Strophurus
Encyclopedia
Strophurus is a genus
of the Gekkonidae family found in Australia
, sometimes given the common name
of tail-squirters and spiny-tailed geckos.
of the body are generally small and round, sometimes interspersed with enlarged scales and soft spines.
All members of this genus have the unique defence, the ability to squirt a harmless, but smelly, fluid from their tail
s. This is used to deter bird
s while they are perching in shrub
bery, being unusual in the family by exposing themselves during the day. As with other geckos, they are also nocturnal. Some members lack spines and enlarged scales, while another subgroup contains spines on the tail and other parts of the body.
Their habitat
is amongst shrub
s and hummock grass, occasionally moving to the ground for warmth or mating. This is especially found in the pregnant female, who uses the additional warmth of rocks and roads to assist development of the two eggs
she carries.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of the Gekkonidae family found in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, sometimes given the common name
Common name
A common name of a taxon or organism is a name in general use within a community; it is often contrasted with the scientific name for the same organism...
of tail-squirters and spiny-tailed geckos.
Description
The species of this genus are between 80 and 130 millimetres in length. The scalesScale (zoology)
In most biological nomenclature, a scale is a small rigid plate that grows out of an animal's skin to provide protection. In lepidopteran species, scales are plates on the surface of the insect wing, and provide coloration...
of the body are generally small and round, sometimes interspersed with enlarged scales and soft spines.
All members of this genus have the unique defence, the ability to squirt a harmless, but smelly, fluid from their tail
Tail
The tail is the section at the rear end of an animal's body; in general, the term refers to a distinct, flexible appendage to the torso. It is the part of the body that corresponds roughly to the sacrum and coccyx in mammals, reptiles, and birds...
s. This is used to deter bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s while they are perching in shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
bery, being unusual in the family by exposing themselves during the day. As with other geckos, they are also nocturnal. Some members lack spines and enlarged scales, while another subgroup contains spines on the tail and other parts of the body.
Their habitat
Habitat
* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...
is amongst shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
s and hummock grass, occasionally moving to the ground for warmth or mating. This is especially found in the pregnant female, who uses the additional warmth of rocks and roads to assist development of the two eggs
Egg (biology)
An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing...
she carries.
Diversity
There are 16 species of Strophurus, and a number of subspecies.- Strophurus assimilis - StorrGlen Milton StorrDr Glen Milton Storr was an Australian ornithologist. He joined the Western Australian Museum in 1962 and became Curator of Ornithology and Herpetology in 1965. He was a member of the Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union , and served as Secretary of the Western Australian Branch of the RAOU...
1988 - Strophurus ciliaris - BoulengerGeorge Albert BoulengerGeorge Albert Boulenger FRS was a Belgian-British zoologist who identified over 2000 new animal species, chiefly fish, reptiles and amphibians.-Life:...
1885 - Strophurus elderi - StirlingEdward Charles StirlingSir Edward Charles Stirling was an Australian anthropologist and the first professor of physiology at the University of Adelaide.-Early life:...
& Zietz 1893 - Strophurus intermedius - Ogilby 1892
- Strophurus jeanae - Storr 1988
- Strophurus krisalys - Sadlier, O’meally and Shea 2005
- Strophurus mcmillani - Storr 1978
- Strophurus michaelseni - WernerFranz WernerFranz Werner was an Austrian zoologist and explorer. Specializing as a herpetologist and entomologist, Werner described numerous species and other taxa of frogs, snakes, insects, and other organisms....
1910 - Strophurus rankini - Storr 1979
- Strophurus robinsoni - Smith 1995
- Strophurus spinigerus - GrayJohn Edward GrayJohn Edward Gray, FRS was a British zoologist. He was the elder brother of George Robert Gray and son of the pharmacologist and botanist Samuel Frederick Gray ....
, 1842 - Strophurus strophurus - DumérilAndré Marie Constant DumérilAndré Marie Constant Duméril was a French zoologist. He was professor of anatomy at the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle from 1801 to 1812, when he became professor of herpetology and ichthyology...
& BibronGabriel BibronGabriel Bibron was a French zoologist. He was born in Paris. Son of an employee of the Museum national d'histoire naturelle, he had a good foundation in natural history and was hired to collect vertebrates in Italy and Sicily. He classified a number of reptile species with André Marie Constant...
1836 - Strophurus taeniatus - LönnbergEinar LönnbergAxel Johann Einar Lönnberg was a Swedish zoologist.Lönnberg was born in Stockholm. He was head of the Vertebrate Department of the Swedish Natural History Museum from 1904 to 1932....
& Andersson 1913 - Strophurus wellingtonae - Storr 1988
- Strophurus williamsi - Kluge 1963
- Strophurus wilsoni - Storr 1983