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Lygodactylus picturatus (PETERS, 1870)

IUCN Red List - Lygodactylus picturatus - Least Concern, LC
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Higher TaxaGekkonidae, Gekkota, Sauria, Squamata (lizards: geckos)
SubspeciesLygodactylus picturatus picturatus (PETERS 1870)
Lygodactylus picturatus sudanensis LOVERIDGE 1935 
Common NamesE: Painted Dwarf Gecko, White-headed Dwarf Gecko
G: Gelbkopf-Zwerggecko
sudanensis: Sudani Dwarf Gecko
luteopicturatus: Yellow-headed dwarf gecko 
SynonymHemidactylus variegatus PETERS 1868: 449 (not of DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1836)
Hemidactylus picturatus PETERS 1870: 115 (nom. subst. pro H. variegatus)
Lygodactylus picturatus — BOULENGER 1885: 161
Lygodactylus picturatus var. griseus TORNIER 1897: 24
Lygodactylus picturatus var. septemlineatus TORNIER 1896: 15
Lygodactylus picturatus var. septemlineatus TORNIER 1897: 26
Lygodactylus septemstriatus [TORNIER 1897] (invalid emendation)
Lygodactylus picturatus var. quinquelineatus TORNIER 1896: 15
Lygodactylus picturatus var. quinquestriata TORNIER 1897: 25 (invalid emend.)
Lygodactylus picturatus picturatus — LOVERIDGE 1953: 171
Lygodactylus luteopicturatus PASTEUR 1964
Lygodactylus luteopicturatus luteopicturatus PASTEUR 1964
Lygodactylus luteopicturatus zanzibaritis PASTEUR 1964
Lygodactylus luteopicturatus luteopicturatus — BROADLEY & HOWELL 1991: 10
Lygodactylus luteopicturatus zanzibaritis — BROADLEY & HOWELL 1991: 10
Lygodactylus luteopicturatus — KLUGE 1993
Lygodactylus picturatus — KLUGE 1993
Lygodactylus (Lygodactylus) picturatus — RÖSLER 2000: 94
Lygodactylus (Lygodactylus) luteopicturatus luteopicturatus — RÖSLER 2000: 93
Lygodactylus (Lygodactylus) luteopicturatus zanzibaritis — RÖSLER 2000: 93
Lygodactylus luteopicturatus — JESUS et al. 2006
Lygodactylus picturatus — RÖLL et al. 2010
Lygodactylus luteopicturatus — MALONZA et al. 2011
Lygodactylus luteopicturatus zanzibaritis — BAUER 2013 (plates)
Lygodactylus picturatus — SPAWLS et al. 2018: 112
Lygodactylus picturatus zanzibaritis — SPAWLS et al. 2018: 112

Lygodactylus picturatus sudanensis LOVERIDGE 1935
Lygodactylus picturatus sudanensis LOVERIDGE 1935: 197
Lygodactylus picturatus sudanensis — KLUGE 1993
Lygodactylus sudanensis — LARGEN 1997: 78
Lygodactylus (Lygodactylus) picturatus sudanensis — RÖSLER 2000: 94
Lygodactylus sudanensis — LARGEN & SPAWLS 2010: 328
Lygodactylus sudanensis — SPAWLS et al. 2023 
Distributioncoastal SE Kenya (Kilindini, Island Mombasa), NE Tanzania, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Island Mafia, Somalia, Zanzibar (Saranda/Dodoma District), (Killilindi/Mombasa Suranda/Ugogo), Zambia, Democratic Republic of Congo (Katanga = SE Zaire), S Sudan (Jumhūriyyat), Republic of South Sudan (RSS) (Abu Zor/Senaar), Eritrea, Ethiopia, Central African Republic, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Mali (likely; Joger & Lambert 1996), Gambia (Lygodactylus gutturalis, HÅKANSSON 1981)

S Cameroon (Foulassi), Guinea, Cameroon, Nigeria, Uganda, Rwanda ?, Burundi ?, Benin ?, Togo ?, Ghana ?, Ivory Coast ?, Liberia ?, Sierra Leone ?, Guinea-Bissau ?

sudanensis: Eritrea, Sudan (Jumhūriyyat), Republic of South Sudan (RSS), Ethiopia; Type locality: “Abu Zor, Senaar, Anglo-Egyptian Sudan (Jumhūriyyat), Republic of South Sudan (RSS)”

Type locality: “Zanzibarküste” [Tanzania]

luteopicturatus: S Kenya, E Tanzania, Zanzibar Island; Type locality(luteopicturatus): Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania; Type locality (zanzibaritis): Zanzibar, Tanzania  
Reproductionoviparous 
TypesHolotype: ZMB 5570
Holotype: MCZ 8800; paratypes: MCZ 8799, 8801 rom El Mesherat, Senaar, MCZ 8802, BMNH 1908.5.19.7 from Roseires, Blue Nile, Senaar; MBNH 1927.8.13.16 from Singa, Blue Nile, Senaar, BMNH 1907.10.24.4 from between Wau and Chak Chak, Bahr el Ghazel Province, Sudan, MSNM (Milan) [sudanensis]
Holotype: SMF 57212 [luteopicturatus]
Holotype: MCZ 19118 [zanzibaritis] 
DiagnosisUnfortunately we had to temporarily remove additional information as this was scraped by multiple AI companies who sell that data to their customers. These details, e.g. detailed descriptions or comparisons (about 230 characters), are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us for details. 
CommentSubspecies: Lygodactylus picturatus gutturalis (BOCAGE 1873) and Lygodactylus picturatus mombasicus LOVERIDGE 1935 have been elevated to full species status.

Synonymy: Mostly after Loveridge 1947 and Wermuth 1965. Listed in LeBreton 1999 as being a synonym of Lygodactylus gutturalis dysmicus. Lygodactylus picturatus ukerewensis LOVERIDGE 1935 is listed as a synonym of L. manni by BROADLEY & HOWELL 1991. RÖLL (2004) synonymized Lygodactylus luteopicturatus with L. picturatus without discussing the status of L. l. zanzibaritis further.

Sympatry: L. mombasicus (Kenya)

Distribution: Not in Equatorial Guinea fide SÁNCHEZ-VIALAS et al. 2022.

Reference images: see Uetz et al. 2024 for high-resolution reference images for this species. 
EtymologyNamed after Latin pictus (picta, pictum) = ornate, colorful, gracile, painted, for the pattern in this species.

L. p. sudanensis was named after its type locality in South Sudan. 
References
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