by Last Updated on February 23, 2023 by Avia
One of the most good-looking reptiles is the gargoyle gecko. It is also known as the bumpy gecko. These lizards are given this name due to the beautiful bumps they have on their heads.
You might encounter them in the wild while camping or hiking. You may come across one in your garden as well if you reside in a tropical area.
Not only that, but you can befriend them by offering snacks that they like or for warm shelter. They generally live on trees and their patterns are incredibly mesmerizing. Their skin pattern helps them to camouflage with nature and hide from predators like certain rodents.
When taking a rest or sitting on a pile of leaves, make sure there are no gargoyle geckos or other animals lounging there. This article will discuss interesting facts about these charming lizards.
Table of Contents
Gargoyle Gecko Diet
Like most lizards, gargoyle geckos are omnivorous. This means they eat both insects, plants, and fruits. They love eating various fruits like bananas and different kinds of berries. They also love nectarines like peaches and apricots.
These geckos get their proteins from small insects like Dubia roaches and love munching on them. Proteins are essential for their growth and overall health.
When going on a hike or camping, you can carry these live roaches to feed your lizard friends in the wild or in your backyard. The best part about these insects is they do not fly or cause any infestation. You can purchase them from https://www.topflightdubia.com/
They are also known to be cannibalistic, as they prey on their own kind. They sometimes eat their own or other fellow geckos’ eggs. They also eat other lizards’ tails and body parts.
Physical Traits
The infant geckos are generally around 1 inch long. On the other hand, adult gargoyle geckos are usually 7 to 10 inches long. The young lizards weigh around 3 grams after being hatched. The fully grown ones weigh about 60 grams.
Gargoyle geckos appear in diverse color combinations. These amiable reptiles have green bodies with yellow specks. Some also have white spots or splotches. There are also some geckos that have patterns in yellow, red, orange, and browns.
Some of them have various stripes, spots, and blotches. This combination of colors helps them to camouflage and be protected from any predator’s view, as mentioned earlier. These geckos generally have a triangle-shaped head, a broad body, and big circular eyes.
The bumps on their head appear like ears or horns. Like most lizards, their tails are also regenerative and sticky. They shed their tails when feeling threatened and leave them behind. They have the ability to grow their tails back.
Both fully matured and baby geckos have sharp teeth. They also have prehensile toes which help them to climb on trees and stick to the surface, even in very tall heights.
These geckos have claws that enable them to grip vines, branches, and other surfaces. As they can live on the ground as well as on the trees, they are considered to be semi-arboreal.
Gecko Habitats
Gargoyle geckos are mostly found in New Caledonia, which is in the south of the Pacific Ocean. They are mostly found in small islands where the climate is very humid and tropical. These lizards love living in moist environments with dense forests and vegetation. And thrives in green surroundings with high humidity, around 50-70%.
The Lifespan of Gargoyle Geckos
The Gargoyle geckos have a lifespan of around 15 to 20 years in their natural habitat. However, this is reduced when their habitats are destroyed by wildfires, deforestation, and urbanization. Their predators are usually mammals like feral boars and rodents.
Conservation Status
Gargoyle geckos are listed as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). This is due to their distribution and growing population, which exceeds 10,000.
On the contrary, they do face major threats due to climate change like wildfires, drought, and deforestation.
Reproduction
Gargoyle geckos get sexually matured by the age of two years or by the juvenile stage. The way they mate is usually aggressive and frequently leads to loss of tails and various injuries. After 20 to 30 days of the mating process, the female lays 2 eggs per batch.
They generally lay 8 to 9 eggs every year. It takes around 60 -90 days for the eggs to hatch. The eggs or clutches are usually laid deep under the soil to avoid being the prey of other invading animals.
Gargoyle Gecko Behavior
Gargoyle geckos usually sleep during the day. They are primarily nocturnal and are active at night. They are noisy during nighttime, making sounds like squeaks, growls, yips, and barks.
They communicate with other lizards via the noises they make. Adult male geckos are known to be very aggressive. The grown-up male can not tolerate each other and will readily attack. They fight with one another for superiority, especially in the company of female geckos.
These attacks or fights often lead to serious injuries and the inevitable detachment of tails. In the wild, you will encounter them mostly on the ground.
They can move quite swiftly, especially when running away from a predator or while attacking one of their own. Unfortunately, their exact speed is yet to be known.
An Overview of Gargoyle Gecko Meaning
Widely known as the bumpy gecko, gargoyle geckos are incredibly adorable creatures. Most reptile lovers and enthusiasts love these geckos mainly due to their captivating color patterns and cranial bumps. They are generally semi-arboreal but mostly live on the ground in the wild.
Gargoyle geckos thrive in very humid climates in dense forests. They are mostly found in tropical areas, mainly in the islands south of the Pacific Ocean. Do not forget to take a picture to capture their beauty, when you come across one.
Author’s Bio: Danial Z. is an incredible content writer. He is a pet enthusiast, a fitness freak, and loves all things about animals. He’s a doting father not only to his two children but also to his two Golden Retrievers. He loves writing about them as much as he loves taking care of them.
