Monday, December 27, 2010

Prickles!

A nocturnal climb up to the top of the Heavitree Range near Alice Springs was a very rewarding little expedition. On the gecko front, I first encountered Diplodactylus conspicillatus, Heteronotia binoei, Oedura marmorata and Strophrurus ciliaris. I spotted a couple of very pretty Centralian treefrogs (Litoria gilleni) right up top, then the animal I'd been hoping for showed too.



It's a central ranges endemic species - one of the prickly knob-tailed gecko species: Nephrurus amyae or the Centralian knob-tailed gecko. It's claim to fame is it's the 'most massive' (meaning heaviest rather than lengthiest) Aussie gecko.






And a cute little one just as an added bonus.

2 comments:

Andrew said...

Why do some geckos have knob tails, and some leaf tails?

laurak/ForestWalkArt :) said...

OOOOoooh!!!! i just love this little prickly guy!!!!!