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The History of Cresteds
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Rhacodactylus ciliatus, or better known as the crested gecko, is a very common gecko that people can find at most pet stores, however, this wasn’t always the case. Not even 30 years ago, the crested gecko was thought to be extinct. In this paper, I will go over the background of crested geckos, their impact and effect on the pet trade, and how geckos as a species are often portrayed in popular culture.
Every animal has their story; and cresteds are no different, however they are especially interesting. Crested geckos were first discovered in 1866 by the French zoologist Alphonse Guichenot. The expedition took place on the Isle of Pines, a French territory off the coast of Australia. Guichenot collected very few specimens during his time on the expedition, which made it hard for future scientists to even identify them in the first place (Exoterra, 2013). For nearly 150 years, researchers agreed that crested geckos had gone extinct, until 1994, when researchers Robert Seipp and Philippe de Vosjoli were able to find multiple live specimens, using them for both research and the pet trade (Brusso, 2013). After numerous cresteds were shipped into the pet trade, officials banned any further exports, as the species was determined to be endangered. Since then, the amount of human-bred crested geckos has skyrocketed, in part thanks to their predecessors' adaptability as they were taken from their natural habitats and placed into captivity. Since their rediscovery, the pet trade has created a healthier, longer living population of cresteds that seem to increase in quality year after year.
Little is known about what the crested geckos' role is in the natural environment, except for what we have been able to discover from keeping them in captivity. Crested geckos are a small arboreal, or tree-dwelling, species that are mainly active at dawn and dusk. They are best known for the prominent spikes that appear over their large, lidless eyes. They are avid climbers that use their prehensile tails as well as their sticky toe pads to jump and climb from branch to branch (Mancini, 2021). The pads work thanks to microscopic hooks that are able to adhere to most smooth, flat surfaces. In captivity, the crested gecko prefers to have lots of hiding spots, especially heavy foliage and branches to stay out of predators’ line of sight. Thanks to an expedition that occurred in 2007, we have a better understanding of their natural diet in the wild. The researchers took many specimens and looked at each one’s stomach contents. According to Figure one, the majority of the wild crested geckos’ diet is insects, fruit pollen, and most shockingly of all, other reptiles’ remains (see Figure 1). It was found that cresteds were in direct competition with an invasive species on the Isle of Pines. The invasive species, fire ants, often eat the same food items as cresteds, leading to them being attacked and killed. It is most commonly accepted that captive bred crested geckos are solely focused on eating two things, those being crickets and a type of powdered gecko food made with fruit and insect protein. The average wild crested gecko can only live for around 4 or 5 years, but only if they are able to survive for their first year. This number dramatically increases in captivity, going for a maximum of 5 years to a new length of 15 to 20 years. This dramatic increase in quality of life only occurred within the last 30 years, before that, the quality of life for a pet reptile was very different (Kevin N, 2020).
Crested geckos do not normally suffer any health problems, however there are a few notable exceptions. Metabolic bone disease, or MBD is one of the more common ailments crested can get. MBD is caused by a lack of vitamin D, but interestingly enough, most reptiles can not absorb the vitamin D from the sun. They have to be given either vitamin c supplements or insects that naturally have high amounts of vitamin D, such as crickets. The disease causes their bones to become rubbery, which can create kinks in their spine, deformed limbs, and even misshapen jaws. The disease is often fatal, however there are cases where early intervention can treat it (N.K, 2020). The other main issue that cresteds can have is with shedding. Reptiles shed their skin as they grow and mature, but sometimes this shed can get stuck. Often the shed gets stuck when the humidity in their environment is too low to properly peel off. Stuck shed can cause numerous health problems, such as joint immobility, stuck shed on the eyes, and lost digits due to shed cutting off circulation. Stuck shed can cause a loss in appetite, blindness, and even death.
Reptiles were not popular as pets until the mid to late 70s, they became more widely available at many pet stores. That wider availability had many unintended consequences, most notably leading to poor living conditions for reptiles. For example, the movie, ‘Rocky’, popularized the idea that kids could keep their turtles in tiny fish bowls. Long time reptile breeder, Georgia Kaylor reminisces about those early years, saying, “I bought my first baby boa for $10 from that store, and my first retic for $15. I also kept a green iguana, a basilisk, and an armadillo lizard together in the same 10-gallon tank, with no heat or lighting, because that’s how the store’s staff instructed me to house them. They, and I, had no clue. Sometimes, it makes me sad when I think back on those days” (Foose, 2018). The field of Herpetology has had a massive impact on the price, availability and quality of reptiles being produced, which has caused the standards for their husbandry, or the way they are kept in captivity, to rise exponentially.You could walk into a store in the 1970s and purchase an animal with no guidelines on care, whereas any modern pet store you can go to has staff that are willing to teach you the basics of your animal, and provide resources to improve your confidence in bringing that pet home.
According to Figure 2, crested geckos rank 5th overall in the reptile-related Google searches (see Figure 2). This statistic makes sense when you factor in all the varieties of cresteds on the market. You can get a pet-grade crested gecko for as little as $40, while many of the higher grade morphs, such as harlequins, lilly whites, and dalmatians can for hundreds if not thousands of dollars on the modern reptile market. The crested market was not always so diverse. When the researchers Robert and Phillipe brought crested into the market, none of the fancy, expensive genetics even existed yet. Most geckos brought over from the Isle of Pines were solid browns, yellows and reds. It was through relentless selective breeding that cresteds were able to take over as one of the most prevalent reptiles. The lily white gene, which makes cresteds a creamy white color, really didn’t exist until about 5 years ago. When lily whites were first introduced to the market, they cost several thousand dollars, but nowadays you can get an entry level breeder lily for only a couple hundred dollars. The incredible part of modern crested breeding is that as more and more pairings of unique morphs happen, eventually new phenotypes, or physical traits will begin to occur. A good example would be a crested gecko that actually sold in October displaying a brand new trait never before seen in cresteds, for the massive sum of $27,000.
When you think about popular culture, many characters might immediately pop out at you. Amongst these many figures, there have been a number of geckos found in franchises like the Gex video game series, numerous gecko-based characters in kid’s television, and much more. For many people who were born in the early 2000s, one notable character would be the Geico gecko. While not a crested gecko, the Geico gecko is based off of the Madagascar day gecko, a very popular gecko species in its own right. The first appearance of the Geico gecko was in 2000, after a very big increase in their marketing. The gecko would often appear in weird locations, even appearing on a few Super Bowl commercials. Mail flyers, television ads, and billboards with this little green character were all too common, at least until the Neanderthal commercials became popular and pushed the gecko to the side (Geico, 2017)
In March of 2009, Geico, as well as the Association of Zoos and Aquariums created the Geico Gecko exhibit. The exhibit featured multiple Madagascar day geckos, as well as bearded dragons, and poison dart frogs. This exhibit took place at the Georgia Aquarium, which is the world’s biggest aquarium, as well as other stops across the U.S. (Association of Zoos and Aquariums, 2009). According to Geico’s then CEO, Tony Nicely, "Our Gecko may be small, but he sends a very big message: wildlife conservation is important to GEICO," the exhibit was made to highlight the importance of conservation and animal education. At each stop during the exhibit, Geico made monetary contributions to conservation efforts, as well as using the Geico gecko to talk about its real-life counterpart.
The crested gecko has had a fascinating journey from near extinction, to a major power in the pet industry. The variety of morphs and quality of life of these little geckos has improved dramatically thanks to the ever growing field of Herpetology. Geckos species, though not crested geckos, are portrayed in popular culture through commercials, such as with the Geico gecko and video game characters like Gex. In the future, it would be very interesting to perform similar research as was done on crested geckos about leopard geckos, another popular gecko species, and to learn more about their history with the pet trade and how the modern reptile community feels about owning them. Overall, the crested gecko is an interesting creature; both from an academic point of view, and from the perspective of the everyday person going to shop at their local pet shops.
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