Hemidactylus acanthopholis Mirza & Sanap, 2014
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.

Hemidactylus acanthopholis from Tirunelveli district, Tamilnadu
Umeshpavukandy · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
Hemidactylus acanthopholis is a species of house geckos from the Tirunelveli in southern Tamil Nadu. Bearing a superficial resemblance to Hemidactylus maculatus, the species is usually found on large rocks or boulders. Growing 20–23 cm (7.9–9.1 in) in length, the species is an overall brown color, but has dark stripes on its back. It takes its name from the warty protuberances running along its dorsal surface.
In the 1800s, Colonel R. H. Beddome had a collection of these specimens. Due to new agricultural practices, the preferred habitat of Hemidactylus acanthopholis has been destroyed. This species can be found during the dry season in the Kalakkad Mundanthirai Tiger Reserve
and Tirunelveli.
Wikipedia contributors, Hemidactylus acanthopholis; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T14:30:52.506876+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Hemidactylus acanthopholis Mirza & Sanap, 2014
- Name authority
- Mirza & Sanap, 2014
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Gekkonidae
- Genus
- Hemidactylus
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classReptilia Laurenti, 1768
- orderSquamata Oppel, 1811
- suborderGekkota
- familyGekkonidae
- genusHemidactylus
- speciesHemidactylus acanthopholis Mirza & Sanap, 2014
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Hemidactylus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Aaron Bauer’s House GeckoHemidactylus aaronbaueri Giri, 2008 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Hemidactylus albivertebralis Trape & Böhme, 2012 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| White Leaf-toed GeckoHemidactylus albopunctatus (Loveridge, 1947) | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Nigeria Leaf-toed GeckoHemidactylus ansorgii Boulenger, 1901 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Annobon Leaf-toed GeckoHemidactylus aporus Boulenger, 1906 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Hemidactylus aquilonius Mcmahan & Zug, 2007 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Barbieri’s Turkana GeckoHemidactylus barbierii Sindaco, Razzetti & Ziliani, 2007 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Hemidactylus beninensis Bauer, Tchibozo, Pauwels & Lenglet, 2006 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bioko Leaf-toed GeckoHemidactylus biokoensis Wagner, Leaché & Fujita, 2014 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Amaral's Brazilian GeckoHemidactylus brasilianus (Amaral, 1935) | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Hedgehog Leaf-toed GeckoHemidactylus echinus O'Shaughnessy, 1875 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Hemidactylus eniangii Wagner, Leaché & Fujita, 2014 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Hemidactylus&species=acanthopholis Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3KN7Q. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.