Flat-tailed House Gecko Hemidactylus platyurus (Cosymbotus platyurus) Christina Miller Last update: Wednesday, January 30, 2008.

Taxonomy Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Subphylum: Vertebrata Class: Reptilia Subclass: Lepidosauria Order: Squamata Suborder: Sauria Infraorder: Gekkota Family: Gekkonidae Subfamily: Gekkoninae Genus: Hemidactylus Species: platyurus

Experience level: Beginner (suitable as a first herp)

I. Introduction

"House Gecko" is a common monkier associated to many small gecko species that frequent people's houses in warm climates. One species of the hundreds dubbed house gecko is the Asian Flat-tailed House Gecko, Hemidactylus platyurus (Schneider 1792). Other common names include the Asian House Gecko, Thailand House Gecko, Scallop-tailed Gecko and Flat-tailed Gecko. It is apparently a common species in southeastern Asia, and has colonized Flordia, USA.

These animals are almost exclusively wild caught, cheap prices seem to discourage captive breeding attempts. In North American, most individuals probably originate from feral populations in Florida.

Like other small gekkonids, Flat-tailed House Geckos have relatively simple husbandry needs and are quite hardy. They are certainly suitable for novice herpetoculturists.

II. Taxonomy

Gekkonidae includes all "typical geckos," a diverse family that is best known for their ability to walk swiftly along almost any surface in almost any direction- a feat accomplishable thanks to adhesive lamellae on the undersides of their toes. Most geckos are small lizards with fine scales, large eyes covered with transparent spectacles, and a relatively large head with a distinct "smiling" mouth.

This species was formerly called Cosymbotus platyurus, but a recent genetic study has suggested that they should be classed within Hemidactylus. (Carranza and Arnold, 2006)

III. Description

IV. Behaviour

Flat-tailed Geckos are a species best for watching and not handling, they are shy towards larger animals (including humans) and are best left inside the enclosure. They are nocturnal, so they typically hide during the day and come out at night to feed and explore.

They are very quick and agile lizards, and can easily run up vertical surfaces and across ceilings like most gecko species. This amazing ability to stick to walls and ceilings almost appears as if they are defying gravity. Their "sticking power" lies in the pads on their toes. Rows of millions of hair called setae are tipped with microscopic, spatula-shaped hairs called spatulae. Because there are so many of these hairs touching the surface the gecko walks on, the lizard has an amazing adhesive strength that allows it to walk easily on vertical and upside-down surfaces.

Like most lizards, these geckos can autotomize their tail if they feel threatened. This defense mechanism, called caudal autotomy, occurs as a sort of "last ditch" effort for the lizard to escape a predator. Its tail breaks off, and the severed piece proceeds to twitch for several minutes afterwards (due to excited nerves left in the tail). This is supposed to distract the predator while the lizard runs away. The tail can and will regenerate after time, however the re-grown portion of the tail will not be the same colour or have the same texture as the original tail.

V. Diet

These lizards will thrive on a varied diet of invertebrates. Crickets, cockroaches, superworms and mealworms should be part of the diet to provide roughage, and adding soft prey like small hornworms, butterworms, and silk worms adds more nutritional variety. All prey should be gut-loaded on a nutritious diet 24-36 hours before being fed to the lizards. This is to ensure that the prey you are feeding contains a variety of nutrients, as most prey is poorly fed at the pet store. Fatty prey like wax worms are nice supplements, but because of their high fat content they should be fed sparingly. Prey variety is the key to good health. Do not limit your gecko's diet to just one or two different types of prey.

Some individuals will also take fruit baby foods. Place the baby food in a small dish where the lizard can easily see and reach it, and put it in the same place each time it is offered. Ensure that the dish is kept clean. It is possible to mix powdered calcium or multivitamin supplements into the baby food.

Dietary supplement powders are a controversial topic as we are uncertain of exactly how much is needed. We cannot possibly provide the same type of nutrition that these animals have in the wild, so their use is not unfounded. Vitamin and minerals overdoses are possible, so they should be used sparingly, and gut-loading should never be replaced by supplements. Because most invertebrate prey has an inverse calcium to phosphorus ratio, consider dusting most invertebrate prey with calcium powder. Multivitamin and mineral supplements can be used less often. Gravid females should be provided more calcium in their diet to make up for calcium lost to eggshell and yolk production. My personal supplementing schedule for all of my insectivorous herps includes calcium every 1-2 meals, and a multivitamin and mineral supplement every 4-5 meals.

VI. Housing

Size and build: An adult gecko can be kept in a 38 L (10-gallon) aquarium. A larger enclosure would be needed to house multiple lizards. Add 11-15 L (3-5 gallons) more volume for each other individual, and do not house males together. If you are planning on introducing several lizards to the same aquarium, do it at the same time so that they can "decide" on territories; lizards added gradually may be seen as intruders. Remember that a sparsely inhabited enclosure is better than a crowded one. A single gecko will be healthier alone than with cagemates.

On a related note, mixing species is not recommended.

The enclosure may be screen, wooden or glass, as long as humidity and temperature requirements are met. Completely transparent enclosures are discouraged, since these are prey animals and some security should be provided by covering several sides of the enclosure.

If using an aquarium, the lid should not be an aquarium cover intended for fish. Either buy a screen lid to fit the top or make your own. A screen portion is safe to put lights over and allows ventilation. The lid must be too heavy for the lizards to move.

Cage furniture: Vertical climbing space and plenty of plant cover are key with arboreal geckos. These lizards live in forest habitats, and this should be simulated in captivity. Branches placed vertically, diagonally and horizontally provide climbing and resting spots. Live or fake plants may be used. Fake plants are less work to maintain than live plants, but live plants provide more humid microhabitats and can help to raise relative humidity.

Tough and hardy plants that appreciate warm, humid conditions like pothos, philodendrons, dracaenae (like the Madagascar dragon tree and corn plant dracaena), hibiscus, some bromeliads, spider plants and sansvierias (snake plants) have been used with success in anole enclosures. All plants to be used in the enclosure should be repotted into a sterile, plain potting soil free of fertilizers, pesticides, vermiculite and perlite (small Styrofoam balls). The entire plant should be rinsed several times in lukewarm water to remove any pesticide residue from the nursery. Inspect the plants before purchase for pests like slugs, aphids and others. Once in the enclosure, maintain the plants according to their appropriate needs. See Plants for the Tropical Terrarium for more information.

Substrate: As substrate, plain potting earth is relatively safe, simple and cheap. Be sure to select soil with no additives such as fertilizers, vermiculite or perlite. Appropriate forest soil mixes including soil, woodchips, sand and decomposing leaves are also suitable. Substrate consisting of loose chunks of material such as woodchips, crushed walnut shell and crushed corncob should be avoided, as these are generally unsuitable for lizards for various reasons.

Simple sheet substrates like paper towels or newsprint are suitable for a temporary enclosure (such as a quarantine or hospital cage), however natural substrates that are properly maintained will help raise humidity and preserve a natural atmostphere.


VII. Water

Wild geckos drink from water droplets on vegetation, and may drink from small pools of water. Water should be misted in the enclosure, on the leaves of the artificial or live plants and enclosure walls at least once a day. A spray bottle or automatic misting equipment will both work equally well.

A water dish is not necessary for drinking since the enclosure is also being misted, but a wide, shallow water dish can help raise humidity in the enclosure. The dish should be cleaned regularly.


VIII. Heating

These lizards are thigmothermic, meaning they warm themselves on objects that were previously warmed by the sun. To accomodate this, provide a radiant heat source such as an incandescent light bulb during the day. Daytime temperatures should range from 30°C (88°F) at the warm endto 22 °C (75 °F) at the cool region of the enclosure. If the ambient enclosure temperature drops below 18 °C (65 °F) at night, an additional nighttime heat source like an infrared incandescent or a ceramic heat emitter may be necessary. It is important that any nighttime heat source produces no visible light, because these animals need a dark night cycle. Providing bright light at night can stress them.

IX. Humidity

The relative humidity of the enclosure should generally range between 50-60%. Using a natural soil substrate, adding live plants and a wide, shallow water dish will help maintain humidity. Various humid microhabitats up to 100% humidity can be provided by using live plants, slabs of bark and moist sphagnum moss. The enclosure humidity will also increase periodically when it is misted.


X. Lighting

Light quality is often overlooked in reptiles and amphibians. Broad-spectrum lighting (including UV-A and UV-B wavelengths, which are naturally found in sunlight) does not seem to be necessary for the successful keeping of these geckos, as they are nocturnal. However, it is questioned whether broad-spectrum lighting is beneficial, since they do undoubtedly encounter some natural sunlight at dusk and dawn, and if they leave their hiding spots during the day. Providing it would not be harmful.

Provide a photoperiod of 12-14 hours, varying with the seasons. A proper day/night cycle can be achieved by using an electrical timer.

XI. Sexing

Males possess hemipenile bulges at the base of their tail, which you can examine when the gecko is on the glass wall of its enclosure.

XII. Health

Proper husbandry is the key to good health in all reptiles. If you provide good basic care, then you will avoid the vast majority of potential health problems that reptiles can encounter in captivity.

Because Flat-tailed Geckos are virtually all wild caught, they are undoubtedbly parasitized. The process of being captured is very stressful, and this stress can afflict the immune system and allow any normally harmless parasites to become disease-causing. A fecal exam should be performed by an experienced reptile vet to determine if antiparasitic medications are needed to prevent any parasite-related health problems.

When in doubt about a health issue with your pet, do not hesitate to contact a knowledgeable reptile and amphibian veterinarian. To find a vet in your area, see the directory at the Association of Reptile and Amphibian Veterinarians website.

Glossary:

• Lamella: A thin, flat structure of tissue. Plural, lamellae.
  
• Nocturnal: Describes an animal that is naturally active during night hours.
  
• STL: "Snout to tail length," the length of the animal from the tip of its snout to the tip of its tail.
  
• SVL: "Snout to vent length," the length of the animal from the tip of its snout to the vent, i.e. the length of the animal not including the tail.

Sources:

Further Reading:

• Herptiles.net:
  • A Basic Guide to Evaluating a Lizard's Health
  • Geckos: Nature's Greatest Adhesive
  • Handling Lizards
  • Heating
  • Humidity
  • Light Quality
  • Re-introducing Lizards: A General Caresheet
  • Substrate
  • Understanding Ultraviolet and Calcium
• External:
  • ARAV: Association of Reptile and Amphibian Veterinarians