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Diplodactylus platyurus PARKER, 1926

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Higher TaxaDiplodactylidae, Gekkota, Sauria, Squamata (lizards: geckos)
Subspecies 
Common NamesE: Eastern Fat-tailed gecko 
SynonymDiplodactylus platyurus PARKER 1926
Diplodactylus conspicillatus — KLUGE 1967 (part.)
Diplodactylus conspicillatus — COGGER in COGGER et. al. 1983 (part.)
Diplodactylus platyurus — WELLS & WELLINGTON 1984
Manwellisaurus platyurus — WELLS & WELLINGTON 1989
Diplodactylus platyurus — OLIVER et al. 2014 
DistributionAustralia (Queensland, NE South Australia)

Type locality: Torrens Creek, northern Queensland.  
Reproductionoviparous (not imputed, fide Zimin et al. 2022) 
TypesHolotype: BMNH 1946.8.11.38 
DiagnosisDiagnosis: A large member of the D. conspicillatus group (max SVL 60 mm) lacking a well- defined canthal stripe and without a greatly enlarged first supralabial (first supralabial not in contact with ventral edge of nasal scale). 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. Scales on dorsal surface of tail arranged in transverse rows (often of uniform size but can include rows of both large and small scales). Pattern generally with dark, heavily spotted flanks and a series of pale vertebral blotches or a continuous pale vertebral zone [OLIVER et al. 2014]. 
CommentSynonymy: Diplodactylus platyurus PARKER 1926 was synonymized with D. conspicillatus by LOVERIDGE 1934 and resurrected by OLIVER et al. 2014.

Comparisons. D. platyurus is readily distinguished from D. conspicillatus, D. laevis, D. hillii, D. bilybara sp. nov., D. custos sp. nov. and D. barraganae sp. nov. by the condition of the 1st supralabial (small and not differentiated from the rest of the supralabial row in D. platyurus vs greatly enlarged and contacting ventral edge of nasal scale) and by the absence of a well-defined canthal stripe (vs canthal stripe well-developed) [OLIVER et al. 2014.

Group: member of Diplodactylus conspicillatus group.

Diet: termites, ants

Distribution: see map in OLIVER et al. 2014 (Fig. 3). 
EtymologyPresumably named after the Greek platys (broad, flat) plus oura (tail), referring to the tail shape. (G. Shea, pers. comm., 9 Feb 2024) 
References
  • Cogger H.G., Cameron EE & Cogger HM 1983. Zoological Catalogue of Australia, Volume 1: AMPHIBIA AND REPTILIA. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.
  • 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
  • Kluge, A. G. 1967. Systematics, Phylogeny, and Zoogeography of the Lizard Genus Diplodactylus Gray (Gekkonidae). Australian Journal of Zoology 15: 1007-1108 + 19 plates - 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
  • 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
  • Riedel, J., Nordberg, E. and Schwarzkopf, L. 2020. Ecological niche and microhabitat use of Australian geckos. Israel J Ecol Evol 66 (3-4): 209-222 - get paper here
  • VANDERDUYS, ERIC; CONRAD J. HOSKIN, ALEX S. KUTT, JUSTIN M. WRIGHT, STEPHEN M. ZOZAYA 2020. Beauty in the eye of the beholder: a new species of gecko (Diplodactylidae: Lucasium) from inland north Queensland, Australia. Zootaxa 4877 (2): 291–310 - get paper here
  • 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]
  • Wells, R. W., and C. R. Wellington. 1989. A checklist of the amphibians and reptiles known from the Cumberland Plain Region, Sydney Basin, New South Wales, Australia. Australian Herpetologist, (506) :1-34
  • Zimin, A., Zimin, S. V., Shine, R., Avila, L., Bauer, A., Böhm, M., Brown, R., Barki, G., de Oliveira Caetano, G. H., Castro Herrera, F., Chapple, D. G., Chirio, L., Colli, G. R., Doan, T. M., Glaw, F., Grismer, L. L., Itescu, Y., Kraus, F., LeBreton 2022. A global analysis of viviparity in squamates highlights its prevalence in cold climates. Global Ecology and Biogeography, 00, 1–16 - get paper here
 
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