Gehyra kimberleyi Börner & Schüttler, 1983

Oliver, Paul M., Bourke, Gayleen, Pratt, Renae C., Doughty, Paul & Moritz, Craig, 2016, Systematics of small Gehyra (Squamata: Gekkonidae) of the southern Kimberley, Western Australia: redescription of G. kimberleyi Börner & Schüttler, 1983 and description of a new restricted range species, Zootaxa 4107 (1), pp. 49-64 : 51-55

Gehyra kimberleyi Börner & Schüttler, 1983

Robust termitaria gecko

Figs. 2–4

Holotype. BSRC Geck 65 SC (private collection of Achim-Rüdiger Börner, Germany), ‘ 5 km south of Derby, W.A.’

Diagnosis. Digits broadly expanded basally and subdigital scansors present on all digits of manus and pes. Digit I of manus and pes clawless, penultimate phalynx of digits II–V free from scansorial pad. Differs from non- Australian Gehyra by the combination of: absence of webbing between third and fourth toes, absence of a skin fold along the posterior hindlimb and medium adult size (SVL <62 mm). Differs from Australian Gehyra by the combination of moderate size (SVL <62 mm), short snout (SnEye/HL mean 0.42) and deep head (HD/HL mean 0.48), subdigital lamellae divided without basal wedge of granules, moderate number of pre-cloacal pores (12–17), postmentals not contacting the second infralabial, one pair of chin shields and dorsal background colour light reddish-brown to pale tan or greyish-brown with diffuse, widely-spaced pale spots and small dark-brown blotches.

Details of holotype. From original description (in mm). SVL 36; TailL 39; HeadL (tip of rostral to anterior corner of ear) 9; HW 7.3; HD 4.3; HD/SVL 0.119; SupLab* 6/7; InfLab* 6/7; FingSubDL 6; ToeSubDL 9; rostral with cleft, undivided; first SupLab higher than second (*not defined, possibly measured to centre of eye).

Description of species. Range of variation for measurements and scale counts are presented in Table 1 . A medium-sized (adult SVL mean 50.4 mm, range 42.0– 61.3 mm), moderately robust gecko. Head deep (HD/HL 0.48, 0.40–0.58), moderately wide (HW/HL 0.86, 0.76–0.97), widest posterior to eye, tapering to a rounded snout, narrowing posteriorly to a slightly constricted neck. Snout short (SnEye/HL 0.42, 0.39–0.46), generally shorter than twice eye length (OrbL/SnEye 0.58, 0.54–0.63), occasionally slightly concave on dorsal surface, canthus rounded; in profile view, snout convex with blunt tip. Body moderately long (TrunkL/SVL 0.42, 0.37–0.47) and robust, slightly depressed.

G. kimberleyi G. girloorloo sp. nov. G. nana (south Kimberley) G. pilbara

N = 19 N = 17 N = 40 N = 14

(M = 11/F = 8) (M = 10/F = 7) (M = 20/F = 20) (M = 4/F = 10) On head, dorsal scales largest on snout, ~2.5 times larger than scales on crown of head and body and slightly projecting and imbricate. Nostrils large and circular, bordered by rostral, supranasal, two postnasals of similar size and first supralabial; supranasals round to triangular in shape, usually separated by a single large internarial scale. Rostral scale wider than high (RosH/RosW 0.64, 0.56–0.74), slightly gabled, usually with a deep medial cleft ~60% of rostral height. Supralabials 7–9 (mode 8), infralabials 7–8 (mode 7). First supralabial higher than subsequent supralabials. Supralabials bordered dorsally by enlarged row of scales posteriorly that decrease in size as for supralabials. Mental scale roughly triangular, divides postmentals 20–40%. Postmentals in contact with first infralabial only; single pair of outer chin shields smaller with rounded outer edge, ~two-thirds the height of postmentals, in contact with first and second infralabials, thereby excluding postmental from contact with second infralabial. Second or third infralabial notched and in contact with first parinfralabial. Eye small (OrbL/HL 0.24, 0.21–0.27), circular, small fringe of mostly rounded scales extends from the postero-dorsal to the anterio-ventral edge. Ear openings moderately large and circular.

Dorsal scales homogeneous, small, rounded and juxtaposed; gular scales granular; ventral midbody scales 2–3 as large as dorsal scales, slightly imbricate and tending to be diamond-shaped; limbs covered in granular scales, scales on anterior surfaces enlarged, especially on legs. Pre-cloacal pores 12–17, mode 16, perpendicular to body distally and medial curving forwards to form a sharply pointed ‘v’ with anteriorly-directed apex. Usually a single small post-cloacal spur present on each side in males. Females lack pre-cloacal pores and prominent post-cloacal spurs.

Limbs very short (ArmL/SVL 0.11, 0.09–0.13; HindL/SVL 0.12, 0.10–0.17); five digits on each limb, claws present on digits 2–5, claws long and free, arising from dorsal surface of expanded toe pads and extending above and well beyond toe pad, row of elongate and sharply pointed distal scales on periphery of dorsal surface of toe; toe pads ovoid; subdigital lamellae divided, 5–7 (mode 6) pairs on fourth finger, and 6–9 (mode 7) on fourth toe, apical lamellae wedge-shaped.

Tail moderately long and moderately thin to slightly swollen, slightly dorso-ventrally flattened in crosssection, tapering to fine tip. Dorsal scales of tail flattened with rounded posterior edge, tending to be arranged in rows. Enlarged, wide series of scales beneath tail, bordered peripherally by 2–4 rows of enlarged scales, decreasing in size on lateral surfaces.

Colouration in preservative. Background dorsal colour varies from dark reddish- or greyish-brown with fine dark stippling to light salmon-pink, pale and patternless in larger individuals ( Fig. 2 ). Dorsal surfaces of head, torso and tail usually with scattered poorly-defined small, dark greyish-brown spots, blotches, flecks or short bars; pale grey spots interspersed among the darker markings, usually forming rows of 4–6 spots; on the neck and crown, blotches are usually separated, on the torso often transversely aligned to form loosely-defined bands on the body and on the tail often forming concentric bands. Dark longitudinal streaks on lateral surface of neck posterior to eye or a series of small dark blotches. Limbs with similar pattern to dorsum, but generally less well defined. Ventral colour pale, lightly stippled but more darkly pigmented anteriorly, especially in gular region. Iris pale silvery blue, pupil vertical and pale with crenelated edge. Original tails with alternating dark and pale concentric rings or series of blotches. Regenerated tails with no clear pattern, although indistinct longitudinal brown streaks are sometimes apparent.

Colouration in life. Based on photographs of specimens captured in the south-western Kimberley. The dorsal background colour is pale or golden tan to medium dark brown, and the dorsal pattern consists of scattered dark brown blotches and smaller pale spots that occur in alternating rows, especially the vertebral zone, with smaller spots occurring on the head, flanks and limbs. The dorsal pattern tends to be less distinct in larger specimens ( Fig. 3 ).

Habitat and reproduction. Habitat notes from collectors of specimens held at the WAM indicate most were collected from termite mounds (128 of 227 such records). Other collection locations indicate generalist habits, with specimens collected from trees, under logs and other ground cover and including vertical rock faces. Like other species in the Gehyra variegata-punctata species-group ( Doughty 1996), G. kimberleyi lays a single egg.

Distribution. Occurs throughout the southern Kimberley region, from Cape Leveque at the northern edge of the Dampier Peninsula in the west, as far north as Mt Elizabeth in the central Kimberley, and north-east to Lake Argyle near Kununurra ( Fig. 1 ). Most records are from south of the King Leopold and Durack barrier ranges, with several records south of the Fitzroy Crossing area. There are no records north of the Durack Range in the eastern Kimberley, although this region is the most poorly surveyed of the Kimberley. In the Northern Territory, the species is recorded from Buchanan Station. There are records of genotyped specimens as far south as the northern Pilbara (15 km north-east of Nifty Mine and Meentheena Nature Reserve), with several specimens from along the 80 mile beach extension of Dampierland between the west Kimberley and Pilbara regions. In the Great Sandy Desert, there are records from Dragon Tree Soak Nature Reserve in the south to records further north. The Great Sandy Desert remains poorly surveyed and this species may be more widely distributed in this region.

Etymology. Although the original description mentions the ‘Kimberleys’ (sic) ( Börner & Schüttler 1983, p. 1), no explicit etymology was provided. The presumed correct formation of the specific name is ‘kimberleyensis’, which means the taxon is from the Kimberley region. The proposed name ‘kimberleyi’ would refer to a male named Kimberley. The error, however, cannot be emended under current ICZN rules of nomenclature. The suggested common name refers to species’ body habitus, and ‘termitaria’ indicates this species’ habitat preference (although it is not exclusive to termitaria).

Comparison with other species. Gehyra kimberleyi can be distinguished from all non-Australian Gehyra by the combination of absence of webbing between the third and fourth toes (versus present), the absence of a skin fold along the posterior hindlimb (versus present) and its smaller size (max SVL <65 mm versus> 65 mm).

Within Australia, G. kimberleyi can be distinguished from all members of the G. australis species-group (which are largely restricted to the AMT) by its smaller size (max SVL <65 mm versus max SVL> 65 mm), divided subdigital lamellae (versus at least some undivided) and single egg per clutch (versus two).

Gehyra kimberleyi can be distinguished from most other members of the G. variegata-punctata group that also occur in the AMT as follows; from G. xenopus Storr and G. spheniscus by the absence of a wedge of granules between proximal lamellae (versus present), and in the case of the former species, smaller size (max SVL 62 versus 79 mm); from G. occidentalis Storr by its smaller body size (max SVL 62 versus 76 mm), deeper head, postmentals 3 x longer than wide (versus 4 x), lower number of subdigital lamellae (6–8 versus 7–10), fewer pores in males (12–17 versus 18–30) and more clearly-defined spots on the dorsum; and from G. multiporosa Doughty, Palmer, Sistrom, Bauer & Donnellan, 2012 by fewer pores in adult males (12–17 versus 20–49), dark markings on dorsum not tending to form transverse bars and the absence of dark lateral head streaks.

Gehyra kimberleyi can be distinguished from both geographically proximate and type G. nana by short snout and deep head, tan or greyish brown dorsal colouration (versus reddish), generally larger body size (SVL 42.0–61.3 versus 35.0–44.3), more larger, irregular and pale blotches (versus small and clearly defined), diffuse and transversely oriented dark brown blotches on dorsum (versus clearly defined brown blotches or spots).

Gehyra kimberleyi overlaps with a number of other members of the G. variegata-punctata species-group from the Australian arid zone, especially in the northern Pilbara . It differs from species in this group in having dorsal markings of dark blotches that tend to coalesce to form transverse bars (versus continuous longitudinal lines or network in G. variegata and G. montium — Hutchinson et al. 2014), and by having 7–9 supralabial scales (versus 8–10 in G. variegata and 8–11 in G. montium — Hutchinson et al. 2014). It is distinguished from members of the Gehyra punctata species complex by its diffuse dorsal colouration (versus well defined dark and light spots or blotches) and postmentals that do not contact the second supralabial.

From Gehyra pilbara (with which it has frequently been confused) it can be distinguished by its larger size (max SVL 62.3 versus 45.1 mm), tall, narrow postmentals (versus extremely short and wide; cf. Fig. 4 ), and tan or greyish-brown dorsal colouration (vs. reddish-brown).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Distribution of Gehyra kimberleyi (circles) and G. girloorloo sp. nov. (diamonds) from the Kimberley and surrounding regions of Western Australia; lighter regions are higher in elevation.

FIGURE 2. Preserved specimens of Gehyra kimberleyi, showing variation in dorsal patterns. Scale bar = 1 cm.

FIGURE 3. Gehyra kimberleyi in life. Top: weakly marked adult specimen from Roebuck Plains Homestead; bottom: strongly marked juvenile specimen from Broome (photographs—B. Maryan).

FIGURE 4. Chin shield configuration in Gehyra treated here; A) G. kimberleyi WAMR 175035, B) G. pilbara WAMR 108632, C) G. girlooloo sp. nov. WAMR 175045 and D) G. nana WAMR 175063. Scale bar = 1 mm.

Tables

TABLE 1. Measurements (mean [range], in mm) and meristic data (mode [range]) for the four small-bodied Gehyra species treated here.

SVL	50.4 (42.0–61.3)	42.9 (39.8–47.4)	40.0 (35.0–44.3)	41.4 (33.4–45.1)
HL	12.0 (9.9–14.1)	10.4 (9.7–11.5)	10.3 (8.9–11.9)	9.4 (7.9–10.6)
HW	10.4 (8.5–12.6)	8.6 (7.6–9.1)	8.4 (7.6–9.4)	8.0 (6.9–9.1)
HD	5.8 (4.5–7.9)	4.7 (3.8–5.6)	4.3 (3.6–5.1)	5.2 (4.5–6.4)
ArmL	5.5 (4.1–7.7)	4.9 (4.6–5.6)	4.4 (3.6–5.8)	4.4 (3.0–5.3)
HindL	6.0 (4.6–8.7)	4.9 (4.4–5.5)	4.8 (3.6–6.7)	4.5 (3.1–5.6)
TrunkL	21.1 (16.2–27.9)	17.8 (15.1–20.7)	15.8 (12.0–19.5)	17.3 (15.1–19.6)
NarEye	4.0 (3.2–5.2)	3.4 (3.0–3.8)	3.4 (2.9–4.0)	2.9 (2.4–3.4)
SnEye	5.0 (4.1–5.9)	4.4 (3.9–4.9)	4.4 (3.7–5.0)	3.9 (3.6–4.3)
EyeEar	3.5 (2.8–4.2)	2.8 (2.3–3.2)	2.9 (2.4–3.9)	2.5 (1.9–3.2)
InterN	1.5 (1.1–2.1)	1.3 (1.2–1.5)	1.3 (0.9–1.6)	1.1 (0.9–1.3)