Phyllurus platurus
Silhouette: Jose Carlos Arenas-Monroy · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
The broad-tailed gecko, southern leaf-tailed gecko, or Sydney leaf-tailed gecko (Phyllurus platurus) is a common gecko of the family Carphodactylidae found in the Sydney Basin. The species uses its mottled colour to camouflage against bark or rock, and if threatened can drop its large fleshy tail as a decoy. The tail is also useful for fat storage. This species of gecko is available in captivity as a pet, they are a nocturnal ambush hunter, relying on camouflage and patience to catch prey. Primary prey items include large nocturnal invertebrates such as spiders, cockroaches and beetles.
Snout to vent length of 9.5 cm. Total length up to 15 cm. Mottled brown in colour with low bumpy tubercules over the body, original tails are mottled the same colour as the body with large slightly spiny tubercules, whereas regenerated tails are chunkier mottled and smooth.
Common generally in the greater Sydney Basin area, north to Newcastle and south to the Illawarra. It mainly inhabits rocky areas including boulders, rock faces or small rock crevices, but can also naturally be found on trees including in areas with no immediate rocky habitat. The species can occupy... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Royal National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sydney | 🇦🇺 Australia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Entopia | 🇲🇾 Malaysia |
No species of the same family or order lives in Sydney, so these are its closest relatives here: other reptiles.
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Broad-tailed Gecko sighting in Sydney on a given day, based on 483 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 6th most-seen of the 39 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January and February
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Broad-tailed Gecko in Sydney on a given day, against about 10% in June to September, the lowest months. Those are among Sydney's wettest months, with about 110 mm of rain a month against 45 mm in September.
Between 8 and 11 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Broad-tailed Gecko sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is seen both by day and at night.
Only Sydney, in our data
Sydney is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Broad-tailed Gecko sightings: about 20% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Broad-tailed Gecko is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Sydney (483 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
