The Giant Leachianus Gecko, also known as the New Caledonian Giant Gecko or simply Giant Gecko (Rhacodactylus leachianus), is the largest gecko species in the world. Native to New Caledonia and nearby islands, these arboreal geckos are known for their vocal skills, unique appearance, and relatively easy care requirements, making them popular among reptile enthusiasts. This comprehensive guide provides detailed information on how to properly care for Leachie Geckos, covering their dietary needs, housing, and other essential aspects of their well-being.
Understanding Leachie Geckos
Leachie Geckos are nocturnal, omnivorous lizards that primarily inhabit the tropical forests of New Caledonia. They have a moderate lifespan in captivity, living up to 15 years. Depending on the subspecies, they can reach a maximum size of eight to 17 inches long. These geckos are semi-arboreal, requiring both vertical and horizontal spaces to roam.
There are two discernable subspecies of these geckos found on different islands of New Caledonia, Grand Terre and Pine. Leachie geckos have a moderate lifespan in captivity of up to 15 years. Depending on the species, your gecko has a maximum size between eight and 17 inches long. Giant Leachie Geckos are among the largest living lizards.
Housing
Enclosure Size
Providing an adequate enclosure is crucial for the health and well-being of your Leachie Gecko.
- Juveniles: House juveniles in a five to ten-gallon enclosure. An enclosure that is too large can cause stress.
- Sub-adults: Ten to 20 gallons of space.
- Adults: Require a minimum of 30 gallons. A minimum enclosure size of 18x18x24 inches (45x45x60 cm) is recommended, but for larger individuals, such as adults or those with more active behavior, a size of 18x18x36 inches (45x45x91 cm) or larger is preferable. Providing ample vertical space for climbing is essential.
Enclosure Setup
Leachie Geckos are semi-arboreal species, so they require vertical and horizontal spaces to roam. In nature, leachie geckos sleep in tree hollows and crannies during the day, so set your gecko up in a vertical habitat filled with foliage and thick branches for climbing and hiding. Provide a vertical enclosure that provides ample hiding places, thick branches, and sturdy foliage.
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- Habitat: Giant Leachianus Geckos love their vertical space. Bamboo poles, branches, and vertically placed cork flats can be used.
- Plants: All plants in the enclosure must be strong enough to bear your gecko’s weight. A suitable example of a sturdy plant is the Pothos plant. Adding plenty of foliage whether fake or real is part of keeping your Leachie gecko happy and healthy.
- Substrate: Use a soft substrate that won’t absorb too much moisture, such as coconut fiber, organic soil, or paper towels. ReptilePrime.com (the regular, not fine bag) is a 100% organic coconut substrate that is perfect for any humidity-loving species of reptile. Change the substrate every week or as needed to prevent the growth of harmful microorganisms. Paper towels are ideal for hatchlings, as the youngster’s substrate needs to be changed several times per week.
- Hides: Multiple hides are important for Leachie geckos.
- Cleaning: Deep clean the enclosure at least once a month. Change the substrate and clear any foliage with bacterial growth when deep cleaning. Remove feces daily and spot clean the area where it lay.
Temperature and Lighting
Temperature: Keep temperatures around 75-80 °F. New Caledonia boasts a warm climate, so keep your leachie geckos in a similar environment, between 75° and 80°F. Maintain a temperature range between 75-82 degrees Fahrenheit (24-28 degrees Celsius) during the day, with a slight drop at night. Use a combination of ambient room temperature and supplemental heating if necessary.
- Basking area temperature: 86-88°F (30-31°C)
- Ambient temperature: 72-78°F (22-26°C)
- Nighttime temperature: 66-72°F (19-22°C)
Under-tank heaters or low-wattage red bulbs should be sufficient to create the temperature range.
Lighting: These geckos are nocturnal, so they don’t need special lighting to see. However, they do need to soak up sunlight while they sleep, so rig up a full spectrum UVB light. Try to darken the area around their enclosure at night, so their circadian rhythm isn’t interrupted. In fact, you can purchase special red night lights that don’t interfere with your gecko’s sleep cycle. These lights let you observe your gecko’s behavior once they wake up. Leachianus Geckos do not require UVB lighting but benefit from a natural day-night cycle. Ambient room lighting is usually sufficient.
- At minimum, lighting should be provided for 12 hours/day.
- If you wish to provide seasonal cycles to stimulate natural hormonal cycling, you can either manual switch between 14 hours/day during summer and 10 hours/day during winter, or use a smart timer such as Kasa to sync your lights with your local sunrise and sunset times.
UVB Lighting: Leachie geckos are capable of surviving without UVB lighting as long as they get a certain amount of dietary vitamin D3, but they can’t thrive unless it is provided as part of their environment. UVB lighting can be tricky, because in order to get the right strength of UVB (measured by UV Index, or UVI), distance must be considered. For best results, house the UVB bulbs in a reflective fixture. Position the lamp on the same side of the terrarium as the heat lamp. UVB is blocked by glass and plastic, so placing the terrarium in front of a window doesn’t count as “free UVB” - in fact it can make your terrarium too hot due to the greenhouse effect.
Humidity: Humidity should be kept between 60-80%. Set the enclosure’s humidity between 60 and 80%, with a period during the day to allow it to dry out and help prevent mold growth. Leachianus Geckos require higher humidity levels, around 60%-80%. Mist the enclosure heavily at least once or twice daily and provide a humid hide to help maintain proper humidity levels. Monitor humidity using a hygrometer and adjust misting frequency as needed.
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- Make sure that your enclosure completely dries between mistings so that bacteria and mold do not grow.
Diet and Nutrition
Giant Leachianus Geckos are frugivorous. They feed on fruit and live prey such as crickets and roaches. Leachie geckos are omnivores, which means that they need a balanced diet of both plant- and animal-based foods to get the nutrition that they need. In the wild, they eat mostly fruit and insects.
Food Items
- Commercial gecko foods: Commercial gecko foods, such as Zoomed or Pangea, are available online and in pet stores. Serve up to two ounces of commercial food per meal. One of the simplest and most convenient ways to feed your crested gecko is with a commercially available crested gecko diet (CGD). These specially formulated foods come in powder form, which you mix with water to create a creamy texture that your gecko will love. There are many reputable brands of crested gecko diet available in pet stores or online. Make sure to choose one that’s free from artificial colors or additives for the healthiest option.
- Insects: Provide crickets that are slightly larger then the width between their eyes. It's important to feed insects in moderation. Overfeeding insects can lead to obesity or an imbalance in nutrition.
- Fruits: Appropriate fruits include mangos, bananas, peaches, grapes, pears, or berries.
- Other: Adult leachies may also be interested in small mice as part of their protein intake.
Feeding Schedule
- Provide a fruit-based meal replacement at least three times a week. Leave the meal replacement in the enclosure for two days for your gecko to nibble on. After two days, remove any uneaten food.
- Hatchlings need to eat at least four times a week. Begin hatchlings with small, dusted crickets and the fruit-based meal replacement.
- Offer your mature gecko live insect prey (i.e., roaches, worms, crickets) once or twice a week. Sprinkle the feeders with a calcium and vitamin D3 supplement powder
- Make fresh fruit or a fruit-based commercial diet about 80% of your leachie gecko’s total diet.
- We feed our Leachie’s Pangea Complete Diet every other day and Dubia roaches weekly.
Supplementation
To ensure your crested gecko is getting all the nutrients it needs, supplements are crucial. Calcium powder with vitamin D3 should be dusted on insects and occasionally on fruits and vegetables. Coat the insects with a calcium/ mineral supplement that contains Vitamin D3. Use feeder insects that are slightly longer than the width between your gecko’s eyes. Sprinkle the feeders with a calcium and vitamin D3 supplement powder, and offer them to your mature gecko once or twice a week. ReptiVite offers a high-quality supplement powder. Always let feeder insects gut load for 24 hours on nutrient-dense plants before you feed them to your geckos.
- Powder Supplements: Osteo-form SA & Vionate Powder. Use a 1 part Osteo-Form SA to either 3 parts Vionate. Some keepers do a 1:4 ratio instead.
Water
Provide fresh chlorine-free water in a shallow bowl that cannot be tipped over daily. Fill a shallow bowl (to resist tipping over) with chlorine-free fresh water. Refresh the water every two days or as needed. Most New Caledonian geckos will be fine drinking out of a bowl. If you notice that yours isn’t drinking, try gently spraying them and the enclosure with water at least once a day, producing water droplets that may entice drinking. **Make sure to NOT use distilled water for your reptile. If you do not know if your tap water is safe, we would suggest using bottled water like spring water.
Handling
Leachie geckos use their vocalizations to communicate with others of their species, so housing a pair together helps their mental health. Although vocally social, leachie geckos can also be aggressively territorial. It is unadvised to add a second gecko to the enclosure once the first one has established its territory. If you decide to care for a pair, adopt them as juveniles at the same time.
Leachianus Geckos are generally more tolerant of handling compared to other gecko species. However, it is important to approach them gently and with caution. Allow your gecko time to acclimate to its new environment before attempting any handling. Leachie geckos (Rhacodactylus leachianus) are large, nocturnal, arboreal geckos native to the tropical forests of New Caledonia. Leachie geckos are the largest known gecko species, with large, blocky heads, chunky, wrinkled bodies, soft skin, and a short, stubby tail. Due to their large size and less-handleable temperament, leachie geckos are intermediate-level pet reptiles.
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- Your leachie will drop their tail if they feel threatened, so be gentle when introducing yourself. The tail regrows, but you don’t want to see your new friend be frightened.
- Hold off on handling them for a few months after you adopt them. Give your gecko time to get accustomed to their new space before you shower them with affection.
- As handling experiences become more frequent, make sure they are positive experiences for your gecko. Let them get comfortable with you.
- Wait until hatchlings are between two and six months old before you start handling them. Again, the keyword here is “gentle.” Hatchlings may jump away or try and bite you before they increase their tolerance. Even with increased tolerance to handling, hatchlings are highly energetic and leap about their environment.
- Gently grasp the back of your gecko’s neck and support their bottom to prevent your gecko from injuring themself. Once you have lifted your gecko, relax your grasp, and let your gecko hold onto you.
- Clean your hands before handling your gecko.
- With hatchlings or adults, begin with 15- or 20-minute handling sessions at least once every few days. Gradually increase frequency to every day. Doing this should help them feel more comfortable being handled. You may wish to wear gloves for the first few sessions, just in case your gecko does flail.
Handling Guidelines:
When handling your Leachianus Gecko, support its body and tail properly. Avoid squeezing or grasping the gecko too tightly. Keep handling sessions brief and observe the gecko's behavior for any signs of stress or discomfort.
Common Health Issues
Leachie geckos need high humidity but not total moisture. In a very wet habitat, some leachie gecko species are prone to bacterial or fungal infections.Calcium deficiency and internal parasites are also common problems for leachies. Egg binding, a condition where a female is unable to lay the mature eggs she develops, is also common. These geckos come from warm climates and do not hibernate.
Warning on Cage Aggressiveness
Leachianus Geckos, especially males, can display territorial behavior and aggression towards other geckos. It is recommended to house them individually to avoid potential conflicts and injuries.
Shedding Issues
If you notice any stuck shed like on their toes, put them immediately into a small Tupperware container (with a couple of small breathing holes) that has a couple of pieces of paper towel damp with a little warmer than room temp water for 30 minutes to an hour to see if that will help to loosen the stuck shed.