It is always interesting to hear about new gecko species in the news. The latest species comes from the rain forests of Africa. This Hemidactylus was actually determined to be four different species. These geckos were isolated over time by forests thinning and separating the species. The Hemidactylus was then expected to have adapted over time and evolved into the four new species described.

Photo by Charles Linkem

“We tended to find this gecko, Hemidactylus fasciatus, throughout our travels in West Africa,” said Leache, currently a post-doctoral fellow at the University of California-Davis. “Despite the fact that it is recognized as one species, using new methods we have established a high probability that it is composed of at least four species.”
-UPI.com

Leaché and Fujita found sufficient genetic differences among the 50 geckos collected from 10 different forest patches to identify four distinct species. The different species were found in different forest patches, suggesting that the species divergence was driven by the isolation of gecko populations from one another after gaps developed in the rain forest.
-LiveScience.com

We expect that current importers who are selling Hemidactylus fasciatus do not know the variety of which of the four newly discovered species they hold. It is easy to find relatively inexpensive specimens on various outlets such as Kingsnake.com today.

Hemidactylus fasciatus listed on Kingsnake.com

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Matthew Kammerer is the owner of Reptile Network, a network of sites including Reptile Wallpapers, and more. He is a full time student who has a passion for everything web. His three favorite foods include sushi, hot tea, and coffee.

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