Description: Adults can measure up to 5.9 inches, tail included. Robust body and flat head. Back, legs and tail with prominent conic tubercles. Its regenerated tail is smoother and doesn't have tubercles. Obtuse mouth, big eyes with no eyelids and vertical pupil. Fingers with big lateral growths and adherent division less laminae in the bottom face. Only the third and fourth fingers end in union. Brownish grey or brown coloration with darker or lighter spots. These colours change in intensity according to the light. When they are active by day their colour is darker than during the night. It can be found on many construction sites, ruins, rock fields, tree trunks, etc.
Habitat: It is found in a variety of habitats, and it has been recorded from rocky areas, cliffs, stone walls, ruins, building walls and inside houses. It is generally not present in forested areas although animals can often be found climbing in trees.
Range: In Europe it can be found through most of the Iberian Peninsula (except northwestern Portugal and most of northern Spain), southern France, coastal Italy, southern Slovenia, northern coastal Croatia and southwestern parts of Greece. In North Africa it ranges from northern Egypt, through northern Libya, northern and central Tunisia, and northern Algeria to most of Morocco and northwestern Western Sahara. There is an isolated introduced population in southern Western Sahara. It can live up to 7,500 feet in altitude.
Diet: They hunt insects and in the warmer months of the year it can be found hunting nocturnal insects near light sources, street lamps, etc.
Reproduction: The females lay clutches of one to two eggs. These may be laid communally, typically under stones, in cracks and in hollow trees. They lay 2 almost-spherical eggs twice a year around April and June. After 4 months, little salamanquesas of less than 2.0 inches in length are born. Moorish geckos are slow to mature, taking 4 to 5 years in captivity.
Status: Listed as Least Concern in view of its wide distribution, tolerance of a broad range of habitats, presumed large population, and because it is unlikely to be declining fast enough to qualify for listing in a more threatened category.
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Disclaimer: ITIS taxonomy is based on the latest scientific consensus available, and is provided as a general reference source for interested parties. However, it is not a legal authority for statutory or regulatory purposes. While every effort has been made to provide the most reliable and up-to-date information available, ultimate legal requirements with respect to species are contained in provisions of treaties to which the United States is a party, wildlife statutes, regulations, and any applicable notices that have been published in the Federal Register. For further information on U.S. legal requirements with respect to protected taxa, please contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
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