All Geckos

This group gathers Reptiles subcategory members belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, the geckos, a highly successful and diverse lineage of mostly small, nocturnal lizards found on every continent except Antarctica and especially diverse on tropical islands such as Madagascar. It spans the day geckos of the genus Phelsuma, brightly colored and active by daylight unlike most of their relatives, the leaf-tailed geckos of Madagascar, camouflage specialists whose flattened tails and mottled skin mimic dead leaves and bark, and familiar terrarium and household species such as the tokay gecko, leopard gecko and crested gecko, the last once believed extinct for over a century before its rediscovery in 1994. Nearly every species here is famous for adhesive toe pads covered in microscopic hair-like structures that let it climb smooth vertical surfaces and even walk upside down, an adaptation studied by engineers for synthetic gripping materials, and most geckos, unlike other lizards, communicate with audible chirps and clicks.