Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My wife's in New Orleans for the week and has caught a small gecko, a couple actually. She doesn't know much about geckos, I don't either about anything other than leo's, so we have no idea what it is.

She described it to me over the phone as a grey-brown and about the size of her thumb. She said it was a baby because it was small compared to the others she'd seen. She also said these gecko's are everywhere on the church that she's staying at.

Can anyone tell me what it is? Do you need more specifics? If so, what specifically would you like to know?

Sorry, no pictures. But I'll post some if/when she get's it/them home

...my "standard answer" is Mediterranean gecko, shown here.

They MAY be Cyrtodactylus scaber or maybe even a sphaerodactyline (don't think that's very likely), but a Hemidactylus is a safe bet.
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Chris McMartin
www.mcmartinville.com
I'm Not a Herpetologist, but I Play One on the Internet

I did notice your other posts, but only after I'd already posted.

While I'm still not sure what kind of geckos they are as I haven't actually seend them, let's assume they're med. geckos. Do you have any pictures of juveniles? The pictures you pointed out do not look like what was described to me, but your pictures are of adults.

Assuming they are mediterraneans, what are the captive care requirements? Are they hardy? I assume they are by the way you talk about them taking over. I live in Oklahoma so I know that we have winter days when the temperature drops into the teen and single digit temps. They can survive that?

Anyway, what about captive housing, care, feeding, etc.? Anything I should know?

Thanks for the help.

>>While I'm still not sure what kind of geckos they are as I haven't actually seend them, let's assume they're med. geckos. Do you have any pictures of juveniles? The pictures you pointed out do not look like what was described to me, but your pictures are of adults.

Juveniles are similar though often more brightly colored (especially concerning the tail banding--it's black and white in juveniles but fades with age).

>>Assuming they are mediterraneans, what are the captive care requirements? Are they hardy? I assume they are by the way you talk about them taking over.

Captive care requirements can be generalized as the geckos are tolerant of a wide range of conditions. I kept some at 75-85 deg F, no lighting, things to hide under in a well-sealed enclosure (to prevent escapes), and misted the sides for drinking water. I fed 'em crickets; these might need the "small" crickets.

I live in Oklahoma so I know that we have winter days when the temperature drops into the teen and single digit temps. They can survive that?

Apparently so, albeit with Man's help--there is (was?) an established population living on the OU campus the last I heard/read.

>>Anyway, what about captive housing, care, feeding, etc.? Anything I should know?

On the off-chance they're not Med geckos, you might want to have your wife leave them where they are--they could be protected. I'm not familiar with LA law to know the particulars on reptile collecting (though it can't be too strict given their record of box turtle exportation!).
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Chris McMartin
www.mcmartinville.com
I'm Not a Herpetologist, but I Play One on the Internet

Hopefully a couple of pictures will be attached below.

I have seen Mediterranian geckos in a lot of different places, and I like the picture the previous person posted. Another type of gecko that has been showing up a lot is the Indo-Pacific Gecko. It's usually a greyish brownish color, they do change shades, and they're fairly small, about the same size as the Mediterranian Gecko, but a little flatter.

They don't have the little bumps that the Meditteranian Gecko has, and almost look like a small version of the flying gecko.

For care, I would pattern thier climate after Boca Raton, Florida, because they are doing VERY WELL there.

Hopefully this helps!
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ETChipotle
Minneapolis, MN