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Gargoyle Gecko - Orange/Red Morph
Rhacodactylus auriculatus
The Striped Gargoyle Gecko features an extraordinary color morph emphasizing clean, parallel lines. This filter produces intense, blinding neon orange or deep red stripes cascading down its textured back.
Class:Squamata
Order:Squamata
Family:Diplodactylidae
Genus:Rhacodactylus
Species:Rhacodactylus auriculatus*
* Orange/Red
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Environment
Terrestrial
Humidity
50 - 70 %
Day temperature
22 - 25 °C
Ambient temperature
24 °C
Night temperature
18 °C
Basking spot
26 °C
Adult size
12.5 cm
Minimum enclosure
>= 120 L
UVB
Low
Species description
Geographic Origin and Habitat: No additional source-verified editorial notes are available about geographic origin and habitat for Rhacodactylus auriculatus. Consult this record's parameters and sources.
Taxonomy and Genetics: No additional source-verified editorial notes are available about taxonomy and genetics for Rhacodactylus auriculatus. Consult this record's parameters and sources.
Behaviour and Habits: No additional source-verified editorial notes are available about behaviour and habits for Rhacodactylus auriculatus. Consult this record's parameters and sources.
Morphology and Sexual Dimorphism: No additional source-verified editorial notes are available about morphology and sexual dimorphism for Rhacodactylus auriculatus. Consult this record's parameters and sources.
Care, breeding and tankmates
Terrarium Setup: Vertical glass terrarium (e.g. 18x18x24 inches). Crucial difference: while cresteds love fine foliage and thin vines, Gargoyles absolutely require massive cork bark tubes and thick vertical trunks where they can flatten out to camouflage. A bioactive terrarium is highly recommended.
Lighting and Heating: Identical rule for all New Caledonian geckos: they suffer in extreme heat. Daytime range of 72-77°F (22-25°C), STRICTLY avoiding exceeding 82°F (28°C) to prevent lethal heat strokes. At night they tolerate drops to 64°F (18°C). Weak UVB lighting (2-5%) is strongly recommended to promote mineralization of their massive cranial bones.
Humidity and Hydration: Essential hygrometric cycle: heavy misting in the evening (reaching 80-90%) and allowing it to dry during the day to 50-60%. They must have a clean water dish (they often use it more than cresteds), in addition to licking water off the glass.
Feeding and Supplementation: Hybrid diet (Frugivores-Carnivores). 70% must be hydrated commercial powder mash (CGD). 30% MUST consist of live insects (large roaches and crickets). They are ruthless hunters and failing to feed them insects suppresses their instincts. Always dust insects with Calcium/D3.
Compatibility: Absolutely asocial and highly aggressive. They must be isolated and raised singly from hatching. Placing two specimens together will result in dropped tails, bitten-off toes, and, in the worst cases, cannibalism towards the smaller specimen.
Health and Common Diseases: Susceptible to MBD (soft bones) like all frugivorous geckos if the diet lacks calcium. They are prone to FTS (Floppy Tail Syndrome) if they sleep upside down on slippery vertical glass walls; to prevent this, the terrarium must be packed with rough horizontal and diagonal trunks.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
This species originates from: Nuova Caledonia (Allevamento Selettivo).
Origin
Selective breeding and cultivarsAustralia, New Guinea, and Oceania
Reptile profile
- Diet
- No verified data available
- Life expectancy
- No verified data available
- Adult size
- 12.5 cm
- Lifestyle/Microhabitat
- No verified data available
- Activity cycle
- No verified data available
- Sociality
- No verified data available
- Reproduction
- No verified data available
- Handling tolerance
- No verified data available
- Brumation
- No verified data available
- Molting
- No verified data available
The catalog's scalar value is 12.5 cm. The ReptTraits v1.2 source reports a maximum adult measurement of 12.5 cm for this species, recorded as snout–vent length (SVL). These figures are not interchangeable: the first is the profile's editorial reference, whereas the second is a published maximum under a specific measurement convention; differences among sources can reflect sex, population, life stage and measuring method.
Image gallery
Licensed images linked to the species or, when marked, to the closest representative taxon.
Related species
Recommendations grouped by close relatives, companion choices, and similar care.
