are larger than one scale, and in usually having distinct dark stripes on the posterior end of the head and anterior portion of the body (versus short pale pelvic lines almost always present, only scattered dark spots on body that are confined to one scale, and indistinct dark stripes on head and body in those two species). Sphaerodactylus millepunctatus also differs from S. guanajae in having more subdigital lamellae on the fourth toe (9–12, x = 9.7 ± 0.8 on 30 sides versus 8–9, x = 8.6 ± 0.5 on 12 sides in S. guanajae) and also differs from S. leonardovaldesi in having larger dorsal scales (42–57, x = 51.7 ± 5.0 in 15 S. millepunctatus versus 58–66, x = 61.7 ± 2.7 in 13 S. leonardovaldesi). Sphaerodactylus millepunctatus also differs from S. continentalis, S. guanajae, and S. leonardovaldesi in molecular data (Fig. 1). Sphaerodactylus homolepis Cope also narrowly occurs sympatrically with S. millepunctatus in southeastern Nicaragua and adjacent northeastern Costa Rica, but S. homolepis has a single supranasal scale and has alternating median subcaudal scales (versus two supranasals and subcaudals aligned in a single series in S. millepunctatus) [from MCCRANIE & HEDGES 2012].
Comment	Distribution: KÖHLER 2000 states “not on the Yucatan peninsula” but see map in LEE 1996: 180. Synonymy: S. lineolatus, S. glaucus. Relative abundance in Honduras: infrequent
Etymology	The name millepunctatus is derived from the Latin words mille (a thousand) and punctum (spot) and the Latin suffix -atus (provided with). The name alludes to the spotted pattern of the syntypes.
References	Aguilar-López JL, Luría-Manzano R, Pineda E, Canseco-Márquez L 2021. Selva Zoque, Mexico: an important Mesoamerican tropical region for reptile species diversity and conservation. ZooKeys 1054: 127-153 - get paper here Campbell, J.A. 1998. Amphibians and reptiles of northern Guatemala, the Yucatán, and Belize. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, xiii + 380 pp. - get paper here Casas-Andreu, G., F.R. Méndez-De la Cruz and X. Aguilar-Miguel. 2004. Anfibios y Reptiles; pp. 375–390, in A.J.M. García-Mendoza, J. Ordoñez and M. Briones-Salas (ed.). Biodiversidad de Oaxaca. Instituto de Biología, UNAM-Fondo Oaxaqueño para la Conservación de la Naturaleza-World Wildlife Fund, México, D. F. Hallowell, E. 1861. Report upon the Reptilia of the North Pacific Exploring Expedition, under command of Capt. John Rogers, U. S. N. Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 12 [1860]: 480 - 510 - get paper here Harris D M; Kluge A G 1984. The Sphaerodactylus (Sauria: Gekkonidae) of Middle America. Occasional Papers of the Museum of Zoology University of Michigan (No. 706): 1-59 - get paper here Hedges SB, Powell R, Henderson RW, Hanson S, and Murphy JC 2019. Definition of the Caribbean Islands biogeographic region, with checklist and recommendations for standardized common names of amphibians and reptiles. Caribbean Herpetology 67: 1–53 Hernández-Ordóñez, Omar et al. 2015. Range extensions of amphibians and reptiles in the southeastern part of the Lacandona rainforest, Mexico. Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad, doi:10.1016/j.rmb.2015.04.005 - get paper here Köhler, G. 1996. Additions to the known herpetofauna of the Isla de Utila (Islas de la Bahia, Honduras) with description of a new species of the genus Norops (Reptilia: Iguanidae). Senckenbergiana biologica 76 (1/2): 19-28. Köhler, G. 2000. Reptilien und Amphibien Mittelamerikas, Bd 1: Krokodile, Schildkröten, Echsen. Herpeton Verlag, Offenbach, 158 pp. Köhler, G. 2001. Sphaerodactylus millepunctatus HALLOWELL. Sauria 23 (4): 2 - get paper here Köhler, G. 2008. Reptiles of Central America. 2nd Ed. Herpeton-Verlag, 400 pp. Lee, J. C. 2000. A field guide to the amphibians and reptiles of the Maya world. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, Lee, J.C. 1996. The amphibians and reptiles of the Yucatán Peninsula. Comstock, Cornell University Press, Ithaca, 500 pp. Martínez-Fonseca JG, Holmes IA, Sunyer J, Westeen EP, Grundler MR, Cerda PA, Fernández-Mena MA, Loza-Molina JC, Monagan IV Jr., Nondorf D, Pandelis GG, Rabosky ARD 2023. A collection and analysis of amphibians and reptiles from Nicaragua with new country and departmental records. Check List 20(1): 58-125 - get paper here McCranie, J. & Castañeda, F.E. 2005. The herpetofauna of Parque Nacional Pico Bonito, Honduras. Phyllomedusa 4 (1): 3-16 - get paper here McCranie, James R. 2015. A checklist of the amphibians and reptiles of Honduras, with additions, comments on taxonomy, some recent taxonomic decisions, and areas of further studies needed. Zootaxa 3931 (3): 352–386 - get paper here McCranie, James R. 2018. The Lizards, Crocodiles, and Turtles of Honduras. Systematics, Distribution, and Conservation. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Special Publication Series (2): 1- 666 - get paper here Nicholson, Kirsten E., James R. McCranie and Gunther Köhler 2000. Herpetofaunal expedition to Parque Nacional Patuca: a newly established park in Honduras. Herpetological Bulletin (72): 26-31. - get paper here Savage, J.M. 2002. The Amphibians and Reptiles of Costa Rica: A Herpetofauna Between Two Continents, Between Two Seas. University of Chicago Press, 934 pp. [review in Copeia 2003 (1): 205] Solís, J. M., L. D. Wilson, and J. H. Townsend. 2014. An updated list of the amphibians and reptiles of Honduras, with comments on their nomenclature. Mesoamerican Herpetology 1: 123–144 - get paper here Sunyer, J., K.E. Nicholson, J.G. Phillips, J.A.Gubler, and L.A. Obando 2013. Lizards (Reptilia: Squamata) of the Corn Islands, Caribbean Nicaragua. Check List 9: 1383–1390 - get paper here Sunyer, Javier 2014. An updated checklist of the amphibians and reptiles of Nicaragua. Mesoamerican Herpetology 1 (2): 186–202. - get paper here Sunyer, Javier & José́ Gabriel Martínez-Fonseca 2023. An updated country checklist to the amphibians and reptiles of Nicaragua. REVISTA NICARAGÜENSE DE BIODIVERSIDAD (100): 1-25 - get paper here Taylor, E. H. 1956. A review of the lizards of Costa Rica. Univ. Kansas Sci. Bull. 38 (part 1): 3-322 - get paper here Werner, F. 1896. Beiträge zur Kenntniss der Reptilien und Batrachier von Centralamerika und Chile, sowie einiger seltenerer Schlangenarten. Verhandlungen der Kaiserlich— Königlichen Zoologisch-Botanischen Gesellschaft in Wien, 46: 344—365 - get paper here
External links	IUCN Red List National Center for Biotechnology Information Google images

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