Cyrtopodion scabrum
(Heyden in Rüppell, 1827)
SIR-toh-POH-dee-on — SKAB-ruhm
SSAR 9th Edition Comments:
Native to the Middle East and northeastern Africa. It is established in Arizona (Babb, 2014, Herpetological Review 45: 461), California (Hansen and Nafis, 2021, Herpetological Review 52: 795), Nevada (Stocking and Jones, 2017, Herpetological Review 48: 389), and Texas (Selcer and Bloom, 1984, Southwestern Naturalist 29: 499–500; Bloom et al., 1986, Southwestern Naturalist 31: 129–131; Kraus, 2009, Alien Reptiles and Amphibians: A Scientific Compendium and Analysis. SpringerVerlag, Heidelberg, Germany).
(Krysko, Kenneth and Travis W. Taggart. 2025. Established Exotic Species. Pages 64-87 in Kirsten E. Nicholson (Editor), Scientific and Standard English Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North America North of Mexico, with Comments Regarding Confidence in Our Understanding, 9th Edition. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles, Lawrence, Kansas. 87 pp.)
Errata/Changes: Page 76: The (Kraus, 2009) reference should be "Kraus, 2009, Alien Reptiles and Amphibians: A Scientific Compendium and Analysis. Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands". — (06/11/2025)
Range maps are based on curated specimens and provided gratis by CNAH.
(Created by Travis W. Taggart; Version: 2025.04.02.14.18.09)
Download GeoJSON polygon range file: - 0.28 MB
Taxonomic Etymology:
A rough-scaled gecko with curved digits.
Cyrtopodion — From Greek kyrtos (κυρτός), “curved” or “bent,” and pous, podos (πούς, ποδός), “foot.” Refers to the curved or bent toes typical of this genus.
scabrum — From Latin scaber, “rough” or “scaly.” Refers to the granular, rough texture of the gecko’s skin.
First instance(s) of published English names:
No historic English names have been assigned to this taxon yet.
Catalog of American Amphibians and Reptiles
The Reptile Database
GenBank
USGS - Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database
Selected References:
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1827
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Heyden, C. H. G. von Reptilien. [Reptiles} Pages in 1-24 In Rüppell, E. Atlas zu Reise im nördlichen Afrika. l. Zoologie. [Atlas for travel in northern Africa. l. Zoology.] H. L. Brönner, Frankfurt, Germany. pp.
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1984
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Selcer, Kyle W. and Roy. A. Bloom. Cyrtodactylus scaber (Gekkonidae): A new gecko to the fauna of the United States Southwestern Naturalist 29:499-500
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1986
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Bloom, Roy A., Kyle W. Selcer, and W. Ken King. Status of the introduced gekkonid lizard, Cyrtodactylus scaber, in Galveston, Texas. Southwestern Naturalist 31:129-131
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2000
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Macey, J. Robert, Natalia B. Ananjeva, Yuezhao Wang, and Theodore J. Papenfuss. Phylogenetic relationships among Asian gekkonid lizards formerly of the genus Cyrtodactylus based on cladistic analyses of allozymic data: monophyly of Cyrtopodion and Mediodactylus. Journal of Herpetology 34(2):258-265
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2009
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Kraus, Fred. Alien Reptiles and Amphibians: A Scientific Compendium and Analysis. Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands. 563pp.
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2014
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Babb, Randall D. Geographic distribution. Cytopodion scabrum. Herpetological Review 45(3):461
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2023
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Ducharme, Ashlee, Ashley Martinovich, Katherine Huxster, Marchant, and Nate Gwinn. The distribution of an exotic and native species of gecko on Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. ESS 221 Project Research Report 2022-23, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado. 24pp.
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