Leopard geckos are one of the most popular pet lizards. I can see why as I have one myself. My gecko is super friendly. He actually seems excited to see me! You’d think he’d just be excited to be fed, but I can put some bugs in his bowl and he will completely ignore then and instead crawl onto my hand so he can come out and explore.
Leopard geckos are native to rocky desert regions of Afghanistan, Iran, India, and Pakistan. They have been kept and bred as pets for over 30 years and some have been bred with different color morphs. You can see pictures of different morphs here: 35 Awesome Leopard Gecko Morphs
Leopard geckos live on average 15-20 years and only eat insects.
They are nocturnal. My gecko usually wakes up around 7 or 8 pm so that is when I visit with him and feed him. I don’t usually wake him up during the day, but if I do he doesn’t seem too grumpy about it. He might just be a bit slower than usual as he’s tired.
Many geckos don’t have eyelids, but leopard geckos do. Geckos without eyelids will lick their eyes to clean them. Even though my leopard gecko has eyelids, I have seen him lick his eyes occasionally to clean them too.
Another way leopard geckos are different from other geckos is they do not have the sticky feet. They have little claws instead.
Here’s a good book if you are thinking about getting a leopard gecko.
