Tarentola americana (GRAY, 1831)
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Tarentola americana
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| Higher Taxa | Phyllodactylidae, Gekkota, Sauria, Squamata (lizards: geckos) |
| Subspecies | Tarentola americana warreni SCHWARTZ 1968 Tarentola americana americana (GRAY 1831) |
| Common Names | E: American Wall Gecko |
| Synonym | Platydactylus americanus GRAY 1831: 48 Platydactylus milbertii DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1836: 325 Platydactylus (Tarentola) Americanus var. Cubanus GUNDLACH & PETERS in PETERS 1864: 384 Tarentola americana — BOULENGER 1885: 195 Tarentola cubana — BOULENGER 1885: 195 Tarentola cubana — BURT & MYERS 1942 Tarentola (Neotarentola) americana — JOGER 1984 Tarentola americana — SCHWARTZ & HENDERSON 1991: 549 Tarentola americana — KLUGE 1993 Tarentola (Neotarentola) americana — RÖSLER 2000: 115 Tarentola (Neotarentola) americana — WEISS & HEDGES 2007 Tarentola americana americana — DE LISLE et al. 2013 Tarentola americana warreni SCHWARTZ 1968 Tarentola americana warreni SCHWARTZ 1968: 134 Tarentola americana warreni — SCHWARTZ & HENDERSON 1988: 196 Tarentola americana warreni — DE LISLE et al. 2013 |
| Distribution | Antilles, Cuba, Bahamas, Isla de Pinos americana: Cuba and associated cayertas; Isla de la Juventud. Type locality: “Im Walde bei Habana” [Cuba]; restricted to “Cabo Cruz, Oriente Province, Cuba” by SCHWARTZ 1968 [Platydactylus (Tarentola) Americanus var. Cubanus GUNDLACH & PETERS] warreni: Great Bahama Bank. Type locality: Gray's Settlement, Long Island, Bahama Islands. |
| Reproduction | oviparous |
| Types | Holotype: MNHN-RA 6700 Holotype: ZMB 5107 [Platydactylus (Tarentola) Americanus var. Cubanus GUNDLACH & PETERS] Holotype: USNM 160725 [warreni] |
| Diagnosis | DESCRIPTION: Size large (SVL in males to 120 mm, in females to 111 mm); longitudinal rows of enlarged dorsals at midbody 12-24; longitudinal rows of smooth, cycloid, imbricate ventrals 23-47; interorbital scales (including superciliary scales) 10-17; gulars 14-31; first toe lamellae 10-17; fourth toe lamellae 9-17; scales between first sublabials in contact with mental 0-4; males with a pair of semilunar series (just behind vent) of enlarged (in respect to scales anterior and posterior) scales, usually 3, which project boldly from ventral and lateral margins of tail on rounded prominence, dead white and contrasting with adjacent scales in color; dorsum and sides with more or less irregular rows of large, keeled tubercles with interstitial granules, becoming smaller and more stud-like ventrolaterally, at times (by subspecies) 4-8 rows of scales transitional between dorsals and ventrals; ventral scales delimited laterally by 2 longitudinal folds; tail verticillate, 5 scales/verticil. Dorsum shades of tan, brown, gray, or black; at times pattern vague in adults, but often with a series of 4-5 dark brown crossbands between limbs, margins at times stippled pale tan; a dark brown neck band, at times a second band behind occiput; head (at times virtually patternless in 1 subspecies) tan, with a dark brown figure (in juveniles) of fine lines resembling an arrowhead (apex between eyes, open ends on occiput); a single median line anterior to arrowhead at times present, extending toward snout and forking toward lores; a dark brown postocular stripe usually present (at times fragmented or even absent) at all sizes; unregenerated tail at times unpatterned, more often with 8-9 dark brown bands alternating with tan bands, smeared with brown, longitudinal dark markings (almost striae) or dark brown dots (by subspecies); venter ochraceous tan (Schwartz & Henderson 1991: 549). |
| Comment | For illustrations see Stejneger, 1917; Barbour and Ramsden, 1919; Schwartz and Henderson, 1985. |
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