Just a Few of My Favorite Tricolors (Part of the “Not Mine” Series)

These geckos are not mine but are some of my favorite representatives of tricolors in the hobby. The photos are not mine either. All geckos are listed by owner to the best extent of my knowledge, but I would be thrilled to credit the photographers as well if they differ from the owner and you can identify them by name. I of course will also respond to any requests to take down images from owners or photographers (though very sadly, as these geckos are awesome sights to behold).

Splodge – Extreme Cresties 

Cree – Here’s Your Gecko – bred by Creepy Exotics (Fantasia x Oreo) – She’ll be bred to Abe once she’s up to weight, and I can’t wait to see (and probably buy) their babies!

Speaking of… Fantasia, Creepy Exotics – her pattern always reminds me of a Gaboon viper

Fantasia’s beautiful son Splash, Creepy Exotics

JB’s Cresties’ Dove (Enchilada x Castellano)

JB’s Cresties’ Superman (Enchilada x Castellano)

Bushwhack Herps’ V

The Harlequin Hoard’s Tabernacle

Rhactastic Rhac’s Spree – Their tricolors are unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Spree, Starburst, Reeses, and Twizzler are all exciting holdbacks (all from Blaze x Misty)

Seriously, how cool is Twizzler (Blaze x Misty) of Rhactastic Rhacs?

Keeping this list short, but as always, feel free to chime in.

All That Zazz

I grew up 20 minutes from Hamburg, PA, which hosts my favorite reptile expo on the East Coast. When I moved to the Midwest, I struggled to find a show within an easy driving distance. I hate driving, and the longer it takes to get to a show, the more I feel like getting something to justify the trip, which is a problem if the selection is poor (it’s actually the reason we have our beautiful Sandfire red bearded dragon, as my partner and I agreed we couldn’t get the amazingly priced pastel ball python we really wanted at a recent show while renting someone else’s home, and there weren’t any cresties that really met what I wanted).

This brings us to the Philly area, where my partner grew up and where we are spending the summer. I hadn’t gone to a  Northern Berks show since it had left Hamburg (never fear – the Northwestern Berks show is still there!), so I was excited to see that they would be holding a show in Oaks shortly after I had very begrudgingly missed Hamburg’s June show due to a scheduling conflict that involved presenting my research in another state (I hate when work interrupts hobby, don’t you?).

I was in no uncertain terms to get a reptile that day. I was staying with my future in-laws and had already brought two large pit bull mixes and a bearded dragon into their home (not to mention myself and my piles of research, notes, and drafts for my dissertation). We were to come home with no animals of any kinds, save for feeder crickets.

I fell in love with his pins. You never expect to find the one right inside the door, at one of the first vendors you see.

In college, I hadn’t even cared that much about pinstripes – just show me a nice harley with good color, and I was good to go. I was a college student and poor (with no idea of what poor really meant, yet), and I saw full pins as just something I paid more for.

But these were thick, robust pinstripes. Super pins (though not Super Stripe pins). And, as happens when you’re overcome with beauty at first sight, I lost my head entirely and made every rookie buyer mistake in the book. Sure, I checked to see if he’d been bred by the seller, ut the actual name of the seller flew straight out of my head. Of course I asked if he’d been going on Repashy and calcium-dusted feeder insects, but I neglected to check his hatch date or an estimate of his weight.

And so I came by Zazzle, who I struggled to photograph without the flash washing him out while he’s fired up or the non-flash setting blurring him entirely. I did get my wits about me enough to discuss price (hard cash is king) but of course made the mistake of rankling my partner with my lack of talking the purchase over, or at least discussing it somwhere not in front of the seller, who obviously sided with me (sorry, babe, I didn’t want to lose this guy).

Yes, that it is my leg. Sure, it’s unprofessional and weird, but I cannot control when and where a gecko will choose to fire up for the camera.

Besides, he’s just so Zazzy.

Some of the Coolest High-Pattern Geckos in the Hobby (Part of the “Not Mine” Series)

As with the previous post of my favorite geckos that aren’t mine, these geckos are… not mine. Neither are the photos. If the gecko or photo is yours and you would like me to take it down, I of course will do so, but please know that I have posted these out of admiration with no intention of infringement. If you would like me to identify the photographer, I would be very happy to do so if you tell me who to credit.

Today we’re looking at high-pattern geckos, though of course, this term will mean different things to different people. I’m starting off with some of the most extreme examples, but I believe the geckos at the end fit the bill as well.

Chowder of Sadler Reptiles (recently loaned to JB’s Cresties)

Truesilver of Nautilus Reptiles (currently on loan at Ethereal Exotics).

Euphoria of Mama T’s Cresties – I’d like to see her with Chowder

Crescenza of JB’s Cresties, recently bred to Sadler Reptile’s Chowder

Castle, another of JB’s Cresties recently bred to Sadler Reptile’s Chowder

Ice of Scaredy Cat Geckos (This lady calls Chowder to mind, but I’d really love to see a pairing between her and Truesilver)

V’s Girl, Scaredy Cat Geckos. How insanely does she look like Chowder? Chowder can produce a lot of different things by breeding him to different girls, but I think if we bred him to this lady, we’d have more Chowders to work with

Not actually a well-known gecko – sold recently by Scaredy Cat Geckos, originally bred by Mrs. Smiths’ geckos, not sure where it ended up (but I wish I’d found it faster)

Stedson from Creepy Exotics

Extra Butter – The Living Palette 

I can’t even imagine how many beautiful geckos are missing from this list; who are some of your favorites? Who do you own, and who have you produced? Who would you buy if only they would go up for sale?

Buying semi-sexed Geckos – A Word on “Possible” and “Probable” Females

Sometimes it’s three in the morning, and you’re not asleep, and you begin to dwell on an inconsistency in terminology that bothers you in the crested gecko hobby. OK, maybe this doesn’t happen to YOU, but it certainly does to me (greatly due to the fact that I’m terrible at sleeping).

I want to clarify that this is not a post that nitpicks at changing reptile terminology. There are a lot of new and changing terms developed all the time in reptile breeding. New morphs develop, often from more than one line, and breeders name them. Sometimes different names develop for what is essentially the same morph. Sometimes breeders name their own lines without intending to claim a new morph or a new name for an existing morph. While a bit more consistency in these terminologies would be ideal, I think the variability here is extremely understandable; as long as a seller is showing representative images of what he or she is offering, the buyer can be the of judge how “extreme” a harlequin really is or how “creamy” its patterning is. Don’t get me wrong; if we had more defined standards, I would be fine with that as well, but these just aren’t deal-breaking situations for me.

The inconsistency with which sellers list “possible” and “probable” females, however, really does bother me. In some cases, males will show pores at five grams, and in others, they can wait to show pores until 10 or more; like with people, some geckos are late bloomers. I personally would not purchase a gecko listed as a “possible” or “probable” female without knowing its most up-to-date weight and pores check to get an idea of what “possible” or “probable” actually means to the seller. I am not indicating that you should never purchase a “possible” or “probable” female gecko but simply advising that you take terms such as “possible” and “probable” with a grain of salt until you know the weight, as sellers vary in their use of the terminology.

For example, I’m skeptical of 4g geckos listed as “probable female”s, though I understand the impulse to loupe, and it even may be appropriate to note to potential buyers that there are no visible pores on that gecko yet (thus allowing everyone to keep their fingers crossed, without skewing the facts). While the superiority of a geckos pinstripes, the extremity of its harlequin pattern, or the creaminess of its color can all be subjectively described by the seller and interpreted by the consumer, the sex should not be. At 5g, the absence of pores does indicate that there is the possibility that the gecko is female, but I personally would not yet go so far as to write up a listing as “probable” or to sell an animal on that basis. The absence of pores at that point is a matter of fact (supposing your are able to use your loupe successfully), whereas the descriptors of “possible” and “probable” are unfortunately inconsistent measurements across the hobby.

I do not mean to write this as an indictment of other breeders or sellers. I do, however, think it’s worth a consumer’s time and money to ask for the facts backing up a poss/prob F listing before getting too excited at the prospect of an available female. I’d be really interested in other people’s thoughts on this.

My goal at some point is to be able to photograph, zoom in, and post photos of geckos’ pre-anal area with my read on the pores situation, but at this point, either my camera cannot complete the adequate zooming, or I’m ignorant of how best to use it, because I can never get a clear enough picture of scales at that level.

If you’re looking for more information on sexing crested geckos, I would recommend the information on sexing from JB’s Cresties’ website, as well as the page’s concluding advice to talk to your breeder and ask which method they use to sex their geckos.

The only note I’d make here is that I have the same 60x loupe listed on JB’s page but have an easier time locating pores with a 30x loupe, also sold at Pangea; with 60x magnification, you really have to put the loupe right on the gecko (the higher the augmentation, the closer you have to hold it to the specimen to get a clearer image), and even then, I have a hard time looking through. With my 30x, I’ve had a lot of luck finding pores while the gecko is just hanging out on the wall of its viv, no hassle to the animal whatsoever.

Plenty of people use a regular 10x loupe (if this sounds low to you, keep in mind that it’s what jewelers use to determine the clarity of diamonds, among other things). I don’t happen to have one, but a lot of people pick them up cheap from Ebay.

Foldaway 30X Loupe

Favorite Geckos I Don’t Own – Red Pattern Edition

This is the initial installment of a series featuring some of my favorite geckos that aren’t mine. The photos are not mine, either, and I mean no infringement on the photographers that have taken them. If you can give me info on who took the photo, I will very gladly credit them. If anyone would like me to remove a photo, I will of course do so, but I will be disappointed, because I really admire than animals featured here and the individuals who have bred them and like having them  organized in one spot to look at.

These are some of the coolest specimens I’ve seen of what their breeders (and often many other breeders) are working to achieve. For this post, I’ll start with my favorite group, red harleys, particularly pinners

These are the red harleys and pinners that wow me again and again; some take my breath away; others make me insanely jealous; and others I just think are solid representations of breeder goals that may introduce some readers to some breeders with whom they are not familiar. Enough talk;  these are some of the coolest patterned reds I’ve come by:

Obviously, I have to include Anthony Caponetto’s Poster Girl from ACReptiles

Firenzy of Gorgeous Geckos, now at Reptile Specialty

Altitude Exotic’s SSS x Rhiannon. I am going absolutely INSANE over not having one of Brian’s fantastically red and beautifully patterned and pinned geckos. I won’t be content until I have at least one.

Icee from the Living Palette

From Geckos Gone Wild, produced by Wicked Gex (Wicked Rhacs)

Nosferatu of Wicked Gex (Wicked Racs)

Goose from The Gecko Geek – Hatched from Crown Jewel Reptiles (wish CJR were still in the game; I’d love a goose of my own)

 

Primrose from The Gecko Alchemist – my fantasy match for Goose

Freja, co-owned by JB’s Cresties and Mama T’s Cresties

Sir Jazz Feets – Emily’s Geckos

Kif from BushwhackHerps – one of the reddest reds

You can always count on Northern Gecko to have some nice red harleys, among other things

Captain, of Mina’s Minagerie, currently on loan to Sadler Reptiles

Apollo from The Adventure Gecko

Posey, also from The Adventure Gecko – can’t wait to see babies from her and Apollo

Mrs. Smith’s Fendi, sired by Sadler Reptiles’ Chowder

 

Gallery Geckos’ Sakura, produced by Matt Parks of Pangea Reptile

 

Crazy Red Geckos’ Ace of Diamonds – so red! (and Queen of Diamonds is just as hot!)

 

Future breeder at Crazy Red Geckos, produces from Anthony Caponetto at ACReptiles – makes me so jealous!

 

Pamper of Scaredy Cat Geckos, Produced by Sunspot x Captain of the Minagerie – never have I seen so red and SO white

 

What do you prefer? A fiery red base or a pinkish base? A large proportion of creamy pattern, or more of a focus on the base?

Who would you like to see that I’ve left out? Your dream gecko, or maybe one that you own or have produced?

Red solids/bicolors, I have not forgotten you; you will be in another post.

Intro to the Crested Gecko – Rhacodactylus ciliatus

My most memorable experience with a crested gecko is probably from the year I took off between college and grad school, when I was living alone, before adopting my dogs. I heard a big, booming, thudding noise from within the house, and as the only other occupants were a clown agama, a very young Apalachicola (aka: blotched) kingsnake, and a juvie crested gecko, I couldn’t imagine who could be making the noise unless someone had gotten into my home. As I looked around, I finally found that I had unthinkingly set a container of crickets on the screened top to my crestie’s viv, and there was my ironically-named little Cujo, moving his entire enclosure in an attempt to get at those elusive crickets.

I think that experience just about sums up crested geckos. They’re undeniably cute, velvety, and generally un-intimidating to parents, potential dates, or whoever else has it fixed in their mind that reptiles are scary, gross, dangerous, or simply something they’d never want in the same house with them, let alone in their hands. At the same time, they execute Spiderman moves to catch prey and are more captivating to watch on the hunt than any other herp I’ve ever owned. While they may seem like the puppies of the reptile world, they’re also the ones capable of creating viv-shaking, reverberating booms in an attempt to secure their meal, something scarier than either of my rescue pit bulls has ever pulled.

Whether you’re new to cresties or looking for the next morph to add to your collection, I hope you find something new, fun, and fantastic here at Rhac ‘Em Up.