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Friday 13 April 2018

Spear Point Leaf Tail Gecko

Image: Antonio Rodríguez Arduengo
Uroplatus ebenaui
Demons get such a bad rap these days. And... all other days, I suppose. But look at this cutie! Surely he wouldn't hurt a fly!

Image: Alextelford
Hmm? Oh. Turns out he would eat a fly. OK.

Image: Frank Vassen
But I bet he does it in the cutest way possible! The flies last thoughts would be something like, "This is actually kind of adorable. It's way better than getting eaten by a spider."

Image: Frank Vassen
The Spear Point Leaf Tail Gecko is a member of the genus Uroplatus, the same as the Satanic Leaf Tailed Gecko (U. phantasticus). While it's great that one species got the moniker, to me they're all equally and wonderfully Satanic!

This species is found only in a tiny patch of northern Madagascar, as well as just off the coast on the even tinier and delightfully named island of Nosy Be.

Image: Antonio Rodríguez Arduengo
They hang out in the trees, using their amazing camouflage to hide in plain sight during the day. At night, they wake up to hunt insects.

Image: Antonio Rodríguez Arduengo
The Spear Point gets their name from their tiny little tail which looks like something someone dug up from an ancient battlefield.

Image: Rob Meades
Despite that miniature tail, the Spear Point Leaf Tail Gecko is the biggest species in Uroplatus. It still only reaches about 7.5 cm (3 in) long, though. That's probably a good thing...

Image: Cédric de Foucault
You wouldn't want a face like that looming over you!

6 comments:

  1. Great article, but there are a couple species of Uroplatus that reach larger sizes than ebenaui, most notably fimbriatus, which is around 10-12" in length. Just wanted to let you know!

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  2. Yet another ugly-cute wonderfully weird creature :)

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  3. No more fun animals since April??? What has happened?

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  4. Where did you go, I enjoy reading about these fascinating creatures most of which I never knew existed. Follow-up or closure of any kind? hiatus? :(

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  5. Get about your business now, snip-snap! You've dozed with the dodgy quite long enough! Time to get back in the saddle, Pilgrim, and rustle up some grubs or such-like! Come on, now! A man's gotta do what a (delightfully cranky, wildly witty, seriously scintillate) man's gotta do. Yo, dude! You've got fans out here waiting on you, and like Dr. Frankenstein's Great Primordial Monstrosity, We Are Legion!

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