Afroedura halli
Hall’s Flat Gecko
Alternative Names
Inland Flat Gecko (English)
Hall se Platgeitjie (Afrikaans)
Species: Afroedura halli (Hewitt, 1935)
Distribution: Lesotho; South Africa
Type Locality: “Telle Junction near Palmietfontein, Herschel district, elevation about 4500 feet, Cape Province”
Habitat: Rocky sandstone outcrops and cliffs within grasslands
Natural History: Rupicolous (rock-dwelling) species, seeking refuge in tight crevices or underneath rocks. They are primarily nocturnal and feed on insects and likely other arthropods. They exhibit synanthropic behaviour, found on the sides of houses and other structures.
Biology: Oviparous (2 eggs), that are laid in the crevices of rocks, underneath flakes, and between boulders.
Conservation Status: According to the IUCN Red List, this species is classified as "Least Concern" indicating that it is not currently considered to be at high risk of extinction.
Additional reading
The Reptile Database (See here)
IUCN Red List (See here)
iNaturalist (See here)
LITERATURE
Ambrose, D. 2006. Lesotho Annotated Bibliography Section 166: Reptiles Including Annotated Checklist. Mamhlongo Productions, Roma. pp 21.
Bates, M. F. (1989). The flat geckos of Thaba Phatshwa mountain. Culna, 1989(36), 33-35.
Bates, M. F. (1996). In search of the elusive flat geckos of the eastern Free State. Culna, 1996(51), 13-15.
De Waal, S. W. P. (1977). The Squamata (Reptilia) of the Orange Free State, South Africa (Doctoral dissertation).
Hewitt, J. (1935). Some new forms of batrachians and reptiles from South Africa. Records of the Albany Museum, 4, 283-357.
Hewitt, J. (1926). Descriptions of some new species of batrachians and lizards from South Africa. Annals of the Natal Museum, 5, 435-448.
Jacobsen, N. H., Kuhn, A. L., Jackman, T. R., Bauer, A. M. (2014). A phylogenetic analysis of the southern African gecko genus Afroedura Loveridge (Squamata: Gekkonidae), with the description of nine new species from Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces of South Africa. Zootaxa 5;3846(4):451-501. doi: 10.11646/zootaxa.3846.4.1
Makhubo, B. G., Tolley, K. A., Bates, M. F. (2015). Molecular phylogeny of the Afroedura nivaria (Reptilia: Gekkonidae) species complex in South Africa provides insight on cryptic speciation. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 82, 31-42.
Perera, S. J., Ratnayake-Perera, D., Proches, S. (2011). Vertebrate distributions indicate a greater Maputaland-Pondoland-Albany region of endemism. South African Journal of Science, 107(7), 1-15.