tɹˈɛvɚ wˈɜːði sədʒˈɛstᵻd ɪn tˈuː θˈaʊzənd sˈɪkstiːn ðætðə spˈɛsɪmən ɚɹˈɪdʒᵻnˌeɪɾᵻd ˌɔn ɐn ˈaɪlənd ʌv nˈuː kˌælɪdˈoʊniə ɹˈæðɚ ðɐn nˈuː zˈiːlənd, dˈuː tʊ ɐ lˈæk ʌv fˈɑːsəl ˈɛvɪdəns fɚðə lˈɪzɚd ɪn nˈuː zˈiːlənd kˈeɪvz, dᵻspˈaɪt ɐbˈʌndənt ɹᵻmˈeɪnz ʌv ˈɔːl ˈʌðɚ nˈoʊn spˈiːsiːz ʌv nˈuː zˈiːlənd ɡˈɛkoʊ.
Trevor Worthy suggested in 2016 that the specimen originated on an island of New Caledonia rather than New Zealand, due to a lack of fossil evidence for the lizard in New Zealand caves, despite abundant remains of all other known species of New Zealand gecko.