Description: From the tropical forests of East Madagascar, where it lives in the trees, basking in the sun in the cool of the mornings and eating insects, nectar, and fruits. A beautiful and extremely active arboreal day gecko that grows to about 4½" in length. Base color is a beautiful green with striking blue highlights down the sides and red or orange markings on the back. Two black "eye spots" are located on each side. Lined Day Geckos look similar but lack the dark spot behind the front legs. They can be kept singly, in pairs or several females with one male. Females get along with each other but males are territorial and should not be housed together, as they will fight. These small lizards are difficult to hold and damage easily; a fishnet works well to transfer them between tanks.

Temperature: Daytime 80° to 85°F, basking spot near 90°F, 5° to 10°F cooler at night.

Humidity: High, about 80%, frequent misting is beneficial.

Lighting: UV light is necessary as well as plant lighting. Seasonal day length fluctuations are also needed and will help to stimulate breeding activity.

Feeding: Omnivorous, will mainly eat live foods such as appropriately sized mealworms, crickets, moths, flies, roaches, beetles, etc. They also need soft fruits and nectar like banana, cantaloupe, and peaches, etc. Mix the fruits and nectar together in a dish with fruit baby food and remove the leftovers before it spoils. A good vitamin/mineral supplement should be given twice a week for adults and more often for young, growing geckos. A small dish of calcium can be placed in the tank. They can learn to accept food from your fingers. Clean water should be available at all times along with misting to allow them to lick up water droplets.

Habitat: A tank size of at least 10-gallons with a secure screen top will suffice for one or two geckos, a larger, taller tank would be more suitable. Set it up as an arboreal jungle habitat with sturdy plants, climbing branches, hiding places and basking sites.

Sexing: Adult males have a prominent row of pre-anal pores in the shape of a V. Two slight hemipenal bulges are visible at the base of the tail, one on each side. The females do not have hemipenal bulges and the pre-anal pores are less visible.

Breeding: Be sure to provide the female with more food and extra vitamin/mineral supplements prior to and throughout the breeding season. Calcium is stored just behind their cheeks and is a sign of good health. For best success, use one male with several females. When all environmental factors are right, breeding activity should be observed. Provide a container with 2" to 3" inches of damp coconut fiber, potting soil or peat moss for the females to lay eggs in. Clutches of 2 eggs can be produced once a month or so throughout the breeding season.
Put a couple of inches of lightly moistened coconut fiber or vermiculite in a plastic container. Carefully bury the eggs half way into the incubating medium without changing the orientation from the way they were laid. Put holes in the lid and put it on, then place the container in the incubator at 80° to 85°F with high humidity around 75 to 85%. Check every few days for bad eggs and add water to the vermiculite as needed. Eggs should hatch in about 1½ to 2½ months.
The small hatchlings are quite delicate, quick and agile. They can be kept the same as the adults and fed daily with tiny insects and fruit mixture.

ENJOY YOUR PET LIFE FORMS, Dave & Donna