Strophurus

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Cladus: Craniata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Cladus: Reptiliomorpha
Cladus: Amniota
Classis: Reptilia
Cladus: Eureptilia
Cladus: Romeriida
Subclassis: Diapsida
Cladus: Sauria
Infraclassis: Lepidosauromorpha
Superordo: Lepidosauria
Ordo: Squamata
Subordo: Gekkota
Infraordo: Pygopodomorpha

Familia: Diplodactylidae
Genus: Strophurus
Species (19): S. assimilis – S. ciliaris – S. congoo – S. elderi – S. horneri – S. intermedius – S. jeanae – S. krisalys – S. mcmillani – S. michaelseni – S. rankini – S. robinsoni – S. spinigerus – S. strophurus – S. taenicauda – S. taeniatus – S. wellingtonae – S. williamsi – S. wilsoni
Name

Strophurus Fitzinger, 1843

References

Fitzinger, L. 1843. Systema Reptilium. Fasciculus primus. Amblyglossae. Braumüller et Seidel: Wien. vi + 106 pp. BHL Reference page. , 96.
Vanderduys, E.P. 2016. A new species of gecko (Squamata: Diplodactylidae: Strophurus) from north Queensland, Australia. Zootaxa 4117(3): 341–358. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4117.3.3. Reference page.

Strophurus is a genus of lizards in the family Diplodactylidae. All species of Strophurus are endemic to Australia, and are sometimes given the common names phasmid geckos, spiny-tailed geckos, and striped geckos.

Description

The species of the genus Strophurus attain total lengths (including tail) of 80 to 130 mm (3.1 to 5.1 in). The scales of the body are generally small and round, sometimes interspersed with enlarged scales and soft spines.

All members of this genus have a unique defense mechanism: the ability to squirt a harmless, foul-smelling fluid from their tails, which can create a highly flammable substance when mixed with ammonia. This fluid is used to deter birds while they are perching in shrubbery, being unusual in the family by exposing themselves during the day. As with many other geckos, they are also nocturnal. Some members lack spines and enlarged scales, while another subgroup features spines on the tail and other parts of the body.[1]

Their habitat is amongst shrubs and hummock grass, but they occasionally move to the ground for warmth or to mate. This behavior is especially prominent in pregnant females, which use the additional warmth of rocks and roads to assist the development of the two eggs they carry.[1]
Species

There are 20 known species of Strophurus,[2][3] and a number of subspecies.[1]

Image	Scientific name	Common name	Distribution
	Strophurus assimilis (Storr, 1988)	Goldfields Spiny-tailed Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus ciliaris (Boulenger, 1885)	Northern Spiny-tailed Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus congoo Vanderduys, 2016	Congoo Gecko	Australia: North QLD
	Strophurus elderi (Stirling & Zietz, 1893)	Jewelled Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus horneri (P. Oliver & Parkin, 2014)	Arnhem Phasmid Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus intermedius (Ogilby, 1892)	Eastern Spiny-tailed Gecko, Southern Spiny-tailed Gecko	Australia: NSW, NT, SA, Vic and WA
	Strophurus jeanae (Storr, 1988)	Southern Phasmid Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus krisalys (Sadlier, O'Meally, & Shea, 2005)		Australia
	Strophurus mcmillani (Storr, 1978)	McMillan's Spiny-tailed Gecko, Short-tailed Striped Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus michaelseni (Werner, 1910)	Robust Striped Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus rankini (Storr, 1979)	Exmouth Spiny-tailed Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus robinsoni (L.A. Smith, 1995)		Australia
	Strophurus spinigerus (Gray, 1842)	Soft Spiny-tailed Gecko, South-western Spiny-tailed Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus strophurus (A.M.C. Duméril & Bibron, 1836)	Western Spiny-tailed Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus taeniatus (Lönnberg & Andersson, 1913)	Phasmid Striped Gecko, White-striped Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus taenicauda (De Vis, 1886)	Golden Spiny-tailed Gecko, Golden-tailed Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus trux Vanderduys, 2017	Golden-eyed Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus wellingtonae (Storr, 1988)	Western Shield Spiny-tailed Gecko, Wellington's Spiny-tailed Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus williamsi (Kluge, 1963)	Eastern Spiny-tailed Gecko, Soft-spined Gecko	Australia
	Strophurus wilsoni (Storr, 1983)	Mount Augustus Spiny-tailed Gecko, Mount Augustus Striped Gecko	Australia

Nota bene: A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Strophurus.
References

Browne-Cooper, Robert; Brian Bush; Brad Maryan; David Robinson (2007). Reptiles and Frogs in the Bush: Southwestern Australia. University of Western Australia Press. pp. 123, 124. ISBN 978-1-920694-74-6.
"Strophurus". Encyclopedia of Life. Retrieved 2009-01-25.

Genus Strophurus at The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database-org.

Further reading

Fitzinger L (1843). Systema Reptilium, Fasciculus Primus, Amblyglossae. Vienna: Braumüller & Seidel. 106 pp. + indices. (Strophurus, new genus, p. 96). (in Latin).
Nielsen SV, Oliver PM, Laver RJ, Bauer AM, Noonan BP (2016). "Stripes, jewels and spines: further investigations into the evolution of defensive strategies in a chemically defended gecko radiation (Strophurus, Diplodactylidae)". Zoologica Scripta 45 (5): 481-493.