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Diplodactylus conspicillatus LUCAS & FROST, 1897

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Higher TaxaDiplodactylidae, Gekkota, Sauria, Squamata (lizards: geckos)
Subspecies 
Common NamesE: Variable Fat-tailed Gecko, Burrow-plug Gecko 
SynonymDiplodactylus conspicillatus LUCAS & FROST 1897
Gymnodactylus laevis STERNFELD 1925 (fide LOVERIDGE 1934)
Diplodactylus conspicillatus — LOVERIDGE 1934
Diplodactylus conspicillatus — WERMUTH 1965: 23
Diplodactylus conspicillatus — RÖSLER 1995: 80
Diplodactylus conspicillatus — COGGER 2000: 217
Diplodactylus conspicillatus — WILSON & SWAN 2010
Diplodactylus conspiculatus — DITTMER et al. 2020 (in error) 
DistributionAustralia (Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia)

Type locality: Charlotte Waters, Northern Territory.  
Reproductionoviparous 
TypesLectotype: NMV D7535, designated by Kluge 1967 
DiagnosisDiagnosis: A large member of the D. conspicillatus group (max SVL 62 mm) with a bold canthal stripe and a greatly enlarged first supralabial (contacting ventral edge of nasal scale. Mid-dorsal scales on trunk plate-like and markedly larger than smaller dorsolateral scales. Scales on nape granular and only slightly larger than granules on side of neck. Original tail spade-like and lacking an acute attenuated extension at tip. Scales on dorsal surface of tail ar- ranged in transverse rows (which usually include rows of both large and small scales). Pattern generally spotted and often with numerous dark blotches that contrast strongly with base col- our (Fig. 7A–B in OLIVER et al. 2014).
 
CommentSynonymy: Diplodactylus hillii LONGMAN 1915, D. platyurus PARKER 1926, and D. laevis STERNFELD 1925 have been removed from the synonymy of D. conspicillatus and revalidated by OLIVER et al. 2014.

Group: (founding) member of Diplodactylus conspicillatus group.

Diet: termites, ants

Abundance: common, with more than 500 specimens collected (Pianka 2011). However, the D. conspicillatus species complex was split up into multiple species and several synonyms revalidated by OLIVER et al. 2015.

Distribution: populations from NSW are now considered Diplodactylus ameyi. 
EtymologyNamed after the Latin word for spectacled. 
References
  • Cogger, H. G. 2014. Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, 7th ed. CSIRO Publishing, xxx + 1033 pp. - get paper here
  • Cogger, H.G. 2000. Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, 6th ed. Ralph Curtis Publishing, Sanibel Island, 808 pp.
  • COUPER, PATRICK J.; PAUL M. OLIVER 2016. A new species of gecko from arid inland regions of eastern Australia (Diplodactylus; Diplodactylidae). Zootaxa 4093 (4): 525–538 - get paper here
  • Dittmer, D. E., Chapman, T. L. & Bidwell, J. R. 2020. In the shadow of an iconic inselberg: Uluru’s shadow influences climates and reptile assemblage structure at its base. J. Arid Environ. 181, 104179 (2020) - get paper here
  • Doughty, P.; Pepper, Mitzy; J. Scott Keogh 2010. Morphological and molecular assessment of the Diplodactylus savagei species complex in the Pilbara region, Western Australia, with a description of a new species. Zootaxa 2393: 33–45 - get paper here
  • Girard, Francis 2008. The Feeding in Captivity of Two Small Australian Terrestrial Termite-eating Geckos: Rhynchoedura ornata Gunther, 1867 and Diplodactylus conspicillatus Lucas and Frost, 1897. Gekko 5 (2): 25-27
  • Glauert, L. 1956. Geckonidae (Part II). Western Australian Naturalist 5 (3): 49-56 - get paper here
  • Jones, Peter 1991. A record of Diplodactylus conspicillatus in New South Wales. Herpetofauna (Sydney) 21 (2): 20-22
  • Kinghorn, J. Roy 1929. Herpetological notes 1. Rec. Austral. Mus. 17 (2): 76-84 - get paper here
  • Laube, A. & Langner, C. 2007. Die “Geckos” Australiens. Draco 8 (29): 4-21 - get paper here
  • Longman, H. A. 1915. Reptiles from Queensland and the Northern Territory. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 3: 30-34. - get paper here
  • Loveridge, A. 1934. Australian reptiles in the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, Massachusetts. Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool. Harvard 77: 243-383 - get paper here
  • Lucas, A. H. S., and C. Frost. 1897. Description of two new species of lizards from central Australia. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria, 9:54-56 - get paper here
  • Mertens, R. 1967. Die herpetologische Sektion des Natur-Museums und Forschungs-Institutes Senckenberg in Frankfurt am Main nebst einem Verzeichnis ihrer Typen. Senckenbergiana Biologica 48: 1-106 - get paper here
  • Oliver PM, Couper PJ, Pepper M 2014. Independent Transitions between Monsoonal and Arid Biomes Revealed by Systematic Revison of a Complex of Australian Geckos (Diplodactylus; Diplodactylidae). PLoS One 9 (12): e111895. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0111895 - get paper here
  • Parker, H. W. 1926. New reptiles and a new frog from Queensland. Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (9) 17: 665-670. - get paper here
  • Pianka, E. R. 1969. Habitat specificity, speciation, and species density in Australian desert lizards. Ecology 50 (3): 498-502 - get paper here
  • Pianka, E. R.; Pianka, H. D. 1976. Comparative ecology of twelve species of nocturnal lizards (Gekkonidae) in the western Australian desert. Copeia 1976 (1): 125-142 - get paper here
  • Rösler, Herbert 1995. Geckos der Welt - Alle Gattungen. Urania, Leipzig, 256 pp.
  • Sternfeld, R. 1925. Beiträge zur Herpetologie Inner-Australiens. Abhandlungen Herausgegeben von der Senckenbergischen Naturforschenden Gesellschaft, 38: 221—251
  • Wells R W; Wellington C R 1984. A synopsis of the class Reptilia in Australia. Australian Journal of Herpetology 1 (3-4): 73-129 [31 Dec 1983 on cover]
  • Wilson, S. & Swan, G. 2010. A complete guide to reptiles of Australia, 3rd ed. Chatswood: New Holland, 558 pp.
 
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