Marbled geckos are predominantly insectivores and feed on small insects such as flies, crickets and wax worms. Additionally, they will consume fruit baby food or prepared meals such as boiled timothy hay.
Feed them gut-loaded crickets, mealworms, butterworms and wax worms daily along with occasional fruit treats for variety. Always leave a shallow dish of water available for them and spray daily to maintain an optimal environment for them.
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Insects
Marbled geckos are powerful climbers, assisted by their specialised toes. Able to grip a variety of surfaces and using their lamanae to attach themselves to walls, plants or other lizards they often can be seen climbing buildings to gain entrance into homes or other structures, although their droppings may become an irritation to homeowners as they stain carpets, curtains and fabrics.
When keeping this species captive, provide a mix of insects including crickets, flies, silkworms and wax worms as well as small pieces of squashed fruit – be sure to gut load all insects prior to offering and mist the enclosure regularly for best results.
Insects should be offered in a shallow dish and unconsumed food should be removed after four hours. Lizards tend to take baths and drink dew collected on substrate or shallow dishes so it is important that these spaces remain clean and free from debris.
Fruit
Geckos are carnivorous creatures that primarily feed on meat and insects; however, young ones will occasionally consume some plant matter as well.
Give your marbled gecko a diet consisting of crickets, meal worms, silkworms and flies as well as mashed fruit (such as apricots and grapes). Be sure to supplement their food with powdered multivitamin supplements prior to offering them to them as this will ensure optimal health in their future lives.
Citrus fruits contain high concentrations of oxalic acid, which can be toxic to reptiles. Rhubarb, with similar levels of this compound, should also not be fed.
Marbled geckos, as nocturnal species, do not require UV lighting but their enclosure should be heated to at least 75oF during the daytime hours. Marbled geckos like to hide away in rock crevices or under tree bark – providing plenty of hiding spaces within their habitat. In addition, a shallow dish of water should be provided and misted daily to maintain humidity levels within their environment.
Reptiles
Marbled geckos live in the wild and typically hunt at night before hiding during the day, using rock crevices or tree bark as places to conceal themselves. They primarily feed on insects but will occasionally snack on fruits as snacks.
Captive reptiles should receive a diet consisting of crickets, meal worms, super worms, wax worms and cockroach nymphs (but never spinach!) plus some fruit baby food as food sources. All items should be gut-loaded with reptile vitamin supplements prior to feeding them out and misted several times throughout the day for best results.
The southern marbled gecko can be found throughout Victoria and can adapt well to winter by hunting at night and remaining hidden during the day. They conserve heat by resting beneath rock crevices or by resting beneath eucalypt tree bark with thick exfoliating bark.
Ants are easily visible during the day aggregating in buildings’ eaves or along the ground under logs or fallen timber, often as colonies. Their colonization makes them especially successful in urban environments as females don’t require mating to produce eggs (parthenogenesis); males, however, must still be present for breeding to occur.
Diet
Marbled geckos feed on insects such as crickets, flies, waxworms and silkworms; they will also consume some fruit that has been mashed up and placed into a shallow dish for them to consume. All food should be sprinkled with multivitamin and calcium powder prior to offering it for consumption and any unconsumed items should be removed 4-6 hours post offering to avoid spoilage.
Marbled geckos can be found throughout woodlands, dry sclerophyll forests and on rocks in their natural environment. At night they can often be seen near external lights where they hunt insects attracted by them.
The Marbled Gecko Christinus marmoratus is a common reptile found throughout our bushlands and can often be found sheltering during the day under rocks and bark or fallen timber in Box Ironbark Forest. Additionally, urban gardens with rocky areas close to bushland often host this species as well.
