The Okavango dwarf gecko or Chobe dwarf gecko (''Lygodactylus chobiensis'') is a species of

gecko Geckos are small, mostly carnivorous lizards that have a wide distribution, found on every continent except Antarctica. Belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, geckos are found in warm climates throughout the world. They range from . Geckos ar ...

found along the Chobe and

Zambesi River The Zambezi River (also spelled Zambeze and Zambesi) is the fourth-longest river in Africa, the longest east-flowing river in Africa and the largest flowing into the Indian Ocean from Africa. Its drainage basin covers , slightly less than hal ...

s and into the Okavango Delta, and into Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Zambia.

Description

A large dwarf gecko (normally 25–30 mm in snout–vent length) with males being slightly larger than the females. It has a blue-grey back covered with large pale spots and a yellow belly. The male throat may be black or pale yellow and has two dark chevrons. They mature at around 9 months and have a lifespan of 18 months.

Habitat

The Okavango dwarf gecko is normally arboreal and can found on tree trunks and sometimes buildings of the tropical savanna and flooded grasslands. It prefers to forage high up in trees and can often be found on

acacia ''Acacia'', commonly known as the wattles or acacias, is a large genus of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa and Australasia. The genus na ...

baobab ''Adansonia'' is a genus made up of eight species of medium-to-large deciduous trees known as baobabs ( or ). They are placed in the Malvaceae family, subfamily Bombacoideae. They are native to Madagascar, mainland Africa, and Australia.Tropic ...

and mopane trees.

Diet

Their diet is mainly ants and termites.

Reproduction

Reproduction occurs throughout the year and two hard-shelled eggs (5 × 6.5 mm) are laid every 8 weeks beneath the tree bark or in disused termite mound. The eggs hatch in about 125 days and the young geckos are about 30 mm in length.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1626361 Lygodactylus Geckos of Africa Reptiles of Angola Reptiles of Botswana Reptiles of Mozambique Reptiles of Namibia Reptiles of Zambia Reptiles of Zimbabwe Reptiles described in 1932 Taxa named by Vivian Frederick Maynard FitzSimons