What you should know about Rhacodactylus Leachianus
So you want to get a leachie? Heres some imporant information you should know about these lovely wrinkle lumps. This is not a caresheet but just some general info about their types and behavior, because I don’t see it talked about often.
First off, when you say you want a leachie, you should know there are many different locales of R. leachianus. They come from New Caledonia, and each type comes from different parts of the country. Mainland leachianus are called Grand Terre (GT). They are larger and generally more aggressive than the island geckos. Grand Terre geckos can reach 15 inches in length and over 300 grams. Smaller, less aggressive leachianus (henkeli) can be found on offshore islands. However, each leachianus is different, you could have a calm GT and a feisty Henkeli! It all depends on the gecko. Some of the smaller island geckos such as Nuu Anas usually hover around 7-8 inches and 150-200 grams. Each locale has different characteristics such as coloring and shape. For example: Poindimes are usually darker in color with little patterning. Yates are commonly seen with longer snouts. Nuu Anas are known to have small, almost pushed in faces, short bodies a tilted iris. Mt Khogis are commonly seen with “bumps” on their nasal bridge, and so on… Below is a list of each gecko locale with links to it’s gallery page on Leapin Leachies website.
Grande Terre Geckos (Mainland)
Goro
Poindimié
Yaté
Mt. Humboldt
Mt. Koghis
Insular Geckos (Offshore)
Isle of Pines
Bayonnaise (Isle C)
Brosse (Isle D)
Moro (Isle E)
Nuu Ana (Isle G)
Nuu Ami (Isle H)
Duu Ana (Isle I)
Caanawa (Isle K)
To make this even more confusing, Grand Terre geckos are divided into types.
“Type A
Animals from eastern forests including Yate, Poindimie and possibly Mount Humboldt. Yate forms are lighter than Poindimie forms. These tend to have no to few small light (whitish) rounded blotches. Head is flattened. Snout scales on adults tend to be uniform. Up to 15 inches.
‘Mount Koghis’ Collected animals originated from the ‘Mount Koghis’ area. A distinct morph with heterogeneous snout scales. Males in particular tend to develop enlarged scales along the upper ridge of the snout. The head of mature males a larger angle (taller in back of head) compared to the more flattened heads of type A. Background color can vary from light to dark and there is a melanistic form. These geckos lack or have small light blotches and/or narrow light bars. Most captive animals are descendants from a pair owned by the late Michael Troger. Up to 14 inches.
Type B
Geckos of undetermined origins that were bred and imported as Grande Terre animals from Europe. Most are patterned with large white blotches or bars. Some could be leachianus x henkeli crosses. Adult size is typically between 12.5 and 14 inches.
Type C
Giant patterned geckos with white blotches that are descendants of a collected pair owned by Philip Tremper. These can reach 13 inches snout-to-vent length and up to 17 inches total length.
Type D
A tentative grouping for ‘Riviere Bleu’ and other Grande Terre that are patterned but have short snouts. Not much information on potential size. Only more samples and data on size and growth will allow us to determine a morphotype category for these animals, assuming they do not fit in any of the above.”
Breeding Grand Terre geckos with Henkelis is a common practice which usually results in beautiful color and large size. Nuu Ana and Nuu Ami leachianus are known for their high contrast colors and snowflake patterning. GT x Nuu Ana crosses are very popular in the hobby. Leachies are expensive and the price will vary based on color, size, and locale. There are some leachianus that have ‘unknown locale’ meaning we are not sure where they were acquired from. Sometimes these geckos are cheaper than pure or mixed locales. For example, my leachie is a Nuu Ana x unknown locale, we only know one part of her background.
Almost all leachianus show some degree of aggression, especially in their cages. They get very territorial about their space and will huff, grunt, snort, and whistle as warning signs. They are not afraid to lunge and bite if they feel threatened. Leachianus have very strong jaws and will take a chunk out of you! (think Tokay here). Leachies often will calm down once out of their cage, but it certainly does depend on the personality of the gecko. The only way to know if you’re going to get a calm gecko is to buy an adult that has previously had handling experience. When you buy a hatchling you run the risk of having the gecko turn into Diablo as it passes puberty. However, you could get lucky and end up with a Bubba (seen at NY reptile expo). They do like to explore and are generally not the most cuddly of creatures. If you want a gecko to chill and hang out with for long periods of time you may want to reconsider a leachie. You want to keep their stress levels minimal, and some will argue they shouldn’t be handled too often. Leachies will give you a good grunt if they feel uncomfortable and want to go back in their enclosures. So make sure you are prepared when choosing your wrinkle! These geckos are lovely animals but certainly require a lot of thought and research before making a purchase.
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