The Cold Blooded News The Newsletter of the Colorado Herpetological Society Volume 28, Number 11;   November, 2001

Tidbits of Information

by Eileen Underwood

Common Name:

Frog-eyed Gecko, Wonder Gecko

Scientific Name:

Teratoscincus scincus scincus

Size:

4.5-6.25 in. (11.4-15.9 cm) total length

Habitat:

Desert and arid habitats of southern Asia (eastern Arabia, north to Kazakhstan, Iran, Afghanistan, and western China)

Active:

Crepuscular and nocturnal

Captive Care:

Substrate: 8" (min.) to 14" sand (or sand/loam mixture) with rocks or standpipe at one end (spanning from bottom to top), wet lower layers of sand (keeping top dry) by pouring small amounts of water over rocks or into standpipe. Caution: cage can be very heavy; choose set-up site carefully. Cage size: 12 x 30"; use undertank heat and overhead basking light at one end of tank.

Temperature:

Daytime High - 84-94°F (28.9-34.4°C), Nighttime low - 68°F (20°C)

Brumate:

5-8 weeks in winter; daytime high - 60-65°F (15.6-18.3°C) and nighttime low - 50-60°F (10-15.6°C). Will not eat during this period; do not let sand dry out during brumation period, include surface water dish.

Diet:

Mealworms and beetles, giant mealworms, crickets, non-toxic beetles, other lizards and/or own hatchlings.

Eggs:

Produce clutches of 2 eggs (hard shelled but fragile). Relatively low humidity - 40-55% (higher can kill embryo). Incubation temperature: 80-90°F (26.7-2.2°C). Hatch in 70-100 days.

Notes:

No adhesive lamellae on digits.
Calls and can scrape supracaudal scales (top of tail) to make noise.
Skin very delicate and permeable (aids in gas exchange), easily torn.
Need moist subsand to burrow in.
An aggressive (defensive) gecko - interesting defense posturing.

References:

Bartlett and Bartlett. (1995) Geckos. Barrens Educational Series, Inc., Hauppauge, NY.

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