8-3-2020 PERIYAR RIVER LODGE, INDIA - ASIAN HOUSE GECKO (Hemidactylus frenatus)

The common house gecko (Hemidactylus frenatus) is a gecko native to South and Southeast Asia as well as Near Oceania. It is also known as the Asian house gecko, Pacific house gecko, wall gecko, house lizard, tiktiki, chipkal] or moon lizard.

 Most geckos are nocturnal, hiding during the day and foraging for insects at night. They can be seen climbing walls of houses and other buildings in search of insects attracted to porch lights, and are immediately recognisable by their characteristic chirping.

They grow to a length of between 7.5–15 cm (3–6 in), and live for about 7 years. These small geckos are non-venomous and not harmful to humans. Most medium-sized to large geckos are docile, but may bite if distressed, which can pierce skin. The common house gecko is tropical, and thrives in warm, humid areas where it can crawl around on rotting wood in search of the insects it eats, as well as within urban landscapes in warm climates. The animal is very adaptable and may prey on insects and spiders, displacing other gecko species which are less robust or behaviourally aggressive. In parts of Australia and Papua New Guinea they are often confused with a similar native lizard, the dubious dtella.

1-12-2015 SIEM REAP, CAMBODIA - ASIAN HOUSE GECKO (Hemidactylus frenatus)

The common house gecko is by no means a misnomer, displaying a clear preference for urban environments. The synanthropic gecko displays a tendency to hunt for insects in close proximity to urban lights. They have been found in bushland, but the current evidence seems to suggest they have a preference for urban environments, with their distribution being mostly defined by areas within or in close proximity to city bounds[failed verification]

The common house gecko appears to prefer areas in the light which are proximal to cracks, or places to escape. Geckos without an immediate opportunity to escape potential danger display behavioural modifications to compensate for this fact, emerging later in the night and retreating earlier in the morning. Without access to the urban landscape, they appear to prefer habitat which is composed of comparatively dense forest or eucalypt woodland which is proximal to closed forest.

The selection of primarily urban habitats makes available the preferred foods of the common house gecko. The bulk of the diet of the gecko is made up of invertebrates, primarily hunted around urban structures. Primary invertebrate food sources include cockroaches, termites, some bees and wasps, butterflies, moths, flies, spiders, and several beetle groupings. There is limited evidence that cannibalism can occur in laboratory conditions, but this is yet to be observed in the wild.

26-11-2015 BOTANICAL GARDENS, SINGAPORE - ASIAN HOUSE GECKO (Hemidactylus frenatus)

The common house gecko is prolific through the tropics and subtropics. It is able to exist in an ecologically analogous place with other Hemidactylus species. Despite being native throughout Southeast Asia, recent introductions, both deliberate and accidental, have seen them recorded in the Deep South of the United States, large parts of tropical and sub-tropical Australia, and many other countries in South and Central America, Caribbean Dominican Republic, Africa, South Asia and the Middle East (Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Oman and the United Arab Emirates). Most recently, this species has also invaded the Caribbean Lesser Antilles, and is now present on Saint Martin (island), Saint Barthélemy, Sint Eustatius, Dominica and Saint Lucia. Their capacity to withstand a wide range of latitudes is also partially facilitated by their capacity to enter a state of brumation during colder months. The prospect of increased climate change interacts synergistically with increased urbanisation, greatly increasing the prospective distribution of the common house gecko. Due to concerns over its potential capacity as an invasive species, there are efforts to limit their introduction and presence in locations where they could be a risk to native gecko species.

In Mexico, H. frenatus was first collected in Acapulco, Guerrero, in March of 1895 and found to be well established there and in the surrounding regions by the early 1940s. It was likely introduced through shipping and cargo. H. frenatus now occurs throughout the lowlands of Mexico on both the Atlantic and Pacific versants including the Yucatan Peninsula, and Baja California, with records from 21 of the 32 Mexican states. Most records of H. frenatus in Mexico are from buildings such as homes, hotels, and other structure in cities and towns, with only a few reports of the species in natural habitat, and its impact, if any, on native fauna there is unknown.