New Caledonia, which is located east of Australia, in the Pacific Ocean, is home to an array
of wildlife, in particular the Crested Gecko, also known as Correlophus Ciliatus.
Crested Geckos are small, semi-arboreal, crepuscular lizards that can be found about 1-4 metres
up in the forests of Grande Terre and The isle of Pines, both islands are part of the
New Caledonian archipelago.
They share their homes with some familiar faces in the reptile trade, such as Gargoyle
Geckos, Mossy Prehensile-tailed Geckos and Giant New Caledonian Geckos.
All four types of lizards have very similar care, which tends to be fairly easy in comparison
to other reptiles.
However mistakes can be made if proper research hasn’t been done, so in this video I’d
like to briefly cover the care of Crested Geckos.
But I encourage you to look deeper into each subject.
Let’s start off with some history.
Crested Geckos were originally discovered in 1866, by a French zoologist [Alphone Guichenot].
However up until 1994, Crested Geckos were thought to be extinct, until they were rediscovered
during an expedition led by Robert Seipp.
Unfortunately now their current conservation status is vulnerable, mainly due to habitat
destruction and the introduction of invasive species such as little fire ants also known
as Electric ants [Wasmannia auropunctata].
Thankfully Crested Geckos are fairly easy to breed so their numbers are booming in captivity.
When housing an adult Crested Gecko, the minimum requirement is a 45 x 45 x 60 cm glass tank.
Glass is preferred over mesh as it holds in humidity better, and Crested Geckos require
a high amount of humidity.
Crested Geckos should get several hours of high humidity, anywhere from 70-90%, however
it is important that the humidity drops a little during the day, but it shouldn’t go
lower than 50%.
To achieve this you can use an automatic misting system, or manually spray down the tank in
the morning and evening.
Leaving a shallow dish of water in the tank can also be beneficial for raising the humidity
and ensuring your gecko is hydrated.
Crested Geckos don’t require particular high temperatures.
70-75oF is ideal, anything over 82oF can be fatal.
Many people do not use heating equipment with their Crested Geckos, however if you live
in an area where the room temperature is 65oF or below, I would recommend using a deep heat
projector, or ceramic heat emitter, along with a thermostat, to raise the ambient temperature.
Decorating your Crested Gecko’s tank can be fun as they require lots of places to climb
and hide.
Most people are heading in the bio active direction, where the gecko has it’s own
clean up crew, and lives amongst live plants. However if this is something you do not feel
you want, or can make a reality at the moment, there are many fake plants, and vines,
on the market.
Like Leopard Geckos, Crested Geckos can also experience the benefits of a UV light.
Being crepuscular they’d be exposed to UVA and UVB at dusk and dawn in the wild.
Talking of the wild, studies have shown that wild Crested Geckos eat a range of things
from decomposing fruit and berries, to insects and seeds.
We should offer live feeder insects to our geckos, to allow them to hunt like they naturally
would in the wild, however there are diets out there that contain real fruits and insects,
such as diets from Pangea, Repashy, Arcadia, and Black Panther Zoological to name a few.
As for handling, Crested Geckos are fairly docile, but can be quite jumpy. But after all
they’d be jumping from branch to branch in the wild.
As well as using their little legs to get around, they also have a semi-prehensile tail.
Most Crested Geckos in the wild no longer have their tails, as once they drop them,
they don’t grow back.
Dropping their tail is a defense mechanism.
This behaviour can be seen in Crested Geckos in captivity. However sometimes this can
occur without warning.
Thankfully Lyra here still has hers.
Crested Geckos are great little lizards, they are bursting with personality, but like Leopard
Geckos they can live for 20 years or more, so if you’re going to get one, you’re
making a big commitment, but in my opinion it’s worth it.
In their 20 years or so of life a lot can change.
We have already moved away from using diets like baby food, housing them in groups, and
even referring to them as Rhacodactylus Ciliatus.
Who knows what will change in the next 20 years?
So here’s to improving the standard of care for our scaly friends!