The author recalled that during the first night staying at the university's dormitory, most people were exhausted by the day's activities and hot weather, and immediately fell sound asleep. However, one roommate was having a harder time sleeping because he was bothered by the crackling sounds on the wall. This sound was made by the geckos. It was said that geckos south of the Da-An rivers will call, while those in the north don't; this roommate lived in Taipei and was hearing the geckos call for the first time.

Common house geckos are mainly distributed in Southern China, Okinawa, Southeast Asia, Africa, Madagascar , Southern North America, Central and South America . The gecko populations in Taiwan are huge, mainly distributed in Central, Southern and Eastern Taiwan, including the islands of Lanyu, Lamay and Penghu . The geckos are now (Lin and Cheng, 1990) gradually dispersing to Northern Taiwan . Geckos have two rows of skin flaps beneath their toes, and each toe is clawed. There are warts like scales on the dorsal side on the body. The tails that regenerated from autotomy lack visible annuli and wart scales. They are active from dusk till dawn of next day, calling out frequently during the night, rarely during the day.

Diet

In the summer evening after rainfall, a dimly lit light bulb attracts grey and white moths and mating termites, congregating around the walls that surround the light bulb. These insects, which have either just finished mating or were exhausted from chasing the light, are suddenly consumed rapidly by several creamy-yellow colored reptiles that seem to come out of the misty dark corners. These reptiles, eating and chattering like squawking housewives, are common house geckos. The liver mass or adipose tissues of a gecko do not vary regularly in a year, but the adipose mass does reach its maximum during January, and decreases to its lowest from February to April. The storage of fat in geckos seems to be related to reproductive needs and not for hibernation use (Lin and Cheng, 1977). They also prey on smaller geckos of the same species.

Color

The geckos are about to change their colors to adapt to the ambient environments. On transparent glass or in lightly colored environments, their bodies are creamy yellow and appear transparent, the organs and eggs can be easily identified. In darker environments, they are colored deep brown, with a few small spots on their backs. This alteration of colors is a type of camouflage, necessary for survival, which reduces the chance of predation by natural enemies.

Habitat

Geckos are fond of living in buildings and structures, the artificial scaffolds used to support small trees, tree bark, large boulders, and even inside the fluorescent light covers. They are the most widely distributed Gekkonidae species in Taiwan , owing to their closeness with humans and variety of living conditions. They seem to be social animals; often several geckos can be seen living together in the wild.

Activity

Geckos have two rows of skin flaps beneath their toes, and each toe is clawed. These allow them to cling onto different surfaces, climbing on rough tree bark, walls, or smooth glass and other surfaces. They can even defy gravity and walk upside down on the ceiling, scurrying around effortlessly. Sometimes they will fall, but few will perish from such a fall.

Breeding

The body length of a small adult gecko is about 3.6 cm long. Although they can breed all year long, the spawning periods seem to be concentrated in between March and August. They spawn twice a year, laying two eggs at a time. Geckos will lay eggs in the crevices of concrete walls, tree holes or decomposing bark. The eggs are 5x 12mm large, and the incubation period is around 46 to 58 days (Lin and Cheng, 1990).