Sherron,
Thanks for the interesting post.
I've visited Sri Lanka a few times and your comments on geckos falling reminds
me of some Sri Lanka folklore that Anslem de Silva has told me about. Geckos
play a significant role in the traditions of the Sri Lankan people and there
are beliefs related to both gecko vocalisation and geckos falling onto ones
body. These beliefs are established to the extent that there is an almanac
published in Sri Lanka that has a section called "Hunu enga vetimae palapala",
roughly translated as "Predictions based on the body area on which the gecko
falls".
As these are ancient beliefs I'm afraid the almanac doesn't cover your example
of what to expect if the gecko falls on your computer! :-)
Cheers.
John
----- Original Message -----
From: Sherron
To: gecko@lists.gekkota.com
Sent: Saturday, June 14, 2008 9:08 PM
Subject: Re: [gecko] Hawaii's geckos
Aloha, Dr. Werner
I have to agree that if a gecko just dropped off the ceiling on its own, it
probably was sick. However, there are much more likely reasons for a gecko to
fall from the ceiling! ;)
We encounter geckos falling from the ceiling of our home & lanai, and from
our banana trees, with regularity and the reasons are not at all unusual - they
are either distracted with fighting, mating, or being chased by another gecko.
It happens quite often and usually they just lie stunned for a few minutes and
are then able to run off, but some are not so lucky and are injured. This is
the first we've had that was fatally injured from a known fall.
We have had them land on us, on our laps, computers, beds, and whatever else
happened to be under them. Most are day geckos, but quite a few house geckos,
and occasionally a mourning gecko (being chased) will fall.
I have a more personal view of the day gecko impact & the history of geckos
in Hawaii. My understanding is that the first geckos who arrived either with or
before the Polynesians included the mourning gecko (Lepidodactylus lugubris),
stump-toed gecko (Gehyra mutilata), Indo-Pacific gecko and the tree gecko
(Hemiphyllodactylus typus).
I agree that the concern with the house gecko was it would displace the
"native" populations, which it has done to a fair extent, with only the
mourning gecko remaining in urban areas and the others driven into less
developed areas. But the concern with later species has now mostly turned to
the impact on other elements of the ecosystem.
When the first day geckos were introduced, naturalists feared that both the
mourning gecko and the house geckos would be at a severe disadvantage. And from
experience, I can say that for several years it became uncommon to see any
brown geckos around our house or around town. But both the house and mourning
geckos have made something of a comeback, and we now have quite a few
representatives of both these species.
And they mostly, but not totally, compete for the same insects. We have
observed that at least the Gold Dust Day Gecko is much lazier than the house or
mourning geckos and will not pursue its prey very far, which tends to limit the
insects that it eats. We have seen house geckos tackle large cockroaches that
barely fit down their throats, while a gold dust will not even bother chasing
one. But the day gecko is also larger, which enables it to eat larger insects.
They can bring down large cane spiders and even hawk moths. They don't
discriminate as to whether the insects they eat are exotic or endemic, of
course.
With the introduction of the larger day geckos, including the giant day gecko
(Phelsuma madagascariensis) which has established in Manoa, the threat to
native insects has increased. Additionally, the amount they consume also
reduces native birds' food supplies and interferes with native plants
pollination according to the DLNR (Department of Land & Natural Resources).
Unfortunately, it's not a matter of a simple replacement of one similar
animal for another. And even if it were, as much as I like the day geckos - I
prefer the native species. So my preference is to have the original geckos,
particularly the mourning gecko, which was the most common species prior to the
introduction of the house gecko. Likewise, I would prefer the house gecko that
has been around the last 60 or so years & whose impact is now known, rather
than the more recent introductions whose final impact is yet to be determined.
I love Hawaii with all her uniqueness and I hope to keep her that way. ;)
Mahalo, Sherron
yehudah werner wrote:
Hello,
The recent messages re geckos requiring euthanasia and this being
problematic on Hawaiian islands, stimulate 3 comments.
1, A gecko that drops off the ceiling and/or lands other than on its
four feet is probably sick to begin with.
2, Even geckos don't live forever. What does everybody do with the dead
pets? They should be donated (with maximum info on their origin, age etc.) to
some public museum collection.
3, To my understanding, on Hawaii, the colonizing day geckos are
semi-banned not for their endangering the local insects (this is already done
by the local geckos) but because they displace the local geckos. This of course
means that they displace Hemidactylus frenatus, who since arrival in the 1940s
has been displacing Hemidactylus garnotii, who arrived much earlier. The moral
difference between the waves of invasion is that the early invasions were
unintentional (which is natural for commensal geckos), whereas the latest is
supected of having been intentional (artificial).
Hoping to have served, Yehudah
Yehudah L. Werner
Professor Emeritus of Zoology
Department of Evolution, Systematics and Ecology
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
91904 Jerusalem, Israel
Tel. 972-2-6585874 (direct)
Fax 972-2-6584741 (departmental office)
e-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Home tel./fax 972-2-5665576
--
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gecko aka Sherron, Kailua Kona, Hawaii (on the Big Island of Hawaii)
Homepage: http://hale-pohaku.com/sherron - mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
See our rats: http://hale-pohaku.com/dennis/ratgallery.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG.
Version: 7.5.524 / Virus Database: 270.2.0/1497 - Release Date: 6/11/2008
8:32 AM
