Phelsuma grandis
Silhouette: SeismicShrimp ยท PhyloPic
In 3 days ~80% in a week >90%
Phelsuma grandis is a diurnal arboreal species of day gecko. These geckos are part of the Phelsuma group, which consists of in excess of 70 species and subspecies. They are commonly referred to as the Madagascar giant day gecko, due to their large size. They are native to areas of tropical and subtropical forest in northern Madagascar, but have been introduced to several other subtropical locations outside their range. P. grandis feeds on various invertebrates, very small vertebrates, and nectars. It is bred and sold as an exotic pet.
Its generic name is a Latinized version of the last name of Dutch physician Murk van Phelsum. Its specific name grandis is Latin for "great". The species Phelsuma grandis described by Gray 1870 was elevated from subspecies status (P. madagascariensis grandis) by Raxworthy et al. in 2007, after environmental niche modeling revealed significant and reliable differences between it and other members of the P. madagascariensis-clade.
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ankarana National Park | ๐ฒ๐ฌ Madagascar | |
| 2 | Montagne d'Ambre National Park | ๐ฒ๐ฌ Madagascar | |
| 3 | Ankarafantsika National Park | ๐ฒ๐ฌ Madagascar |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Miami | ๐บ๐ธ United States |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Busch Gardens Tampa | ๐บ๐ธ United States | |
| 2 | San Diego Zoo | ๐บ๐ธ United States | |
| 3 | Pairi Daiza | ๐ง๐ช Belgium | |
| 4 | National Zoological Park | ๐บ๐ธ United States | |
| 5 | Copenhagen Zoo | ๐ฉ๐ฐ Denmark | |
| 6 | Skansen | ๐ธ๐ช Sweden | |
| 7 | Dublin Zoo | ๐ฎ๐ช Ireland | |
| 8 | Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden | ๐บ๐ธ United States | |
| 9 | Zรผrich Zoo | ๐จ๐ญ Switzerland | |
| 10 | California Academy of Sciences | ๐บ๐ธ United States | |
| 11 | Oceanarium in Saint Petersburg | ๐ท๐บ Russia | |
| 12 | Korkeasaari Zoo | ๐ซ๐ฎ Finland | |
| 13 | Paris Zoological Park | ๐ซ๐ท France | |
| 14 | Rรฉserve africaine de Sigean | ๐ซ๐ท France | |
| 15 | Abilene Zoological Gardens | ๐บ๐ธ United States | |
| 16 | Aquarium du palais de la Porte Dorรฉe | ๐ซ๐ท France | |
| 17 | Karagandy Zoo | ๐ฐ๐ฟ Kazakhstan | |
| 18 | Tallinn Zoo | ๐ช๐ช Estonia | |
| 19 | Los Angeles Zoo | ๐บ๐ธ United States | |
| 20 | Yaroslavl Zoo | ๐ท๐บ Russia | |
| 21 | Bojnice Zoo | ๐ธ๐ฐ Slovakia | |
| 22 | Warsaw Zoo | ๐ต๐ฑ Poland | |
| 23 | Tier-Natur-Erlebnispark Mundenhof | ๐ฉ๐ช Germany | |
| 24 | Safari Ravenna | ๐ฎ๐น Italy | |
| 25 | Kyiv Zoo | ๐บ๐ฆ Ukraine | |
| 26 | Wrocลaw Zoological Garden | ๐ต๐ฑ Poland | |
| 27 | Night Safari | ๐ธ๐ฌ Singapore | |
| 28 | ZooMontana | ๐บ๐ธ United States | |
| 29 | Fort Worth Zoo | ๐บ๐ธ United States | |
| 30 | Oregon Zoo | ๐บ๐ธ United States | |
| 31 | Wildlands | ๐ณ๐ฑ Netherlands | |
| 32 | Singapore Zoo | ๐ธ๐ฌ Singapore | |
| 33 | Zoo de La Flรจche | ๐ซ๐ท France | |
| 34 | Houston Zoo | ๐บ๐ธ United States | |
| 35 | Melbourne Zoo | ๐ฆ๐บ Australia | |
| 36 | San Antonio Zoo | ๐บ๐ธ United States | |
| 37 | Nikolaev Zoo | ๐บ๐ฆ Ukraine | |
| 38 | Attica Zoological Park | ๐ฌ๐ท Greece | |
| 39 | Budapest Zoo & Botanical Garden | ๐ญ๐บ Hungary | |
| 40 | Augsburg Zoo | ๐ฉ๐ช Germany | |
| 41 | Krakow Zoo | ๐ต๐ฑ Poland | |
| 42 | Akron Zoo | ๐บ๐ธ United States | |
| 43 | Faunia | ๐ช๐ธ Spain | |
| 44 | Riverbanks Zoo | ๐บ๐ธ United States | |
| 45 | Plock Zoo | ๐ต๐ฑ Poland | |
| 46 | Tiergarten Straubing | ๐ฉ๐ช Germany | |
| 47 | African Village | ๐ฆ๐ช United Arab Emirates | |
| 48 | Frankfurt Zoological Garden | ๐ฉ๐ช Germany | |
| 49 | Salzburg Zoo | ๐ฆ๐น Austria | |
| 50 | Biotropica | ๐ซ๐ท France |
Likely
About 50% of wildlife watchers report a Madagascar Giant Day Gecko sighting in Montagne d'Ambre National Park on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 7th most-seen of the 12 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 80%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
October
In that month about 70% of wildlife watchers report a Madagascar Giant Day Gecko in Montagne d'Ambre National Park on a given day, against about 10% in January and September, the lowest months. That is one of Montagne d'Ambre National Park's driest months, with about 45 mm of rain against 410 mm in January. March and JuneโJuly have too few records to rate.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Madagascar Giant Day 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.
2nd of 3
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Madagascar Giant Day Gecko sightings, Montagne d'Ambre National Park ranks 2nd at about 50%. The best odds are in Ankarana National Park (Madagascar, about 80%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Madagascar Giant Day Gecko is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Montagne d'Ambre National Park (7 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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 "โ". How it works.
