Gargoyle Gecko Care Guide

Gargoyle geckos are an arboreal species of gecko native to a group of islands near Australia called New Caledonia. They can live up to 20 years and their care is easy to manage for most people. They share similarities to other geckos from New Caledonia, including the popular crested gecko and Mossy gecko (Chewies) which are also common in the pet trade. These geckos are known for having straightforward care requirements, including a very simple diet and temperature requirement. Gargoyle geckos get their name from the ‘horns’ on their heads, and are generally placid when socialized enough when they are younger. Gargoyle geckos make great pets, and in this care guide we will be going over what you need to keep them happy and healthy. Gargoyle gecko care is very similar to the more common crested gecko’s, with some slight tweaks.

The Adult Gargoyle Gecko Enclosure

Having an appropriate enclosure is important for any reptile, as numerous aspects of their husbandry are checked off by their enclosure setup. Everything from temperature, humidity, and hiding places are handled by parts of the enclosure. Setting up a species-appropriate enclosure is perhaps the most prudent part of preparing for your new friend.

Size and Material

Gargoyle geckos are small, arboreal (tree-dwelling) lizards. Because they live primarily high off the ground, it is important to prioritize height over floor space for gargoyle geckos. This differs from a terrestrial species such as a leopard gecko, where floor space is far more important than height.

An adult gargoyle gecko should ideally be housed in at least a 18”x18”x24” enclosure, with a larger enclosure always being welcome given it is set up appropriately. Ideally you will get a front-opening glass terrarium, because geckos will feel threatened if reached towards from above because they are often predated on by birds in the wild.

Substrate

Substrate recommendations are tightly knit with a species’ humidity requirement. Gargoyle geckos thrive in moderately high humidity, therefore they do best with a substrate that holds a lot of moisture. A 60:40 mix of soil and coconut fiber, or a blend of soil and peat moss will both hold moderate levels of moisture and keep the humidity of the enclosure at an appropriate level. Having deeper layers of substrate helps hold moisture, so you’ll want to add at least a few inches of substrate. Adding some sphagnum moss mixed into the soil and on top will help maintain humidity, as will adding a layer of leaf litter on top of the substrate.

Temperature

Temperature is a very important part of any reptile’s husbandry, though for gargoyle geckos it may be even more so. Gargoyle geckos will suffer severe health issues and even death if the temperature in their enclosure is above 85°F, which is an unusually low temperature for most reptiles to be in danger. Nonetheless, it is imperative that your gecko’s enclosure never exceeds 85°F.

Like with other reptiles, providing a thermogradient is ideal. In a terrestrial reptile enclosure, there is a designated hot side and cool side. An arboreal enclosure seeks to achieve the same idea, just vertically! The hot area will be at the top of the enclosure, where the light is (and heat rises,) while the cool area will be at the bottom near the substrate. The hot area should be between 75-80°F, and the cool area should be between 70-75°F. This forms a gradient of 70°F at the bottom up to high 70’s at the top, which allows the gecko to thermoregulate as needed.

Like other reptiles, gargoyle geckos need a day/night light cycle which comes with a cool-down period. All lights should be off at night. Maintaining a circadian rhythm is extremely important for captive reptiles. Allow the nighttime temperature to fall just below 70°F, but no cooler than 65°F. This cooldown period maintains their circadian rhythm, which has been proven to help keep their immune system strong.

Lighting and UVB

UVB light is an additional light source which produces ultraviolet B rays. UVB is beneficial for reptiles because it helps their bodies process calcium and produce vitamin D. Insufficient levels of calcium and vitamin D can lead to health issues including Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD,) a skeletal disease which results in permanent deformities and mobility issues. Most reptiles can get by with proper supplementation and little to no UVB, but providing appropriate levels of UVB is becoming increasingly popular for reptiles for which it was previously thought of as unnecessary. Modern research indicates providing UVB for any reptile increases their physical health, mental wellbeing, and general quality of life. Providing UVB has thankfully evolved into a question of ‘Why not?’ instead of ‘Why?’ For more information, please see our Heating and Lighting Guide.

Gargoyle geckos fall into the category of many keepers believing they do not need UVB. While it is true that gargoyle geckos can survive without UVB, we should ask the question, ‘Why not?’ if it benefits them even a bit. Now it is very important to note that there is such a thing as too much UVB, just like there can be too much heat. The easiest way to quantify the amount of UVB required is to look at the Ferguson scale, which measures how much UVB is needed for each reptile species. Gargoyle geckos fall into Ferguson Zone 1, which requires the lowest amount of UVB. Bearded dragons, for instance, require high amounts of UVB and are in Ferguson Zone 4. So, what does this mean for you, gargoyle gecko keeper?

Easy! Purchase a strip-style shade-dweller UVB bulb. They produce lower concentrations of UVB than the High Output UVB bulbs most people purchase for their basking reptiles. Avoid any coil UVB or mercury vapor bulbs entirely - these produce extremely concentrated spots of UVB which can be dangerous, rather than the strips which spread it across the enclosure.

(I personally use an Arcadia ShadeDweller Arboreal 2.4% T5 UVB fixture for my garg, she loves it!)

Humidity

Gargoyle geckos need mostly consistent humidity between 60-80%. This is best achieved by adding water to the substrate, and occasionally misting the enclosure. Misting the enclosure not only kicks up the humidity, it provides water droplets on the enclosure walls and decor which the gargoyle gecko will lick up for hydration. It’s best to use distilled water when misting the enclosure - this will prevent mineral build-up on surfaces and introduction of chlorine and chloramines from tap water. Letting the enclosure drop to ~50% humidity on occasion is acceptable and may help prevent mold and mildew buildup. Never allow the humidity to drop below 45%, and never below 55% when the gecko is in shed.

There are misting systems which can be set up on timers, which lowers the amount of effort required on your part! Just be sure to use reverse osmosis water (RO/DI) or distilled water, or you will clog your expensive mister with mineral build-up!

Decor and Hides

Decor and enrichment largely falls to personal preference. As long as the decor you provide your gargoyle gecko is safe for them and gives them opportunities to show natural behaviors, it will be beneficial. These geckos like to climb and jump between surfaces, so focus on providing climbing opportunities like branches and vines. Gargoyle geckos also enjoy clutter, so they have lots of places for them to hide and feel secure. Consider addings lots of branches, vines, live or fake plants, a hanging hide, and more to give your gecko an enriching and beautiful environment to live in.

Bioactive

Bioactive enclosures are self-sustaining environments that differ from naturalistic appearing enclosures by having live plants and a clean-up crew - or small invertebrates that consume waste and provide nutrients to the plants and a clean environment. Gargoyle geckos are great candidates for bioactive enclosures, as their waste output is manageable by clean-up crews, and tropical bioactive enclosures are straightforward to set up properly. Bioactive enclosure setups are too lengthy to include in this guide, so please see our Bioactive series for more information!

The Hatchling Gargoyle Gecko Enclosure

All of the information we have provided so far has been relevant for adult gargoyle geckos, but what about hatchling gargoyle geckos?

Hatchling gargoyle geckos are tiny and weigh less than 13 grams, which makes them fragile and difficult to locate in large enclosures. Ensuring your hatchling gargoyle gecko is healthy means that hatchling gargoyle gecko care differs from adult gargoyle gecko care for those reasons. Typically, the following enclosure recommendations are true until the gargoyle gecko reaches ~12 grams, which is usually around one year of age.

Enclosure Size and Substrate

A lot of people keep hatchling gargoyle geckos in a small ‘grow-out’ enclosure, which typically measure 8”x8”x12”. Hatchling gargoyle geckos are susceptible to impaction, which is a blockage caused by consuming non-digestible matter such as their substrate. This is a risk with any reptile, but since hatchling gargoyle geckos are so small the risk is higher for them. Adult gargoyle geckos are large enough that impaction with proper husbandry should not be a concern. For hatchling gargoyle geckos, we recommend using layers of paper towels as their substrate. Paper towel has very little risk of causing impaction (they would need to eat the paper towel) and doubles as being an easy substrate to track their health with via their waste. It may sound icky, but a lot of health issues are first apparent when visually inspecting a reptile’s waste - which is very easy to see on paper towels.

Heating, Lighting, and Humidity

The temperature and humidity requirements for hatchling gargoyle geckos is very similar to that of their adult counterparts. We recommend being less lenient with temperature and humidity fluctuations, and keep them as close to the recommendations as possible with a few modifications:

Their temperature should not exceed 80°F
Their humidity should not fall below 50%
Their nighttime temperature should not fall below 70°F
See UVB recommendation below:

Because hatchling gargoyle gecko enclosures are smaller than that of an adult, we recommend not using UVB light unless you are a very experienced keeper and have a solar meter. UVB distributes through the enclosure, and when the enclosure is prohibitively small it can be very easy to overdose UVB which can harm or kill your hatchling gargoyle gecko. To be safe, it may be best to skip UVB until the gargoyle gecko is large enough to go in its adult enclosure.

Everyday Life and Maintenance

Now that we have covered the enclosure, it’s time to get into other aspects of your gargoyle gecko’s husbandry!

Diet

Perhaps the most alluring aspect of gargoyle gecko care for new keepers is their diet. Gargoyle geckos consume insects, fruit, and nectar in the wild, which has been expertly replicated in prepared powdered diets. Normally, we never recommend prepared diets for reptiles, but these diets have been painstakingly researched and shown to be a fantastic way to provide the nutrition your gargoyle gecko needs. The prepared diets come in powder form, which is then mixed with water until it is the consistency of ketchup.

These powdered foods are often labeled as ‘Crested Gecko Diets’ because crested geckos are the most popular species that eat these powders. Fear not, these prepared diets are ideal for numerous species, including our gargoyle geckos!

Some great prepared diets include those made by:

Repashy
Pangea
Arcadia

There are others available, but these three are the easiest to find for most keepers. Do research on any food you provide your gargoyle gecko, but it’s tough to go wrong with any of these! There are many flavors available and your gecko may have preferences if they’re picky - feel free to try different flavors!

Where gargoyle gecko care differs slightly from crested gecko care here is that gargoyle geckos eat more protein than crested geckos. Whereas insects are optional (but encouraged) for crested geckos, they are required for gargoyle geckos.

When selecting feeder insects, be sure the insect is not larger than the width of the gargoyle gecko’s head. Hatchling gargoyle geckos should have live insects every 2-3 days as soon as they are big enough to eat tiny bugs.

Easy food items include small crickets, black soldier fly larvae, and small dubia roaches. These insects should be dusted in calcium powder.

Important note:

If you are using UVB - use calcium powder without vitamin D

If you are not using UVB - use calcium powder with vitamin D (Therefore given our care advice, hatchling gargoyle geckos’ insects should always be dusted with calcium powder with vitamin D!)

Avoid superworms and mealworms - they are high in chitin which gargoyle geckos may struggle to digest.

Hatchlings should be fed their prepared diets every day. Adults should be fed every 2-3 days.

Shedding

Gargoyle geckos, like other reptiles, shed their skin. They shed more frequently when they are growing, so younger geckos shed more often. Hatchling gargoyle geckos may shed once every week! Making sure their humidity levels are on point and even a bit higher while they are shedding is essential for their health. Stuck shed can occur if their husbandry is incorrect while they are shedding which can lead to a number of health problems. Never pull their shed off yourself. This can damage their skin if the shed is not completely ready to come off, and their skin is so fragile that it isn’t worth the risk.

Clean-Up and Health Check-Ins

Daily Maintenance

Provide your gargoyle gecko with a small water bowl. Gargoyle geckos usually lick water droplets off of surfaces, but they may utilize a water bowl also. Check your gargoyle gecko’s water often, and replace it daily with fresh water.

Fired Up/Down

Like crested geckos, gargoyle geckos will ‘fire up’ when they are excited, active, or sometimes for no specific reason at all! This causes a dramatic change in their coloration, and is no cause for concern. Fired up gargoyle geckos will have brighter, more bold colors. Some go from black to almost white!

Handling

Gargoyle geckos are fun to handle because they are very active. Their toes act like magnets on almost any surface, and they will happily climb all over you! Gargoyle geckos have an affinity for jumping, so be prepared for your gargoyle gecko to leap out of your hands! These geckos are small and fragile, so be wary when allowing small children to handle them. Never hold them by their tails.

A note on tails! Many lizard species, including gargoyle geckos are capable of dropping their tails as a defense mechanism. When a predator grabs the lizard by the tail, the lizard can ‘break off’ the tail and escape, leaving a very confused predator with a wiggly tail in front of them in their wake. Unlike crested geckos, gargoyle geckos do regrow their tails! Hurray!

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