A new karst-dwelling gecko of the Gekko petricolus group (Reptilia: Gekkonidae) from Phitsanulok Province, central Thailand

ABSTRACTWe describe a new species of the genus Gekko from Phitsanulok Province, central Thailand. Gekko flavimaritus sp. nov. can be distinguished from its congeners by a combination of morphological characters: medium size for Gekko (snout–vent length 76.0–84.5 mm in six adult males, 67.5–78.3 mm in 11 adult females); nares in contact with rostral; two enlarged postmentals; 12–16 dorsal tubercle rows; 27–35 ventral scale rows; 10–15 subdigital lamellae on first toe, 15–18 on fourth toe; finger and toe webbing weakly developed; tubercle absent on dorsal surface of forelimbs and hindlimbs; adult male with 7–8 precloacal pores, in continuous row; precloacal pores absent in females; single postcloacal tubercle on each side; tubercles present on dorsal surface of tail base; subcaudals enlarged; sexual dimorphism present (colouration on dorsum in life — yellow in adult males and brownish grey in adult females); dorsum with whitish vertebral blotches between nape and base of tail. Genetically, the new species i...