The crested gecko or eyelash gecko (Correlophus ciliatus) is a species of gecko native to southern New Caledonia. In 1866, the Crested Gecko was described by a French zoologist named Alphone Guichenot. This species was thought extinct until it was rediscovered in 1994 during an expedition led by Robert Seipp. Along with several Rhacodactylus species, it is being considered for protected status by the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna.
The species was first described in 1866 as Correlophus ciliatus by the French zoologist Alphone Guichenot in an article entitled "Notice sur un nouveau genre de sauriens de la famille des geckotiens du Muséum de Paris" ("Notes on a new species of lizard in the gecko family") in the Mémoires de la Société Scientifique Naturelle de Chérbourg. It was later renamed Rhacodactylus ciliatus. Recent phylogenetic analysis indicates that R. ciliatus and R. sarasinorum are not closely related to the other giant geckos, so these two species have been moved back to the genus Correlophus.
The specific name, ciliatus, is Latin, from cilia ("fringe" or "eyelashes") and refers to the crest of skin over the animal's eyes that resembles eyelashes.]
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Long believed extinct, the species was rediscovered in 1994 after a tropical storm. It is currently being assessed for CITES protection and vulnerable status. The biggest single threat to the wild population appears to be the introduction of the little fire ant (Wassmania auropunctata) to New Caledonia. The ants prey on the geckos, stinging and attacking in great numbers, and they also compete with the geckos for food by preying on arthropods
Though the export of wild crested geckos is now prohibited, biologists exported several specimens for breeding and study before New Caledonia stopped issuing permits to export the species. From these specimens, different breeding lines were established both in Europe and the United States. The crested gecko is now one of the most widely kept and bred species of gecko in the world.
These geckos can be very long-lived. While they have not been kept in captivity long enough for a definitive life span determination, they have been kept for 15–20 years or more. They can be kept healthy on specially prepared powdered fruit diets with sufficient calcium or a variety of insects dusted with calcium or multivitamin supplements.
Little is known about the wild reproductive behaviour of crested geckos, but in captivity they breed readily, with the female laying two eggs, which hatch 60–150 days after they are laid. Eggs are generally laid at four week intervals as long as the fat and calcium reserves of the female are still at healthy levels. Crested geckos have two small sacs for calcium on the roof of their mouths. If an egg-laying female does not have enough calcium her sac will be depleted, and she can suffer from calcium deficiency. This can lead to a calcium crash, where the female appears shaky or wobbly, lethargic, has a lack of appetite, and can even result in death. Eggs laid by a female whose calcium reserves are low occasionally exhibit signs of congenital metabolic bone disease, such as an under-bite and/or a kinked or wavy tail.
It is currently unknown whether heat plays a role in determining the sex of the embryo, as it can with other gecko species.
Newly hatched crested geckos will generally not eat until after they have shed and eaten their skin for the first time, relying on the remains of their yolk sack for nutrition. A female crested Gecko only has to mate with a male once in order to lay 2 eggs every 4–6 weeks for upwards of 8–10 months. Sperm retention ensures that the eggs the female lays will remain fertile throughout her breeding cycle. After those 8–10 months, females in the wild go through a "cooling" cycle, usually prompted by slight temperature and daylight changes over the winter season. During this time, the females are able to regain the body mass and nutrients they lost during egg-laying. This cooling cycle must be implemented in captivity or females will lay eggs continuously, resulting in calcium depletion, poor health, and even death. Although there is no confirmed cases of asexual reproduction in crested geckos, there has been claims of females laying eggs with no sexual activity with a male.
