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Hoplodactylus delcourti was by far the largest of all Geckos with a snout to vent length of 370 mm and an overall length of at least 600 mm. It was found only in New Zealand. This lizard is now believed to be extinct.
The last person to ever see one was a Māori chief of the Urewera tribe who caught one living under the bark of a dead tree in 1870. He described it as being "brownish with reddish stripes and as thick as a man's wrist". A single stuffed museum specimen (see at right) was "discovered" in the basement of the Marseille museum in 1986, but unfortunately the origins and date of collection of the specimen remain a total mystery, as when it was found, it was unlabelled. However, scientists examining it eventually came to the conclusion that it was a "Kawekaweau", a giant forest lizard of Maori oral tradition. It was discovered by one Alain Delcourt - hence the animal's scientific name.
[edit] References
- "New Zealand frogs and reptiles", Brian Gill and Tony Whitaker, David Bateman publishing, 1996
- "Hoplodactylus delcourti n. sp.(Reptilia: Geckonidae), the Largest Known Gecko", Bauer, A.M. & Russell, A.P.; New Zealand Journal of Zoology (1986), Vol. 13: 141-148.
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