Stenodactylus stenodactylus zavattarii Scortecci, 1943

Metallinou, Margarita & Crochet, Pierre-André, 2013, Nomenclature of African species of the genus Stenodactylus (Squamata: Gekkonidae), Zootaxa 3691 (3), pp. 365-376 : 373

Stenodactylus stenodactylus zavattarii Scortecci, 1943

1943 Stenodactylus stenodactylus zavattarii Scortecci, Missione Biologica Sagan—Omo, Volume Settimo, Zoologia I, Mammalia – Aves – Reptilia – Amphibia – Pisces: 294.

This nomen is based on two specimens collected in “Elolo” on 29/07/1939 and 03/08/1939. According to Largen and Spawls (2006), Elolo, in Kenya, is now called Banya (= Bani, 4.39°N 36.23°E), as can also be seen on the map available at http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/imw/txu-oclc-6654394-nb-37-4th-ed.jpg (accessed on 19/02/2013). These two specimens MZUF 23878 and MSNM Re 3359, which are both syntypes, are still present in Italian collections: specimen MSNM Re 3359 collected on 29/07/1939 is found at the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Milano and specimen MZUF 23878 collected on 03/08/1939 at the Museo di Storia Naturale dell’Università di Firenze - La Specola. We have examined the former syntype and pictures of the latter and we agree that they are both specimens of Stenodactylus sthenodactylus .

We currently refrain from recognizing valid taxa within S. sthenodactylus pending detailed analysis of the geographical patterns of morphological and genetic variation. We thus provisionally follow Loveridge (1957) and Arnold (1980) in synonymizing zavattarii with sthenodactylus . If some of the lineages recently identified in the species prove to be valid species or subspecies, the nomen zavattarii would be available for the lineage distributed from Kenya to Egypt (Metallinou et al. 2012).

Name-bearing type: two syntypes: MZUF 23878 and MSNM Re 3359. Type locality: “Elolo” (= Ilolo = Banya, now Bani in northern Kenya near the north end of lake Turkana, approx. 4.39°N 36.23°E).

Proposed status: subjective junior synonym of Stenodactylus sthenodactylus ( Lichtenstein, 1823) .