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Mrs. Gavin's Geckos
Mrs. Gavin's Geckos
5th grade usually studies living organisms through eco-columns. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we were unable to create our eco-columns this year. So, 5th grade will be looking at Mrs. Gavin's geckos to study their life science unit.
This page will focus on the life cycle of crested geckos (correlophus ciliatus). They are also called eyelash geckos because it looks like they have eyelashes around the top portion of their eyes.
Life Cycle-eggs laid to hatching
Life Cycle-eggs laid to hatching
Once the eggs are laid, it will take between 60-100 days for the eggs to hatch (depending on the temperature of where they are kept). The eggs are kept in a special incubation box that will keep the eggs moist. This is necessary because the eggs of a crested gecko are soft. Unlike duck or chicken eggs, gecko eggs do not need to be rotated daily. In fact, this would actually harm the developing gecko!
What do you notice about these eggs? (The one on the left was laid the day this picture was taken. The one on the right hatched the day after this picture was taken!)
Life Cycle-hatchling to adult
Life Cycle-hatchling to adult
After hatching, crested geckos will shed their skin as they grow. This is similar to molting in insects. Unlike insects, geckos do not enter a "pupa stage" or undergo metamorphosis because they are reptiles. The stages of a reptile's life cycle are egg, hatchling, juvenile, sub-adult and adult.
When they hatch, crested geckos weigh around 0.07 ounces (2 grams). That is about the same as 2 paperclips! As an adult, cresties weigh between 1.5-2.0 ounces (40-60 grams). This is about the same as a golf ball or 2 AA batteries. As pets, crested geckos can live 5-10 years when properly cared for.
Watch the video to see her pulling the shed off of her foot.
Crested Gecko Eggs
Crested Gecko Eggs
This is Scarlett. She just laid her eggs and has wrapped her legs around them to protect them. Soon she will leave them once she believes they are secure. Mother geckos do not stay with their eggs like ducks or chickens. They leave their eggs to develop and hatch on their own. To make sure the eggs are safe, we move them into a special "incubation box" until they hatch!
This little gecko hatched in the evening (which is why it is dark in the video) and hatched fairly quickly! You can see it pause to lick its nose. Why do you think this is important? (HINT: think about breathing!)
Adaptations
Adaptations
The crested gecko has many adaptations that have helped it survive in its habitat. One of these adaptations has to do with its eyes. Crested geckos do not have eyelids. In order to keep their eyes moist and clean they lick their eyes.
Another crested gecko adaptation can be found on their feet. The bottoms of their feet contain thousands of little hairs that help it grip onto most surfaces.
Crested geckos, like most lizards and geckos, will lose their tail in a "flight situation". A Flight Situation would be anything that is considered dangerous by the gecko. Predators chasing them, loud noises such as thunder, and fights with other geckos could cause them to lose their tails. Unlike most other lizards and geckos, though, crested geckos do not grow their tails back.
Crested geckos are also nocturnal creatures meaning that they are most active at night.
Photo credit for feet close ups to: u/Timo1301, u/Dorcustitanus
Inherited Traits
Inherited Traits
Instinctive and Learned Behaviors
Instinctive and Learned Behaviors
In the wild, most crested geckos have a darker, olive green coloring. They also have patterning on their sides that is usually in the form of stripes or spots. Remember that coloring and patterns are inherited from parents.
In captivity, breeders have been able to breed a variety of colors and patterns into geckos. If you scroll through the pictures above there are a few examples of the many colors and patterns that you can find on captive bred crested geckos.
Instinctive behaviors in the crested gecko include climbing and jumping. These are helpful in their arboreal (tree) habitat to capture prey and to escape predators.
As pets, crested geckos do not necessarily learn "tricks" like other animals, but they do learn! Over time, cresties can learn to recognize their owners. Often when an owner comes to their cage, cresties will happily jump onto their hands for a visit. They also learn to recognize feeding time and will patiently wait next to the feeding bowl around the same time each evening. These are NOT behaviors that wild crested geckos would instinctively have.
Habitat
Habitat
Crested geckos come from the islands of New Caledonia which is located near Australia and Fiji. They are arboreal dwellers, which means they live mostly in trees. The islands of New Caledonia are located near the equator so the climate in New Caledonia is considered tropical with a hot and rainy season and then a cool and drier season.
The picture above shows a recreation of their natural habitat using what is called a bioactive habitat.
The other pictures are from New Caledonia.
Diet
Diet
In the wild crested geckos eat fruit and insects. In captivity they eat a specialized fruit diet that looks like applesauce or baby food. They also love to eat insects such as crickets and dubia roaches.
More about Cresties!
More about Cresties!
Crested geckos feel very soft! Some people compare it to velvet. Even their crests are soft and skin like, not hard.
Crested geckos can be "fired" or "unfired". These terms refer to their coloring. When a gecko is fired, it means that their colors are darker and more pronounced. When they are unfired, it means that their colors are very pale and sometimes you can't tell if their color is red, brown or black. What color do you think the gecko above is?
Crested geckos can and do jump very well from place to place.
Crested geckos have different personalities. Some are very tame and are not bothered by other creatures, while some are very afraid of other creatures and run away quickly.
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