NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Serpent Island Gecko
Nactus serpensinsula (Loveridge, 1951)
Source-backed taxonomic record
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.
Photo of Round Island Night Gecko uploaded from iNaturalist.
no rights reserved · CC0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The Serpent Island gecko (Nactus serpensinsula) is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is endemic to Serpent Island in Mauritius (an island country in the Indian Ocean).
The Serpent Island gecko is a monotypic species. The Durrell's night gecko, endemic to the Round Island of Mauritius, was previously treated as a subspecies of Serpent Island gecko.
On Mauritius itself, it is only known from fossils.
Wikipedia contributors, Serpent Island gecko; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:58:26.078977+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Nactus serpensinsula (Loveridge, 1951)
- Name authority
- (Loveridge, 1951)
- Common name
- Serpent Island Gecko
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Gekkonidae
- Genus
- Nactus
- 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
- genusNactus
- speciesNactus serpensinsula (Loveridge, 1951)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Nactus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Black Mountain Slender-toed GeckoNactus galgajuga (Ingram, 1978) | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Nactus cheverti (Boulenger, 1885) | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Kraus’s Giant Slender-toed GeckoNactus fredkrausi Zug, 2020 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Louisiade Slender-toed GeckoNactus modicus Zug, 2020 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| North Coast Papuan Slender-toed GeckoNactus septentrionalis Zug, 2020 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Morotai Slender-toed GeckoNactus arceo Zug, 2020 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Vogelkop Slender-toed GeckoNactus rainerguentheri Zug, 2020 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Milne Bay Pygmy Slender-toed GeckoNactus chrisaustini Zug, 2020 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Milne Bay Smooth-tailed Slender-toed GeckoNactus erugatus Zug, 2020 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Dwarf North-coast Slender-toed GeckoNactus nanus Zug, 2020 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Fly River Slender-toed GeckoNactus inundatus Zug, 2020 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Panaeati Slender-toed GeckoNactus panaeati Zug, 2020 | GekkonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Gymnodactylus serpensinsula Loveridge, 1951 Loveridge, 1951 | synonym |
| Nactus serpensinsula durrelli Arnold & Jones, 1994 Arnold & Jones, 1994 | synonym |
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=Nactus&species=serpensinsula 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:45JTP. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.