The Mourning Gecko is somewhat larger and stouter than the Indopacific Tree Gecko, and has claws on all toes. In: Arteaga A, Bustamante L, Vieira J, Guayasamin JM (Eds) Reptiles of Ecuador: Life in the middle of the world. Hatchlings have more contrasting patterns and are less than 1.5 in. Sellers can easily list for each species they sell. Offspring, then, are essentially clones of their mothers. Authors: Alejandro ArteagaaAffiliation: Tropical Herping (TH), Quito, Ecuador. Distribution: Cosmopolitan. Parthenogenesis is a type of asexual reproduction, which means they don’t need males to reproduce. Simply put, they can be found in the South Pacific islands, in Central and South America, and Hawaii. If your pet reptile is experiencing a medical emergency, contact an experienced reptile veterinarian immediately. (7 -9.5 cm) TL. The Stump-toed Gecko lacks a claw on the inner toes of all four feet. However, there is female-female copulation,15 a behavior that stimulates both females to produce eggs. The Tokay Geckos are much larger and distinctly colored, whereas the Day Geckos are diurnal, green in color and have round pupils. Free seller profile page! Active at night searching for insects, they will also lick sweet nectar or juice, sometimes crawling around kitchens to lick juice or jam off counter tops. The best time to look for this species is just after sunset. ReptiFiles’ overall goal is to provide credible, up-to-date source of information for reptile keepers of all stages. Available from: www.tropicalherping.com. How can this be? Tests have shown that Mourning Gecko eggs are saltwater tolerant, making it likely that these geckos, or their eggs, could drift long distances across the ocean on uprooted trees or mats of vegetation washed out to sea by storms and floods. The Mourning Gecko (Lepidodactylus lugubris) is the only gecko in Ecuador having expanded digital disks, basal webbing between digits, and no enlarged scales on the body and tail. This adaptation is likely one of the reasons why mourning geckos have such a large native range. Across their geographic range, Mourning Geckos are preyed upon by birds, mongooses, American Bullfrogs (Lithobates catesbeianus), Santa Cruz Lava-Lizards (Microlophus indefatigabilis), Common House-Geckos (Hemidactylus frenatus), snakes, praying mantids, and spiders.5,23–25 They are also parasitized by a variety of worms.26, Conservation: Least Concern. Do we need a citation somewhere? Affiliation: Centro de Investigación de la Biodiversidad y Cambio Climático, Universidad Tecnológica Indoamérica, Quito, Ecuador. Some females seem to take on a dominant role, even showing courtship-like behavior. Once the most abundant and widespread gecko in the Hawaiian Islands, this short, slow-moving species seems to be losing ground to the more aggressive Common House Gecko. An all-female species, the uni-sexual Mourning Geckos are communal nesters, laying pairs of eggs in favored locations such as tree cavities, in leaf axils or under loose bark. If captured, they easily shed the tail. The specific epithet lugubris is a Latin word meaning “mournful”29 and probably refers to the unusual fact that only females were known at the time the species was described.30 Perhaps the authors naively assumed that females were mourning their "missing" males. Affiliation: Galapagos Science Center, Galápagos, Ecuador. Mourning geckos are TINY — just 3.5” to 4” (8.5-10 cm) long, half of that length being a cute, knobby tail used for fat storage. They are primarily active at night, when they socialize with other geckos in the colony, hunt, and eat. Published: November 7, 2017                      Last Updated: September 30, 2020. Despite their small size, however, they can live for as long as 10 years, and there have been some claims of 15 years. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window), Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window). This species account of the Mourning Gecko (Lepidodactylus lugubris) is available for free online thanks to the support of Philadelphia Zoo. The skin on the back is satiny and lacks tubercles. Affiliation: Laboratorio de Biología Evolutiva, Universidad San Francisco de Quito (USFQ), Quito, Ecuador. This species account of the Mourning Gecko (. Photographers: Alejandro ArteagaaAffiliation: Tropical Herping (TH), Quito, Ecuador. They feed mainly on insects that are attracted to artificial light sources,5,9 as well as on spiders, amphipods, pill bugs, nectar, ripe fruit, jam, sugar, sweetened drinks, milk, and even their own eggs.10–12, Mourning Geckos are gregarious.5 They communicate by using sounds13 and bobbing the head.14 Lepidodactylus lugubris is parthenogenetic,15–17 an all-female species that reproduces in the absence of males. Like many other gecko species, mourning geckos “fire up/down,” varying in color from brown to light tan, respectively. My name is Mariah Healey, reptile husbandry specialist and consultant. All rights reserved. Reptiles of Ecuador | Sauria | Gekkonidae | Lepidodactylus lugubris.