Even when they are small adults, they are very territorial.
So, come and see this fight. Oh, and some Citrus Swallowtail butterflies later in the post.
The Cape dwarf gecko (Lygodactylus capensis; 'lygodactylus' = 'flexible fingers') is a species of dwarf gecko found in the woodlands and forests of central and southern Africa. It also occurs commonly in towns and cities and is sometimes kept as a pet.
Length (snout to vent length) is 39 mm for males, 43 mm for females. Throat is stippled with grey or brown while the belly is cream coloured. The back is grey-brown with dark streak from snout to shoulder or beyond. Its tail is remarkable for having the underside covered in adhesive lamellae enabling its use as a fifth limb.
By territorial I mean that they don't allow other lizards into their space.
This was when the wife called me, as she saw them fighting outside the window.
Like a real referee, the wife ran outside to stop the fight, and they scattered. You can see the bigger bully at the left.
Now for some of our favorite butterflies.
They are called Citrus Swallowtail butterflies (Papilio demodocus).
See if you can see the wasp nearing the butterfly.
Why only one if you can have two?
I can tell you that it was not very nice to see how the bigger gecko was bullying the smaller one. Reminds me of my primary school days, as I was short and skinny, and without a father the bigger children were also very cruel to me. It is so sad that bullying at schools still occurs here at some schools. Fortunately for me, I reached the six-foot mark in high school and the bullying stopped. That smaller gecko will also grow bigger to the same size as the bully, and then it will have peace and its own territory to bully other smaller ones that step into its territory:))
Funny how life trains us. In any case, we love the many dwarf geckos that we have here as they can at times be very cute.
I hope you enjoyed the pictures and the stories.
Photos by Zac Smith-All-Rights-Reserved.
Camera: Canon PowershotSX70HS Bridge camera.
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