Sphaerodactylus sputator (SPARRMAN, 1784)
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Sphaerodactylus sputator
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| Higher Taxa | Sphaerodactylidae, Gekkota, Sauria, Squamata (lizards: geckos) |
| Subspecies | |
| Common Names | E: Leeward Banded Geckolet, Island Least Gecko |
| Synonym | Lacerta sputator SPARRMAN 1784: 164 Lacerta sputator — MEYER 1795: 30 Sphaeriodactylus sputator — DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1836: 402 Sphaerodactylus sputator — BOULENGER 1885: 219 Sphaerodactylus pictus GARMAN 1887 Sphaerodactylus sputator — SCHWARTZ & HENDERSON 1991: 537 Sphaerodactylus sputator — KLUGE 1993 Sphaerodactylus sputator — RÖSLER 2000: 114 Sphaerodactylus sputator — POWELL & BAUER 2012 |
| Distribution | Antilles, Statia, Dog, St. Martin, St. Barts, St. Kitts, Nevis, Haiti (Departm. de l'Artibonite), Sombrero Island, Anguilla Bank (Dog, Little Scrub, Scrub, St. Barthelemy, St. Martin, Ile Fourchue, Îlet Pinel), St. Eustatius, St. Christopher Type locality: St. Eustatius. |
| Reproduction | oviparous |
| Types | Lectotype: NRM (NHRM) 2669. |
| Diagnosis | Description: Size moderate (SVL to 35 mm in males, to 39 mm in females); dorsals keeled, slightly imbricate, axilla to groin 31-39; ventrals cycloid, smooth, axilla to groin 27-34; middorsal area of granular scales; dorsal caudal scales weakly keeled, imbricate, ventral caudal scales cycloid, imbricate, enlarged midventrally; snout scales flat, smooth, juxtaposed; 2 postnasals; 1-2 (mode 2) internasals; upper labials to mideye 3-4 (mode 3); gular scales smooth; midbody scales 49-62; escutcheon 3-6 x 26-30 (Schwartz & Henderson 1991: 537). Sexual dichromatism: absent. Coloration: dorsal ground color pale tan (St. Martin), sandy buffy (St. Martin), purplish tan (St. Barthelemy; St. Eustatius), or pale pink (Anguilla); pattern of 5-8 brown-edged, dull white, cream, or buffy crossbands between head and groin; crossbands continue onto tail, but ill-defined and obscure; entire animal may have slight greenish cast; yellow canthal line; throat pale yellow; ventral ground color pearly (St. Martin), creamy white (Anguilla), pinkish (St. Eustatius); tail pale yellow to orangish (St. Martin; St.Barthelemy); iris bronze (St. Martin; St. Barthelemy), golden (Anguilla), golden orange (St. Eustatius) (Schwartz & Henderson 1991: 537). Diagnosis: Sphaerodactylus sputator may be distinguished from other Lesser Antillean congeners by having a middorsal area composed of granules that lack knob-like scale organs and have only hair-bearing scale organs (King 1962) and in having smooth gular and ventral scales (Schwartz and Henderson 1985, Powell & Bauer 2012). |
| Comment | For illustrations see Barbour, 1921 (as S. pictus); King, 1960; King, 1962. Type species: Lacerta sputator SPARRMAN 1784: 164 is the type species of the genus Sphaerodactylus WAGLER 1830: 143. Type genus: Sphaerodactylus is the type genus of the family Sphaerodactylidae. The family Sphaerodactylidae has changed in composition. Vanzolini 1968 assigned 5 genera to the family (Gonatodes, Lepidoblepharis, Pseudogonatodes, Coleodactylus, and Sphaerodactylus) while it now (2018) has 12. Extinct species: Sphaerodactylus dommeli Böhme 1984 has been described from amber, found in the Dominican Rebuplic. Distribution: For maps of South American species see Vanzolini 1968: 94 (Map 5). Reproduction: for a collection of data on reproductive details in Sphaerodactylidae see Rösler 2022. |
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