Systematics and distribution of the Leopard Geckos Eublepharis Gray, 1827 (Sauria, Eublepharidae): A review

The eyelid bearing geckos Eublepharidae including six widely disjunct genera and 45 species which are distributed in tropical to temperate habitats of Eurasia, North-Central America and Africa. One of the eublepharid genera is the fat-tailed geckos of the genus Eublepharis Gray, 1827. The specific characters of Eublepharis involves flat basioccipital bone, deep axial pockets (armpit), eyelids well developed and movable, pupil vertical, dorsal small scales juxtaposed larger tubercles. The fat-tailed geckos as a vicariant group, encompass seven secretive, and nocturnal species: E. angramainyu Anderson and Leviton, 1966, E. fuscus Börner, 1974, E. hardwickii Gray, 1827, E. macularius (Blyth, 1854), E. satpuraensis Mirza, Sanap, Raju, Gawai and Ghadekar, 2014, E. pictus Mirza and Gnaneswar, 2022), and E. turcmenicus Darevsky, 1977 which are distributed from Turkey through the Iranian Plateau to India as following: south-eastern Turkey, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, and north-eastern and central India in a variety of habitats from dry karst topography regions with gypsum deposits and clay-gravel soil to stony foothills. The data used for the distribution maps were based on all available bibliographic records, and personal field observations. The results showed that among the three species located in Iran, E. angramainyu has the most widespread distribution and habitat diversity, and E. macularius has a very limited distribution in the border of Iran and Afghanistan. The range of species distribution depends on various factors including behavioral mechanisms of superior habitat selection, interactions with other living organisms and physico-chemical factors.