The brilliant South American gecko (Gonatodes ceciliae), also known commonly as the brilliant clawed gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Sphaerodactylidae. The species is native to northern South America.
Etymology The specific name, ceciliae, is in honor of Cecilia Donoso-Barros, who is the daughter of Chilean herpetologist Roberto Donoso-Barros.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (Gonatodes ceciliae, p. 50)
Geographic range Gonatodes ceciliae is found in Trinidad and Venezuela.
Habitat The preferred natural habitat of Gonatodes ceciliae is forest, at altitudes from sea level to .
Description Only males of Gonatodes ceciliae have brilliant coloration. Females are grayish brown, with darker blotches.
Behavior Gonatodes ceciliae is diurnal.
Diet Gonatodes ceciliae preys upon small arthropods and small snails.
Reproduction Gonatodes ceciliae is oviparous.
References
Further reading Donoso-Barros R (1966). "Dos nuevos Gonatodes de Venezuela". Publicaciones Ocasionales, Museo Nacional de Historia Natural, Santiago de Chile 11: 1–32. (Gonatodes ceciliae, new species). (in Spanish). Rivas GA, Molina CR, Ugueto GN, Barros TR, Barrio-Amorós CL, Kok PJR (2012). "Reptiles of Venezuela: an updated and commented checklist". Zootaxa 3211: 1–64. (Gonatodes ceciliae, p. 12 + Figure 3F on p. 32). (in English, with an abstract in Spanish). Rösler H (2000). "Kommentierte Liste der rezent, subrezent und fossil bekannten Geckotaxa (Reptilia: Gekkonomorpha)". Gekkota 2: 28–153. (Gonatodes ceciliae, p. 84). (in German).