Hemidactylus mabouia (Moreau de Jonnes, 1818) Family: Gekkonidae African House Gecko Status: Potential Colonizer
Description: This is a relatively large species of Hemidactylus up to 12 cm in total length. The dorsum is covered with a scattering of small tubercles, though generally not as many as in H. turcicus. The dorsal pattern usually consist of a series of 3-5 darker chevrons, though like the other Hemidactylus, pattern and coloration can change dramatically and individuals encountered on walls at night are often very pale and uniformly colored.
Biology: The African house gecko is another human commensal that seems to thrive in disturbed and urban habitats. In Florida it is apparently displacing other introduced geckos. It probably feeds on a wide variety of small invertebrates and will occasionally consume smaller geckos.
Distribution: This gecko is native to tropical Africa and Madagascar. Populations have become established in Florida, the West Indies and throughout South America (Lever, 2003). It is included in this book because it is an abundant human commensal that occurs in several areas that have high traffic levels to Guam and the Mariana Islands and has proven itself to be a capable colonizer.