Wahlberg's velvet gecko
| Wahlberg's velvet gecko | |
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| Species: | H. wahlbergii
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| Binomial name | |
| Homopholis wahlbergii A. Smith, 1849
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| Distribution in southeast Africa | |
Wahlberg's Velvet Gecko (Homophilus wahlbergii) a very large gecko up to 21 cm (av. 14-18 cm)that occurs exclusively in southern Africa. It is endemic to Miombo and Mopane bushveld of Botswana, South Africa, Swaziland, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. It is so called because the skin looks like velvet and feels like soft velvet to the touch.Its back varies from dark grey to soft grey-brown and may be crossed with paler chevrons or crossbars or have mottled paler areas nestled along the centre of its back / spine. The largest part of their range covers Zimbabwe and they are one of the species that make up the Gekkos of Zimbabwe endemic or near-endemic fauna.
Behaviour
These geckos are both nocturnal and diurnal. They only venture far from their usual roost at night and courtship general occurs at night. They are frequently found in Boabab trees and often in the roofs and walls of traditional mud-huts and human dwellings. They feed on softbodied insects like cockroaches, grasshoppers and termites but will also take crickets, katydids or millipedes.
Breeding
The female lays pairs of large hard shelled eggs (that start soft and adhesive) concealed under bark overhangs, rock crevices etc.
References
- Branch, Bill (2002). A Photographic Guide to Snakes and Other Reptiles of Southern Africa (2nd ed.). Cape Town: Struik. ISBN 1868726193.