Central Coast FaunaBroad-tailed Gecko (Phyllurus platurus) Diamond Python (Morelia spilota spilota) Frogs
The Broad-tailed Gecko (Phyllurus platurus), also commonly known as the Southern Leaf-tailed Gecko or the Sydney Leaf-tailed Gecko, is a common gecko (family Carphodactylidae) found in the Sydney Basin region of New South Wales.
It has a leaf-shaped tail, with rough, scaly skin, that is mottled brown or grey pattern, perfect camouflage against rock, bark and leaf litter. The large fleshy tail is perfect for storage of fat, although when threatened it will drop the tail as a decoy. They are up to 15 cm in length.
They are a nocturnal ambush hunter, whose primary prey include nocturnal invertebrates such as spiders, moths, cockroaches and beetles.
- Scientific classification
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Chordata
- Subphylum Vertebrata
- Informal: Gnathostomata
- Class: Reptilia
- Subclass: Lepidosauria
- Order: Squamata
- Suborder: Gekkota
- Family: Carphodactylidae
- Genus: Phyllurus
- Species: Phyllurus platurus
Footnote & References
- Photographs © Michael Doe
- Phyllurus platurus (White, 1790), Broad-Tailed Gecko, Atlas of Living Australia, https://bie.ala.org.au/species/Phyllurus platurus
Central Coast FaunaBroad-tailed Gecko (Phyllurus platurus) Diamond Python (Morelia spilota spilota) Frogs
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