Vivariums;reptiles;Asia-geckos 3

- Panti Bent-toed Gecko :

still courtesy to : www.ecologyasia.com/verts/lizards/panti-bent-toed-gecko.htm

Family : GEKKONIDAE
Species : Cyrtodactylus pantiensis
Size (snout to vent) : 7.7 cm
Size (total length) : up to 19 cm

This attractive gecko, first described in 2008, occurs in lowland forests : within such habitat it appears to be confined to the margins of forest streams passing through freshwater swamp forest.
The species is named after Gunung Panti ('Gunung' = mountain), at the base of which is extensive swamp forest.
The specimen pictured here was active at night amongst a log-jam of fallen tree branches. Upon disturbance it immediately retreated into a crevice. Grismer (2011) observes that these geckos will readily run across the surface of streams to evade a perceived threat.

Specimens from the Panti area can be identified in the field by the mirrored arrangement of two half-moon shaped blotches at the back of the skull, forward of the nape. Paired brown blotches also extend down the body, either side of the vertebral line, and like the distinctive half-moon blotches are surrounded by creamy yellow speckles. The tail is banded brown and creamy yellow.
The Panti Bent-toed Gecko appears to be endemic to southern Peninsular Malaysia.

A Panti Bent-toed Gecko runs for cover after being disturbed next to a stream passing through freshwater swamp forest at the base of Gunung Panti, Johor, Peninsular Malaysia.

Acidic swamp forest stream at the base of Gunung Panti, typical habitat for Cyrtodactylus pantiensis.

- Marbled Bent-toed Gecko :

Family : GEKKONIDAE
Species : Cyrtodactylus quadrivirgatus
Size (snout to vent) : male 69 mm, female 75 mm
Size (total length) : ~ 150 mm

This attractive gecko inhabits lowland primary or tall secondary rainforest, freshwater swamp forest and lower montane forest up to at least 1100 metres. It is generally found clinging to low vegetation, and only occasionally on boulders or rock outcrops.
It has slender digits which lack expanded pads : the fingers and toes are well adapted for gripping on fissured tree bark or other rough surfaces. The reddish-brown eyes have vertical pupils. These are both distinguishing feature of Cyrtodactylus geckos.
The body colour is medium brown, pale cream or pale grey, patterned with four buff or dark brown lateral stripes : these may be semi-continuous or completely broken into irregular blotches. The species is sometimes called 'Four-striped Bent-toed Gecko'.
The tail is patterned with dark and light bands of roughly equal thickness. The dorsal colour is pale.
The species occurs in Southern Thailand and Peninsular Malaysia. It is also listed as occurring in north Sumatra and north-western Borneo.
Recent research (Grismer et al, 2012) suggests that the species is unlikely to occur in Singapore. Historical records from Singapore formerly assigned as C. quadrivirgatus are now recognised as two entirely different species including the Singapore Bent-toed GeckoCyrtodactylus majulah, and the Peninsular Bent-toed Gecko Cyrtodactylus semenanjungensis.

Specimen from Fraser's Hill, Peninsular Malaysia (elevation 1000 metres), found clinging to vegetation 0.5 metres above the ground. This specimen has well developed dorsal superciliary scales (the yellow scales above the eye which give the appearance of eyelashes).

Another specimen from Fraser's Hill, Peninsular Malaysia (elevation 1000 metres), clinging to plant roots exposed in a roadside embankment.

References :

Grismer, L. et al, 2012. Cyrtodactylus majulah, a new species of bent-toed gecko (Reptilia: Squamata: Gekkonidae) from Singapore and the Riau Archipelago. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 60(2) : 487-499.

Videos :

Marbled Bent-toed Gecko, Perak, Malaysia. 20141202_224202.m2ts

Other Websites :

- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyrtodactylus_quadrivirgatus

- lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/nus/images/pdfs/sbr/2016/sbr2016-117-118.pdf

- reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Cyrtodactylus&species=quadrivirgatus

- Good Book : books.google.ae/books?

- Peninsular Bent-toed Gecko :

Family : GEKKONIDAE
Species : Cyrtodactylus semenanjungensis
Size (snout to vent) : 71 mm
Size (total length) : 163 mm

The Peninsular Bent-toed Gecko inhabits lowland primary and secondary forest in the vicinity of watercourses or swamp forest, in southern Peninsular Malaysia. It is fully nocturnal in habits.
It is superficially similar to the Marbled Bent-toed Gecko Cyrtodactylus quadrivirgatus, with which it was once confused. The species was first described in 2005 (Grismer et al).
The body colour is grey to yellowish-brown, patterned with dark stripes, bars and blotches.
In the field, Cyrtodactylus semenanjungensis can be identified by the arrangement of dark bars, bands and blotches in the neck region. Specifically, there is a dark stripe behind each eye which extends along the side of the neck to end just behind the forelimbs. These two stripes are connected over the back, just behind the nape, through a broken, dark bar. At the nape there is a dark blotch which is enclosed by these features. In addition, around 5 or 6 other dark, broken bars extend across the back.
The head and body shape of this species are similar to other bent-toed geckos with an elongate body, a head which is wider than the body, relatively long limbs and a relatively long banded tail. The eyes are large with vertical pupils.
The Peninsular Bent-toed Gecko is known from parts of the southern state of Johor, Peninsular Malaysia. The species is also recorded in Singapore (Baker, 2014).

Grey specimen from lowland, secondary forest in Singapore's central forests. It was active amongst leaf litter some metres from a forest stream.

Close-up of the same specimen, showing the arrangement of dark stripes, bars and blotches in the nape region. Note the bright yellow tubercles.

References :

Baker, N. 2014. New record of peninsular bent-toed gecko in Singapore. Singapore Biodiversity Records 2014: 331 - 332. National University of Singapore. [pdf]

Grismer, L. L., Leong, T. M. 2005. New Species of Cyrtodactylus (Squamata: Gekkonidae) from Southern Peninsular Malaysia. Journal of Herpetology, Vol. 39, No. 4, pp. 584–591, 2005

- Tioman Bent-toed Gecko :

Tioman Bent-toed Gecko

Family : GEKKONIDAE
Species : Cyrtodactylus tiomanensis
Size (snout to vent) : 8.7 cm
Size (total length) : ~ 19 cm

This nocturnal gecko has so far only been found on the island of Tioman, which lies in the South China Sea around 40 km off the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia, and is the largest island in the Seribuat Archipelago. The species was first described in 2000 (Das & Jim, 2000).
It inhabits dense, undisturbed forest : adults are mainly found on rocky outcrops, and juveniles on vegetation or on the forest floor (Grismer, 2011).
Its body is of medium size for a Cyrtodactylusgecko, with a snout-vent length of up to 8.7 cm.
The ground colour of its body is brown and this is stippled with small, pale tubercles. There are four pale, yellowish bands running across the body, and a yellow band running through the eye which connects across the rear of the head. The original tail also bears pale bands. A pale vertebral stripe is often present, as in the example shown here.

Adult specimen with regrown tail, seen at night on the mossy surface of a rock outcrop. This example exhibits the banding that is typical of the species, and has a clearly defined vertebral stripe. Photo thanks to Serin Subaraj.

The island of Tioman, in the South China Sea, off the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia. The highest peak, called Gunung Kajang, is in the centre of this image.

References :
Das, I. & Jim, L. L. (2000). A new species of Cyrtodactylus(Sauria: Gekkonidae) from Pulau Tioman, Malaysia. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology, 48(2), 223-231.

- Yoshi's Bow-fingered Gecko :

Stiil courtesy to : www.ecologyasia.com/verts/lizards/yoshi's-bow-fingered-gecko

Family : GEKKONIDAE
Species : Cyrtodactylus yoshii
Size (snout to vent) : 10 cm
Size (total length) : 22 cm

Yoshi's Bow-fingered Gecko is a large species of Cyrtodactylus which inhabits moist, lowland primary rainforest. The species was first described in 1990.
Its thickset body measures up to 10 cm snout-to-vent, and its slender tail reaches around 12 cm. Its body colour is greyish, the dorsal surface of which is adorned with a series of irregular, equally-spaced dark brown bars, which also transverse the tail. Numerous tiny tubercles cover its skin.
Its head is medium in size, and its eyes large. The skin above its eyes has a bluish tinge.
The specimen shown here (left) is identified on the basis of its size, patterning, colouration and tubercular skin. It was found at head height on a small tree in Danum Valley, Sabah, Borneo.
Yoshi's Bow-fingered Gecko appears to be restricted to northern Borneo.

Specimen from lowland, primary forest at Danum Valley, Sabah, Borneo.

- Cyrtodactylus sp. (Bali, Indonesia) :

Family : GEKKONIDAE
Species : Cyrtodactylus sp.
Size (snout to vent) : Approx 8 cm
Size (total length) : Approx 18 cm

The gecko featured here is a species of Cyrtodactylus from the island of Bali, Indonesia. A few examples were found near the Petanu River, which passes through a deep gorge after draining southwards off the volcanic peak of Mount Batur.
The species inhabits wet, rocky outcrops adjacent to the river, as well as dry man-made tunnels some metres above the river.
The largest specimens encountered measured around 8 cm snout-to-vent, and around 18 cm when tail length is included.
It is likely that this species has yet to be formally described in scientific literature. It is assigned as a Cyrtodactylus sp. on the basis of its slender, bent digits and large eyes with vertical pupils.
In recent years the remarkable diversity of species in the genus Cyrtodactylus has started to be recognised : Grismer et al (2012) count 152 species to date.

Complete specimen of Cyrtodactylus (with original tail) clinging to a wet, rocky outcrop a few metres from the fast-flowing river.

The Petanu River, Bali.

Another specimen (with regrown tail), lurks in a man-made tunnel.

Tunnel entrance, which opens onto a terrace around 20 metres above the Petanu River.

References :

Grismer, L. et al, 2012. Cyrtodactylus majulah, a new species of bent-toed gecko (Reptilia: Squamata: Gekkonidae) from Singapore and the Riau Archipelago. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 60(2) : 487-499.

Geckos : Introduction - As a Pet

Geckos Species :

- Leopard geckos 1 2 3 4

- Crested gecko 1 2 3 4 5

- Tokay gecko 1 2

- African Fat Tailed Geckos 1 2 3

- Day Gecko : - Giant Day Gecko: 1 2

- Gold dust gecko: 1 2

- phelsuma dubia

- Other Day Geckos Geckos: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11