Madagascar day geckos

The Madagascar day geckos Phelsuma spp. consist of about 70 species and subspecies, endemic of Madagascar. They also comprise some of the largest geckos' species of the world.
Their main colour is a bright, “fluo” green, that can vary from light to blueish green, while the underside ranges from a creamy white to an eggy yellow. Red, brown, yellow and blue stripes, dots or bars can be interspersed throughout the body: they are variable among different species, and also between juvenile, male and female individuals of the same.
Day geckos are diurnal, meaning they are most active during the day. As daily species, they rely heavily on camouflage to avoid predators: their green colouration allows them to blend impeccably with their tropical, arboreal environment.
Slight changes in the intensity of the skin's colouration are used to convey information during breeding and courtship, as well as to indicate high levels of stress or illness: for example, when stressed, the colouration darkens, rendering the whole animal darker green, and the red markings on the face and back become more orange in tone.
They are capable, like many other species of lizards, of dropping the last portion of the tail to distract a predator that is pursuing them, thus allowing an easier escape. Their tails can be as long as their bodies or longer.
Madagascar day geckos also have big and developed eyes to gather information about the surroundings during their diurnal life. Adult specimens may have large sacs on their necks, that are calcium carbonate deposits.
These animals usually feed on insects, fruit and nectar, but in a more anthropized environment, they can also eat other food.
These geckos are in general solitary and territorial animals, that meet only to mate with a partner and hardly tolerate sharing the same habitat with other specimens.
Madagascar day geckos reproduce sexually, with females laying multiple pair of eggs (two eggs share part of the envelope on one side!) several times per year. The temperature at which the eggs are incubated determines the sex of the offspring: higher temperatures give birth to males, lower to females. The young geckos are morphologically identical to the adult form, but differ slightly in their colouration; they become sexually mature within one to two years and after hatching are autonomous yet.
A peculiar feature of geckos is the presence of broad, flattened toe pads with adhesive lamellae, thin flat scales that make geckos able to grip on all surfaces, even upside down on smooth ones.
Another curious fact is that most geckos do not have eyelids, thus it is common to see them licking their eyes to prevent them from dryness.
Furthermore, geckos are the only type of lizards known to be able to produce different sounds. Their vocalizations can range from hiss, squeaks and clicks to barks and croaks. The word “gecko” itself was likely born as an imitation of the sounds made by many species. Sounds are produced to communicate between different individuals and even in particular situations, for example during breeding and courtship, as well as when the animal is heavily stressed. Madagascar day geckos have a distinct call that resembles the sound of a frog: it is a tongue flick of their very large tongues on the roofs of their mouths, which produces a clicking sound.
Madagascar day geckos help control populations of insects they prey on and may play a role in pollinating some plant species through feeding on nectar.
They are popular animals within the pet trade, however, most are now captive-bred.
Madagascar day gecko populations are not considered threatened currently and seem to be adaptable to human disturbance.
These animals, even if native of Madagascar, have been also introduced into oceanic islands surrounding Madagascar, likely first brought in as pets in the mid-'90s. In the islands surrounding Madagascar like Seychelles, Réunion, Mauritius and Comoros, they are now a risk for endemic geckos, as they have spread since the '90s for their ability to adapt to different habitats and preys; while the day geckos native to these islands are more specialists, preferring more specific food items and habitats than the Madagascar day geckos. The introduced geckos create more competition for resources and the increased stress can lead to poor reproductive success and, over time, to a reduced population. In more recent times there are actually a few recorded populations in Florida and Hawaii, too.