Yellow-bellied House Gecko - Dhahran

We found a Yellow-bellied House Gecko Hemidactylus flaviviridis in our house in Dhahran. Yellow-bellied House Gecko occur through parts of the Arabian Peninsula including Saudi Arabia as well as Afghanistan, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Iran, Iraq, Nepal, Pakistan and Somalia and can vary their body colour depending on the time of day, being greyish, olive or brown, patterned with indistinct bands on the back and yellowish on the underside. During the day, the gecko is usually much darker in colour, with contrasting, chevron-shaped bands on the body with the toes having broad pads and small claws. They are associated with man-made structures such as houses, but during the day, they retreat to undisturbed crevices and other such hiding places coming out at night to feed primarily on insects. They can climb vertical walls and walk on ceilings which is achieved by having specialised toe pads, which are covered in small scales called ‘scansors’ which can have up to 150,000 microscopic, highly branched, hair-like structures, known as setae, which form hundreds of saucer-shaped ‘end plates’. This gives the Gecko an enormous surface area in relation to its body size, enabling it to grip all kinds of surfaces. This species of Gecko has particularly large and sensitive eyes, with pupils which open-wide at night to let in maximum amounts of light, giving it excellent vision in the dark. The pupils contract to vertical slits during the day to protect the retina from harsh sunlight, while the eyelids are fused to form a transparent cover for additional protection. Any dust or debris in the eye is licked away by the gecko’s extremely mobile tongue. 

Yellow-bellied House Gecko Dhahran – Dhahran

My daughter Julianna found a Yellow-bellied House Gecko Hemidactylus flaviviridis in our house in Dhahran. She gently caught it and placed in outside in some cover during which time I took the below photos. Yellow-bellied House Gecko occur through parts of the Arabian Peninsula including Saudi Arabia as well as Afghanistan, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Iran, Iraq, Nepal, Pakistan and Somalia and can vary their body colour depending on the time of day, being greyish, olive or brown, patterned with indistinct bands on the back and yellowish on the underside. During the day, the gecko is usually much darker in colour, with contrasting, chevron-shaped bands on the body with the toes having broad pads and small claws. They are associated with man-made structures such as houses, but during the day, they retreat to undisturbed crevices and other such hiding places coming out at night to feed primarily on insects. They can climb vertical walls and walk on ceilings which is achieved by having specialised toe pads, which are covered in small scales called ‘scansors’ which can have up to 150,000 microscopic, highly branched, hair-like structures, known as setae, which form hundreds of saucer-shaped ‘end plates’. This gives the Gecko an enormous surface area in relation to its body size, enabling it to grip all kinds of surfaces. This species of Gecko has particularly large and sensitive eyes, with pupils which open-wide at night to let in maximum amounts of light, giving it excellent vision in the dark. The pupils contract to vertical slits during the day to protect the retina from harsh sunlight, while the eyelids are fused to form a transparent cover for additional protection. Any dust or debris in the eye is licked away by the gecko’s extremely mobile tongue.

Yellow-bellied House Gecko – Dhahran Hills

I have had a Yellow-bellied House Gecko living in the house for a few months now but managed to catch it without hurting it and released it outside after taking a few photos. They occur through parts of the Arabian Peninsula including Saudi Arabia as well as Afghanistan, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Iran, Iraq, Nepal, Pakistan and Somalia and can vary their body colour depending on the time of day, being greyish, olive or brown, patterned with indistinct bands on the back and yellowish on the underside. During the day, the gecko is usually much darker in colour, with contrasting, chevron-shaped bands on the body with the toes having broad pads and small claws. They are associated with man-made structures such as houses, but during the day, they retreat to undisturbed crevices and other such hiding places coming out at night to feed primarily on insects. They can climb vertical walls and walk on ceilings which is achieved by having specialised toe pads, which are covered in small scales called ‘scansors’ which can have up to 150,000 microscopic, highly branched, hair-like structures, known as setae, which form hundreds of saucer-shaped ‘end plates’. This gives the Gecko an enormous surface area in relation to its body size, enabling it to grip all kinds of surfaces. This species of Gecko has particularly large and sensitive eyes, with pupils which open-wide at night to let in maximum amounts of light, giving it excellent vision in the dark. The pupils contract to vertical slits during the day to protect the retina from harsh sunlight, while the eyelids are fused to form a transparent cover for additional protection. Any dust or debris in the eye is licked away by the gecko’s extremely mobile tongue, which must have been useful recently as the weather has been very windy causing large amounts of dust to be blowing around.

Yellow-bellied House Gecko Dhahran – Record by Stuart Trotter

A work colleague of mine Stuart Trotter found a Yellow-bellied House Gecko Hemidactylus flaviviridis in our offices in Dhahran and took the below photo of it. Yellow-bellied House Gecko occur through parts of the Arabian Peninsula including Saudi Arabia as well as Afghanistan, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Iran, Iraq, Nepal, Pakistan and Somalia and can vary their body colour depending on the time of day, being greyish, olive or brown, patterned with indistinct bands on the back and yellowish on the underside. During the day, the gecko is usually much darker in colour, with contrasting, chevron-shaped bands on the body with the toes having broad pads and small claws. They are associated with man-made structures such as houses, but during the day, they retreat to undisturbed crevices and other such hiding places coming out at night to feed primarily on insects. They can climb vertical walls and walk on ceilings which is achieved by having specialised toe pads, which are covered in small scales called ‘scansors’ which can have up to 150,000 microscopic, highly branched, hair-like structures, known as setae, which form hundreds of saucer-shaped ‘end plates’. This gives the Gecko an enormous surface area in relation to its body size, enabling it to grip all kinds of surfaces. This species of Gecko has particularly large and sensitive eyes, with pupils which open-wide at night to let in maximum amounts of light, giving it excellent vision in the dark. The pupils contract to vertical slits during the day to protect the retina from harsh sunlight, while the eyelids are fused to form a transparent cover for additional protection. Any dust or debris in the eye is licked away by the gecko’s extremely mobile tongue.

Yellow-bellied House Gecko – Dhahran Hills

My daughter Julianna found this Gecko on the mosquito netting on the house sliding door and took the following photos of it as well. I sent the photos to Mansur Al Fahad who is excellent at identification of most living things for identification and he kindly replied with the following. “The fingers show a Hemidactylus species, we have two on the eastern cost of our country all found in houses and buildings, H  flaviviridis and H persicus, the first one its more widespread and bigger than another. Your photos show some marks on the back which H flaviviridis has”. As a result this Gecko is a Yellow Bellied House Gecko a species I have seen before in the property. An interesting thing about this Gecko is that it appears to be shedding its skin something young Geckos do. The small size of this individual supports the identification as a juvenile of the species.

Yellow-bellied House Gecko – Dhahran Hills

This Yellow-bellied House Gecko Hemidactylus flaviviridis was found and caught inside my house in Dhahran in September. It had been living in the house for some time and skilfully avoided being caught for some weeks before I eventually managed to trap it. They are a relatively large lizard which demonstrates distinct variation in body colour depending on the time of day. At night, they are typically greyish, olive or brown, patterned with indistinct bands on the back and yellowish on the underside; however, when seen during the day, the gecko is usually much darker in colour, with contrasting, chevron-shaped bands on the body. The yellow-bellied house gecko is covered in small, keeled scales and the head and body are flattened, while the tail is fat and swollen at the base, with enlarged tubercles (wart-like bumps and ridges) along the upper side whilst the toes have broad pads and small claws. Active at night, they feed primarily on insects which congregate around sources of light, aided by its extraordinary capability to climb vertical walls and walk on ceilings. This amazing feat is achieved by having specialised toe pads, which are covered in small scales called ‘scansors’. On the underside of the toe, each individual scansor can have up to 150,000 microscopic, highly branched, hair-like structures, known as setae, which form hundreds of saucer-shaped ‘end plates’. This gives the Yellow-bellied House Gecko an enormous surface area in relation to its body size, enabling it to grip all kinds of surfaces. They have particularly large and sensitive eyes, with pupils which open wide at night to let in maximum amounts of light, giving it excellent vision in the dark. The pupils contract to vertical slits during the day to protect the retina (the light-sensitive part of the eye) from harsh sunlight, while the eyelids are fused to form a transparent cover, called a spectacle, for additional protection. Any dust or debris in the eye is licked away by the gecko’s extremely mobile tongue. It is found throughout parts of the Arabian Peninsula, Afghanistan, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Iran, Iraq, Nepal, Pakistan and Somalia. They are particularly associated with man-made structures such as houses, warehouse complexes, hospitals and schools (3), where it is commonly observed on walls and ceilings. During the day, the yellow-bellied house gecko will retreat to undisturbed crevices, often hiding in or behind fixtures and fittings such as air conditioning units and picture frames, or under the eaves of buildings.

Yellow-bellied House Gecko – Dhahran Hills

I found a Yellow-bellied House Gecko Hemidactylus flaviviridis in the garden of our house last night. Unfortunately it was not a good photographic subject and kept trying to hide behind objects, as Geckos do. They occur through parts of the Arabian Peninsula including Saudi Arabia as well as Afghanistan, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Iran, Iraq, Nepal, Pakistan and Somalia and can vary their body colour depending on the time of day, being greyish, olive or brown, patterned with indistinct bands on the back and yellowish on the underside. During the day, the gecko is usually much darker in colour, with contrasting, chevron-shaped bands on the body with the toes having broad pads and small claws. They are associated with man-made structures such as houses, but during the day, they retreat to undisturbed crevices and other such hiding places coming out at night to feed primarily on insects. They can climb vertical walls and walk on ceilings which is achieved by having specialised toe pads, which are covered in small scales called ‘scansors’ which can have up to 150,000 microscopic, highly branched, hair-like structures, known as setae, which form hundreds of saucer-shaped ‘end plates’. This gives the Gecko an enormous surface area in relation to its body size, enabling it to grip all kinds of surfaces. This species of Gecko has particularly large and sensitive eyes, with pupils which open-wide at night to let in maximum amounts of light, giving it excellent vision in the dark. The pupils contract to vertical slits during the day to protect the retina from harsh sunlight, while the eyelids are fused to form a transparent cover for additional protection. Any dust or debris in the eye is licked away by the gecko’s extremely mobile tongue. I thank Mansur Al Fahad for identifying the Gecko from my poor photo.

Yellow-bellied House Gecko – Dhahran Hills

My daughters found a Yellow-bellied House Gecko Hemidactylus flaviviridis in the upstairs bathroom of our house last night and called me to see it. It was a small Gecko, measuring only about 15 centimetres long including the tail. I managed to catch it and took a few photographs before releasing it on the outside of our house. They occur through parts of the Arabian Peninsula including Saudi Arabia as well as Afghanistan, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Iran, Iraq, Nepal, Pakistan and Somalia and can vary their body colour depending on the time of day, being greyish, olive or brown, patterned with indistinct bands on the back and yellowish on the underside. During the day, the gecko is usually much darker in colour, with contrasting, chevron-shaped bands on the body with the toes having broad pads and small claws. They are associated with man-made structures such as houses, but during the day, they retreat to undisturbed crevices and other such hiding places coming out at night to feed primarily on insects. They can climb vertical walls and walk on ceilings which is achieved by having specialised toe pads, which are covered in small scales called ‘scansors’ which can have up to 150,000 microscopic, highly branched, hair-like structures, known as setae, which form hundreds of saucer-shaped ‘end plates’. This gives the Gecko an enormous surface area in relation to its body size, enabling it to grip all kinds of surfaces. This species of Gecko has particularly large and sensitive eyes, with pupils which open-wide at night to let in maximum amounts of light, giving it excellent vision in the dark. The pupils contract to vertical slits during the day to protect the retina from harsh sunlight, while the eyelids are fused to form a transparent cover for additional protection. Any dust or debris in the eye is licked away by the gecko’s extremely mobile tongue, which must have been useful recently as the weather has been very windy causing large amounts of dust to be blowing around.