Lygodactylus picturatus (yellow-headed dwarf gecko)

Origin: Africa
Length: Up to 9 centimeters
Age: Up to 15 years

Experience: Novice/intermediate reptile keeper
Food: Insects
Feeding adult: Feed a number of food animals every other day
Feed young: Small size crickets every day
Water bowl: Yes
Water change: Daily

Power supply
Yellow-headed geckos primarily eat animal foods, such as crickets, curly flies, and buffalo worms. This diet can possibly be supplemented with mealworms or wax moths. The food should be smaller than the gecko's head. You should first feed the food animals you give to your gecko with food specially available for this purpose or, for example, cat food or fish food. In this way, the nutritional value of the food animals is optimal. Alternate the food, so the gecko gets all the nutrients it needs.
Geckos also need extra calcium and vitamins. You can give this by always dusting the food animals with so-called calcium and vitamin preparations for reptiles. Fresh drinking water should always be available.

Water
Sometimes the geckos do not drink from the drinking bowl, so make sure that spray water also remains on plants and other furnishing elements in the enclosure, so that they can also drink from this

Cleaning It is important to clean the terrarium properly. Therefore remove uneaten food animals every day and remove feces before feeding the gecko again. Replace the bottom material once a month or a few times a year and then immediately clean the rest of the terrarium (including the interior). If you use cleaning products, it is important to rinse everything well after the time. Always wash your hands thoroughly after coming into contact with the animals or the terrarium, as reptiles can transmit salmonella.

Handling
the gecko is very fast and is therefore more difficult to handle in contrast to, for example, a crested gecko. If you do pick up the gecko, be very careful never to grab it by the tail, as this will repel it. Gecko skin is very sensitive.

Housing
Minimum enclosure size for this animal: 60*40*40 cm
Day temperature: 25-30C
Night temperature: 18-21C
Hours of light: 11-14 hours of UV light
Humidity Level: 40-50%
Soil cover: Cocopeat, non-fertilized garden soil, beech chips, kitchen roll, newspapers

Design
For your gecko, choose a terrarium that is taller than it is wide. For a pair of geckos you need a terrarium of at least 60*40*40. Male geckos can be aggressive to each other so never put them together. If you take a larger group, take one male with several females. A larger terrarium for a larger group is of course necessary.
Make sure that the terrarium has no gaps, because these geckos are really good at escaping and they can flatten themselves very much. The gecko likes moisture. Therefore choose a soil cover that retains moisture (examples of this are shown under 'Soil cover'). To achieve this high humidity, the terrarium must be sprayed regularly. Furnish the terrarium with climbing branches, flat stones and hiding places in the form of bark or plants. A container filled with moist vermiculite or peat moss (sphagnum) is useful to help the animals molt.
The enclosure must offer different temperatures. There should be both warmer and colder areas for the animals to choose from. Although the gecko is a nocturnal animal, a UV-b lamp must still be hung. In this way, the animals can build up sufficient calcium in their bodies. Without this relief, they can become very ill. Use light bulbs, low-energy light bulbs or possibly daylight lamps and leave the light on twelve hours a day. Also provide a shallow drinking bowl that the geckos cannot drown in. To be on the safe side, you can place some small stones in the drinking bowl to reduce this risk.

Behaviour
Diet: Carnivore
Lifestyle: Twilight and nocturnal active

Character
Geckos are very active once it starts to get dark. They can also be housed in groups and will therefore display a different type of behavior (some territorial, for example).

Points of attention
Geckos are masters of escape, so make sure that your terrarium/enclosure does not provide opportunities for the gecko to escape.

Cost and Purchase
Legislation: To own this gecko you need CITES or transfer papers. One-off costs: This includes the costs for accommodation, lighting, heating, water bowl, plants and other decoration. This can cost a few hundred euros in total. The final amount depends on the quality and size of the products.
Fixed costs: Fixed costs include the costs for the feed, which is a few tens of euros per year.
Unexpected costs: Costs are incurred when your gecko happens to get sick or your equipment breaks down.