Scientific classificationKingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Sauria
Family: Gekkonidae
Genus: Gekko
Species: G. gecko
Binomial name
Gekko gecko
(Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms
Lacerta gecko Linnaeus, 1758
The Tokay Gecko (Gekko gecko) is a nocturnal arboreal gecko, ranging from northeast India and Bangladesh, throughout Southeast Asia, Philippines to Indonesia and western New Guinea. Its native habitat is rainforest trees and cliffs, and it also frequently adapts to rural human habitations, roaming walls and ceilings at night in search of insect prey. Increasing urbanization is reducing its range. In the late 1980s and early 1990s it was introduced into Hawaii, Florida, Texas, Belize, and several Caribbean islands, where it can be considered an invasive species.
The Tokay Gecko is known as a Tuko or Toko in the Philippines, Tokek in Indonesian/Javanese, and tắc kè in Vietnamese, for its characteristic vocalizations. People have mixed feelings about it ranging from terror of the belief that its feet can tear your skin off to admiration for its entertaining vocalizations; in the Philippines, most people respect it and value it because it eats dangerous pests such as scorpions and giant centipedes.
The Tokay Gecko is known as a Tuko or Toko in the Philippines, Tokek in Indonesian/Javanese, and tắc kè in Vietnamese, for its characteristic vocalizations. People have mixed feelings about it ranging from terror of the belief that its feet can tear your skin off to admiration for its entertaining vocalizations; in the Philippines, most people respect it and value it because it eats dangerous pests such as scorpions and giant centipedes.
Physical characteristics
The Tokay Gecko is the second largest Gecko species, attaining lengths of about 30–40 cm (11–15 inches) for males, and 20–30 cm (7–11 inches) for females, with weights of only 150–300g (5–10 oz). They are distinctive in appearance, with a bluish or grayish body, sporting spots ranging from light yellow to bright red. The male is more brightly colored than the female. They have large eyes with a vertical slit pupil. Eyes are brown to greenish brown and can be orange or yellow.
Males are very territorial, and will attack other male Tokays as well as other Gecko species, as well as anything else in their territory. They are solitary and only meet during the mating season. Females lay clutches of one or two hard shelled eggs which are guarded until they hatch. Tokay Geckos feed on insects and small vertebrates.
The typical lifespan is 7–10 years, however in captivity some Tokays have been known to live over 18 years.
Call
The Tokay Gecko is the second largest Gecko species, attaining lengths of about 30–40 cm (11–15 inches) for males, and 20–30 cm (7–11 inches) for females, with weights of only 150–300g (5–10 oz). They are distinctive in appearance, with a bluish or grayish body, sporting spots ranging from light yellow to bright red. The male is more brightly colored than the female. They have large eyes with a vertical slit pupil. Eyes are brown to greenish brown and can be orange or yellow.
Males are very territorial, and will attack other male Tokays as well as other Gecko species, as well as anything else in their territory. They are solitary and only meet during the mating season. Females lay clutches of one or two hard shelled eggs which are guarded until they hatch. Tokay Geckos feed on insects and small vertebrates.
The typical lifespan is 7–10 years, however in captivity some Tokays have been known to live over 18 years.
Call
Tokays are renowned for their loud vocalizations. Their mating call, a loud croak, is variously described as sounding like token, gekk-gekk or Poo-Kay where both the common and the scientific name (deriving from onomatopoeic names in Malay, Sundanese, Tagalog, Thai, or Javanese), as well as the family name Gekkonidae and the generic term gecko come from. The call is similar to the call made by Gekko smithii (Large Forest Gecko).
As pets
As pets
The Tokay is also considered the "pitbull" of the gecko world due to the fact that when they bite, they often won't let go for a few minutes or even up to an hour or more, and it is very difficult to remove without causing harm to the gecko. Submerging it partially in water may settle it down, encouraging the lizard to let go, but it causes harm and stress. A less stressful method is to simply put a drop of vinegar on the gecko's nose, which sometimes makes them let go. Its bite is very powerful. For this reason, it is considered to be best as an ornamental animal for experienced reptile owners.
In captivity tokay geckos should be fed on a diet of gutloaded insects which are dusted in the appropriate vitamin and calcium powder.
Recent Fad
In captivity tokay geckos should be fed on a diet of gutloaded insects which are dusted in the appropriate vitamin and calcium powder.
Recent Fad
The Tokay Gecko or Toko is now drastically turning into a threatened species in The Philippines because of indiscriminate hunting due to its high fetching or selling price to Chinese buyers and other foreign buyers or pet traders. They say the Chinese have tapped into the Tokay's medicinal properties to cure cancer.
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