10 Surprising Leopard Gecko Facts

Leopard geckos are one of the most popular pet reptiles in the world, and for good reason, but even longtime keepers are sometimes surprised by a few of these.

1. They have movable eyelids, unlike most geckos. Most gecko species have a fixed transparent scale over the eye and lick it clean, but leopard geckos blink and lick their own eyes to keep them clear, an unusual trait in the gecko world.

2. Their tails are fat storage, not just balance. A plump, healthy tail is a sign of good body condition, since leopard geckos store reserves there for lean times. A visibly thin tail is often one of the first signs something's wrong.

3. They can drop their tails as a defense, and the new one looks different. Dropped tails regenerate, but the regrown version is typically shorter, stubbier, and less detailed in pattern than the original.

4. They squeak when startled. Unlike most reptiles, which are essentially silent, leopard geckos can produce an audible chirp or squeak when stressed or handled roughly, a rare bit of reptile vocalization.

5. Egg incubation temperature can determine sex. In leopard geckos, the temperature of the egg decides. In a 13-generation breeding study, eggs at 30°C (86°F) hatched mostly females and eggs at 32.5°C (90.5°F) mostly males, and the lines also carried inherited variation in how each clutch responded. Temperature-dependent sex was first reported in 1966, in an African lizard, and it has since turned up in turtles, crocodilians and tuataras. Bearded dragons take a middle path, with sex chromosomes that a hot enough nest can override.

6. They come in hundreds of color and pattern combinations. Decades of selective breeding have produced an enormous range of "morphs" such as albino, tangerine and mack snow, each with its own name and lineage among breeders.

7. They can't climb glass or smooth walls. Unlike many other gecko species with adhesive toe pads, leopard geckos have simple clawed feet and no climbing pads, which is useful information for enclosure design since they won't scale the walls.

8. They're native to rocky, arid parts of Asia. Wild leopard geckos are found across Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, and parts of India, in dry, rocky terrain rather than sand-dune desert.

9. They can learn a route and remember it for a while. In a water maze study, leopard geckos learned where a hidden platform sat over 20 trials and still remembered it two months later. After four months they had to be retrained. The researchers tie that memory span to how much a semi-desert home changes within a single season, and to the low activity of winter. A follow-up that trained geckos as juveniles found the same pattern: the route held at four months and was back to baseline by fourteen, once the animals were adults.

10. They can live remarkably long for their size. 10 to 20 years is typical with good care, and some well-kept individuals reach 25 to 30, a long commitment for such a small reptile.

Which fact was new to you? Let me know in the comments.

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