Gekko monarchus
Silhouette: Steven Traver · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
Gekko monarchus, also called the spotted house gecko, is a species of gecko found in the Malay Peninsula (including southern Thailand and Singapore), some smaller Malaysian islands, Borneo (Brunei, East Malaysia and Kalimantan), the Philippines, many Indonesian islands including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and New Guinea (Irian Jaya and Papua New Guinea).
This lizard has the typical body build of the genus Gekko - it appears flat and has a rough skin with small bumps on its back. Their tails regenerate once dropped, as with most gecko species. The regenerated tail will never look the same as the original (it has a different texture and slightly odd color).
Similar to common house geckos and dtellas, males make quiet clicking sounds when courting a female; both sexes are capable of chirping and "barking". When startled or alarmed, the gecko waves its tail quickly and may breathe heavily, making a sound not unlike hissing.
They have a W spot on the backs of their heads, typical for this species. Monarch geckos are strictly insectivorous, feeding on various types of insects (roaches, crickets, flies, spiders, even wasps). Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taman Negara National Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 2 | Danum Valley Conservation Area | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 3 | Bako National Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 4 | Kinabalu Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 5 | Sepilok | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 6 | Gunung Leuser National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 7 | Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 8 | Tanjung Puting National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kuching | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 2 | Johor Bahru | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 3 | Kuala Lumpur | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 4 | Singapore | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 5 | Tainan | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | |
| 6 | Kaohsiung | 🇹🇼 Taiwan |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Spotted House Gecko sighting in Singapore on a given day, based on 200 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 18th most-seen of the 64 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Spotted House Gecko in Singapore on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Spotted House Gecko sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
4th of 6
Of the 6 cities where we can rate Spotted House Gecko sightings, Singapore ranks 4th at about 10%. The best odds are in Kuching (Malaysia, about 40%), Johor Bahru (Malaysia, about 20%) and Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia, about 10%).
Same family: Gekkonidae
The closest relatives of the Spotted House Gecko that you can see in Singapore (family Gekkonidae, Typical Geckos) are Common House Gecko (about 20%), Mourning Gecko (about 20%) and Flat-tailed House Gecko (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Spotted House Gecko is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Singapore (200 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
