''Gehyra mutilata'', also known
commonly as the common four-clawed gecko, Pacific gecko, stump-toed gecko, sugar gecko in
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
, tender-skinned house gecko, and ''butiki'' in
Filipino
Filipino may refer to:
* Something from or related to the Philippines
** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines.
** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...
, is a
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
of
lizard in the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
Gekkonidae
Gekkonidae (the common geckos) is the largest family of geckos, containing over 950 described species in 64 genera. Members of the Gekkonidae comprise many of the most widespread gecko species, including house geckos ('' Hemidactylus''), tokay g ...
. The species is native to
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainlan ...
. It has made its way to several areas of the world including
Sri Lanka,
Indochina
Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as the Indochinese Peninsula or Indochina, is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the west an ...
, and many of the
Pacific Islands. Compared to the
common house gecko
The common house gecko (''Hemidactylus frenatus'') is a gecko native to South and Southeast Asia. It is also known as the Asian house gecko, Pacific house gecko, wall gecko, house lizard, tayoto, chipkali or moon lizard.
Most geckos are nocturn ...
(''Hemidactylus frenatus''), the appearance of ''G. mutilata'' is somewhat plump, with delicate skin. The skin is usually colored a soft purplish/pinkish gray, with golden spots on younger specimens; these spots eventually fade with age.
Description
![Gehyra cf](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/Gehyra_cf._mutilata.jpg)
The head of ''G. mutilata'' is longer than broad. The snout is longer than the distance between the eye and the ear-opening, about 1.3 times the diameter of the orbit. The forehead has a median groove. The ear-opening is moderately large and suboval. The body and limbs are moderately elongate and depressed. A fold of the skin borders the hind limb posteriorly. The digits are short and more or less webbed at the base. The inferior lamellae are angular and divided by a median groove. The upper surface of the body and the throat are covered with small granular scales, which are largest and flat on the back. The abdominal scales are moderate. The
rostral is quadrangular, broader than deep, with a median cleft above. The nostril is pierced between the rostral, the first
labial
The term ''labial'' originates from '' Labium'' (Latin for "lip"), and is the adjective that describes anything of or related to lips, such as lip-like structures. Thus, it may refer to:
* the lips
** In linguistics, a labial consonant
** In zoolog ...
, and three
nasals
In phonetics, a nasal, also called a nasal occlusive or nasal stop in contrast with an oral stop or nasalized consonant, is an occlusive consonant produced with a lowered velum, allowing air to escape freely through the nose. The vast majorit ...
, the upper much the largest and generally in contact with its fellow. There are 8 or 9 upper labials, and 6 or 7 lower labials. The
mental is moderately large and pentagonal. There are 3 pairs of chin shields. The innermost pair is very large and elongate. The outermost pair is small, frequently broken up into small scales. The femoral pores are in a doubly curved line, angular in the middle, 14 to 19 on each side. The tail is depressed, normally with a sharpish, minutely serrated lateral edge. The upper surface of the tail is covered with very small flat scales. Its lower surface generally has a median series of large transversely dilated scales. ''G. mutilata'' is greyish or reddish brown above, uniform or dotted or variegated with darker. The lower surfaces are uniform whitish.
[ Boulenger GA (1890). ''The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma. Reptilia and Batrachia''. London: Secretary of State for India in Council. (Taylor and Francis, printers). xviii + 541 pp. (''Gehyra mutilata'', pp. 96–97, Figure 28).]
''G. mutilata'' may attain a
snout-to-vent length (SVL) of , with a tail length equal to SVL.
[
A key identification character is the absence of a claw on the innermost digit.][ Das I (2002). ''A Photographic Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of India''. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 144 pp. . (''Gehyra mutilata'', p. 94).]
Geographic range
The species ''G. mutilata'' is widely distributed throughout Borneo
Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and ea ...
, southeastern China, French Polynesia, Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...
( Maui), India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
, Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
, the Mascarene Islands
The Mascarene Islands (, ) or Mascarenes or Mascarenhas Archipelago is a group of islands in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar consisting of the islands belonging to the Republic of Mauritius as well as the French department of Réunion. Their ...
, western Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
, Myanmar
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
, New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
, the Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
, the Pitcairn Islands, Seychelles
Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (french: link=no, République des Seychelles; Creole: ''La Repiblik Sesel''), is an archipelagic state consisting of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, ...
, and Sri Lanka.[
]
Behavior and habitat
Like many other geckos, ''G. mutilata'' is very adaptable to its surroundings, although it usually prefers woodlands, rocky areas, and human dwellings, at altitudes from sea level to .[ It is also very common on sand beaches in Hawaii, where it is considered an invasive species. It makes itself at home in people's houses, and doesn't seem to mind the humans living beside it. Many people don't mind the gecko either, perhaps because, being a nocturnally active species, it spends much of its time high up on walls and ceilings. It is quite unobtrusive and helpfully preys on household insects.
Like many gecko species, ''G. mutilata'' is able to make noises to communicate. Its call, which sounds like "tock", is repeated six to eight times with increasing volume.][Das I (2006). ''A Photographic Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Borneo''. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 144 pp. . (''Gehyra mutilata'', p. 97).] It is also capable of running faster than other house geckos.
''G. mutilata'' are often compared to the common gecko (''H. frenatus'') when it comes to habitat location, and it is often said that ''G. mutilata'' will not be found around ''H. frenatus'' although this pattern can differ depending on location.
Diet
''G. mutilata'' preys
Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill th ...
upon isopods, termite
Termites are small insects that live in colonies and have distinct castes (eusocial) and feed on wood or other dead plant matter. Termites comprise the infraorder Isoptera, or alternatively the epifamily Termitoidae, within the order Blatto ...
s, and other small insect
Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three ...
s.[
]
Reproduction
''G. mutilata'' is oviparous.[ Clutch size is one to three eggs, usually two.][
]
References
Further reading
* Smith MA (1935). ''The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma. Reptilia and Amphibia. Vol. II.—Sauria.'' London: Secretary of State for India in Council. (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 440 pp. + Plate I + 2 maps. (''Gehyra mutilata'', pp. 105–106).
* Wiegmann AFA (1834). "''Beiträge zur Zoologie, gesammelt auf einer Reise um die Erde. Siebente Abhandlung. Amphibien'' ". ''Verhandlungen der Kaiserlichen Leopoldinisch-Carolinischen Akademie der Naturforscher. Nova Acta Physico-Medica, Academiae Caesare Leopoldino-Carolinae'' 17 (1): 185–268 + Plates XIII–XXII. (''Hemidactylus mutilatus'', new species, pp. 238–240). (in German and Latin).
External links
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1766871
Gehyra
Reptiles of Southeast Asia
Reptiles of Japan
Reptiles described in 1834
Reptiles of Borneo