A new gecko species has been discovered in India at the Navegaon Bandh National Park by Parag Dandge, an officer with India’s Law enforcement and Trad
A new gecko species has been discovered in India at the Navegaon Bandh National Park by Parag Dandge, an officer with India’s Law enforcement and Trade Control Wildlife Trust of India and Prof. Ashish Tiple, the head of the Vidyabharti College Department of Zoology.
The gecko, Hemidactylus Hemchandrai is unique in the area in which it was found because Hemidactylus geckos are warm climate reptiles and the park is not really all that warm. Dandge and Tiple told The Hitavada that they observed a fairly large population of the lizards in rocky hillock near the Pratapgarh Fort.
The researchers described the gecko as dark brown in coloration with golden eyes and a dark black pupil. They say that although the gecko is mostly a rock dweller, they say the gecko moves to the ground at night to forage. They also noted that the gecko is a fairly fast moving reptile. They also observed Hemidactylus Hemchandrai preying on honeybees.
India is a biodiversity hotspot, with several gecko species discovered in the country over the last several years and probably many more to come as the country is further explored.
John Virata keeps a western hognose snake, a ball python, two corn snakes, a king snake, and two leopard geckos. His first snake, a California kingsnake, was purchased for $5. His first pet reptile was a green anole that arrived in a small box via mail order. Follow him on Twitter @johnvirata
