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483 Featured Specimen
Common house gecko

Details

Common house gecko

Hemidactylus frenatus

Size
Total length 7–15 cm · 3–7 g
Diet
Carnivore
Activity
Nocturnal
Sociality
Solitary
Lifespan
5–7 years

The common house gecko is a small nocturnal gecko that hunts insects around walls and lights. It is highly adapted to living near people.

Range

Habitat range map
Native range Occasional / Transient
AfrotropicalAfrotropicalAfrotropicalAfrotropicalIndomalayanIndomalayanIndomalayanIndomalayanIndomalayanIndomalayanIndomalayanIndomalayanIndomalayanIndomalayanIndomalayanIndomalayanIndomalayanIndomalayanIndomalayanAustralasianAustralasianAustralasianAustralasianAustralasianAustralasianAustralasianAustralasianAustralasianAustralasianAustralasianAustralasianAustralasianAustralasianAustralasianAustralasianAustralasian

Map: Ecoregions 2017 © RESOLVE (CC BY 4.0) · Natural Earth (PD)

Details

Habitat

It occurs in Indomalayan, Afrotropical, and Australasian urban and forest habitats. Buildings, stone walls, bark, and crevices provide vertical shelter.

Appearance

Total length 7-15 cm; weight 3-7 g. The pale brown to grey body has fine mottling, and adhesive toe pads allow movement on walls and ceilings. The skin can look slightly translucent.

Behavior

Nocturnal and solitary, it waits near lights for insects. Short chirping calls are often heard around buildings.

Feeding

A carnivore, it eats moths, mosquitoes, small beetles, spiders, and similar prey. It approaches on vertical surfaces and snaps quickly.

Reproduction

Females lay hard-shelled eggs in crevices or hidden spaces. Hatchlings resemble tiny adults and begin hunting immediately.

Notes

It is listed as Least Concern. Spread by human transport, it may compete with native geckos in some regions.