Phelsuma comorensis - Comoro Day gecko

[Haroldo]

I hatched out this one (of course its clutchmate also) about 2 weeks ago. Fun seeing a 1" long gecko (1/4" thick) hatch out of an egg smaller than a skittle!

Comments welcome.


*All pictures are property of Harold Chapman and cannot be used without permission.

 

[Gecko]

Awesome. I don't think I've seen one of those forever.

 

[Nigel4less]

Those are beautiful, is this species hardy or one of the more sensitive Phelsuma?

 

[baugh]

Harold
Nice pics. I have 5 of them and two more eggs cooking.

Nigel4less. From my experiences with them they are pretty hardy species.

 

[rhino43grr]

how big do they get?

 

[GeckoStud]

Freaking nice! Love little day geckos, regardless of the flavor, haha.

 

[Haroldo]

Those are beautiful, is this species hardy or one of the more sensitive Phelsuma?

I'd so no. They are quite hardy and even WC specimens seem to generally acclimate well. Thanks for the compliments.

 

[Haroldo]

how big do they get?

Depends...I have a "seasoned" pair that is about 5" in length, while by younger CB pair is only about 4" and sexually mature...

 

[rhino43grr]

4-5" nose to tail? i'm guessing they're like most day geckos in that they're good for viewing but it's not a good idea to handle them, right?

i love the look of pretty much any of the phelsuma species, but their general aversion to handling and stringent care requirements kinda scare me off a bit... any suggestions?

 

[Haroldo]

4-5" nose to tail? i'm guessing they're like most day geckos in that they're good for viewing but it's not a good idea to handle them, right?

i love the look of pretty much any of the phelsuma species, but their general aversion to handling and stringent care requirements kinda scare me off a bit... any suggestions?

Should've been a bit more specific, yes 4-5" TL (total length).

To answer your question, well yes and no. Yes in the sense that some of my comorensis are "don't touch me" while others will calmly climb out my arm. No in the sense that not all Phelsuma are flighty. I've had to treat WC animals for mites and I simply held them in my hand for treatment. Calmed down after a bit and just relaxed. No torn skin and animal resumed normal behavior immediately. Admittedly, there's not alot of Phelsuma (or any gecko) for that matter, I'd recommend for regular handling. If you're looking for a Phelsuma sp. that will tolerate limited handling, check out Phelsuma standingi.

Stringent care requirements? I basically treat them like every other gecko in my collection: I give them care specific to the species, locality, etc.

-Harold

 

[rhino43grr]

i don't really know what i meant by stringent care requirements either, but i saw it somewhere on a general day gecko care sheet regarding why they're not good beginner animals... i want to get just about every gecko species i see it seems like, but until we're out of the apartment and into a house i'm probably going to have to stick with just the one unfortunately. i can't wait to move back to pennsylvania in a year or so and find a house with a nice reptile room (of course i'll use the term office during the house hunt then convert it afterwards :main_evilgrin

 

[Haroldo]

i don't really know what i meant by stringent care requirements either, but i saw it somewhere on a general day gecko care sheet regarding why they're not good beginner animals... i want to get just about every gecko species i see it seems like, but until we're out of the apartment and into a house i'm probably going to have to stick with just the one unfortunately. i can't wait to move back to pennsylvania in a year or so and find a house with a nice reptile room (of course i'll use the term office during the house hunt then convert it afterwards :main_evilgrin

Out of the 66 or so species (and subspecies), I do agree, most probably wouldn't be the best for beginners. It's not that they're difficult per se, just have to get used to giving geckos care specific to their species...

We're in a house now, but sadly/luckily I have to limit my collection to about a 1/4 of the basement (Under 200 sqft). When we get the house we really want though, I'll likely be remodeling at least half the basement for my own reptile collection! Something like Willie Henkle has in his home...

 

[DAWNoftheLEO]

can i buy some lol

 

[Haroldo]

can i buy some lol

Haha...actually I'll have some available in the next few months...