Planted vertical terrarium 30×30×45cm+ for a small group
Social needs
Unusually social; small all-female groups thrive
Diet
Fruit-gecko diet powder + tiny insects
Time
Low-Medium (daily misting, feeds)
Cost
Low-Medium
Overview
The mourning gecko is a tiny tropical gecko with a remarkable trait: the species is parthenogenetic, so virtually all individuals are females that lay viable eggs without a male.
Every animal in the hobby is effectively part of one extended clone line.
Unlike almost every other pet reptile, mourning geckos genuinely do well in small groups, squeaking and chirping to each other after dark.
Their size, hardiness, and social behaviour make them a superb first arboreal gecko — as long as escape-proofing is taken seriously.
Housing
A planted, vertically oriented terrarium of at least 30×30×45cm suits a group of two to four; bigger is better and live plants double as cover and humidity buffers.
Cork bark, bamboo, and broad leaves give climbing routes and egg-laying sites.
Keep the enclosure at 24-28C with a mild ambient drop at night and humidity around 60-80%, misting daily.
These geckos are tiny and quick, so every gap, wire pass-through, and door seam must be escape-proofed.
Diet
A commercial fruit-gecko meal-replacement powder (the same products used for crested geckos) can form the staple, offered fresh two to three times a week in small cups.
It covers vitamins and calcium when prepared correctly.
Supplement with tiny live insects such as fruit flies, bean beetles, or pinhead crickets once or twice a week, dusted with calcium.
Remove uneaten wet food before it sours in the humid enclosure.
Health
Mourning geckos are hardy when humidity and temperature are right; problems usually trace back to dehydration, stuck sheds on toes, or calcium deficiency in heavily laying females.
A fine misting routine and dusted insects prevent most of it.
Expect eggs: females glue pairs of eggs to glass and plants year-round, and hatchlings are mosquito-sized escape artists.
Plan for population growth or remove eggs, and rehome surplus responsibly.
Temperament
These are watch-and-listen pets, active mostly after dark and far too small and fast for handling.
The trade-off is genuinely engaging group behaviour: chirping, tail-waving, and squabbles over the best feeding ledge.
A pecking order is normal in groups; provide multiple feeding stations and visual barriers so lower-ranked animals eat and rest in peace.
Small geckos dehydrate and lose condition quickly, and the tail is the fuel gauge.
Go now
Tremors, weak grip, or a jaw that will not close properlyGo now. Calcium and D3 deficiency.
Now
Today
Tail visibly thinning in a species that stores fat thereWeigh, then call with the trend. The fat store goes before the body condition does.
Today
Stuck shed around the toes or over the eyesRaise humidity, offer a damp hide, and call if it is not clear within a day. Constricting shed rings cost toes. This is the most common avoidable injury in geckos.
Today
Refusing food with weight lossCheck the cool-end and warm-end temperatures, then call. A gecko that cannot reach its preferred temperature cannot digest.
Today
This is general guidance for a healthy adult, not a diagnosis. An exotics vet who knows your animal always overrides it — and the time to find one is before you need one.
Can a mourning gecko eat that?
Geckos split into two diets that share almost nothing: insectivores like the leopard gecko, and the fruit-and-insect species like the crested gecko. Check which one you have.
Never (13)
AlcoholNo safe amount at any body weight on this site.
never
AvocadoPersin.
never
CaffeineCoffee, tea and energy drinks. Cardiac and neurological toxicity at tiny doses for an animal this size.
never
ChocolateTheobromine and caffeine. Small mammals and reptiles cannot clear either.
never
CitrusAcidic, and it blocks calcium absorption.
never
FirefliesLucibufagins. Fatal to geckos.
never
GarlicSame allium toxicity as onion, and more concentrated by weight.
never
Insects larger than the gap between the eyesA recognised cause of impaction and neurological injury in small geckos. Size the feeder to the animal, every time.
never
LeekAllium family. Same mechanism as onion and garlic.
never
OnionOrganosulphur compounds damage red blood cells. The whole allium family is out.
never
RhubarbVery high in soluble oxalate, high enough to cause acute kidney injury. The leaves are worse than the stalks.
never
Salty or seasoned human foodSalt, oil and seasoning. Crisps, chips, seasoned leftovers and processed meat are all out.
never
Wild-caught insectsPesticides and parasites.
never
Rare treats (1)
WaxwormsVery fatty and habit-forming. Useful to get weight on a thin animal. One or two, rarely.
rare treat
Occasional (4)
HornwormsHigh water content; useful for a dehydrated animal. One occasionally.
occasional
Mashed fruitFor crested and gargoyle geckos only, and only as a supplement to a complete diet. Never for a leopard gecko. A small amount, alongside the complete diet.
occasional
MealwormsHard chitin and a poor calcium ratio. A leopard gecko fed only mealworms is a leopard gecko heading for calcium problems. A few alongside better feeders.
occasional
SuperwormsFatty. One or two.
occasional
Everyday foods (4)
Black soldier fly larvaeHigh in calcium, and readily taken. Several per feed.
everyday food
Complete crested gecko diet powderFor crested, gargoyle and chahoua geckos only, mixed with water. A complete food and the simplest way to feed those species correctly. Fresh, every other day, for fruit-eating species.
everyday food
CricketsStandard feeder. Gut-load for 24 hours before offering. Sized to the eye gap.
everyday food
Dubia roachesThe best routine feeder for insectivorous geckos. Sized no wider than the space between the eyes.
everyday food
That food is not on our list. Check which kind of gecko you have first — the two diets barely overlap — then ask an exotics vet.
Dust feeders with calcium to the schedule in the species guide, and keep a small dish of plain calcium available for insectivorous species.
Setup, monthly, first year and across a whole life, itemised and with the electricity worked out from the actual wattage. Published figures for the same animal disagree by a factor of four, so the calculator shows ranges rather than picking one.
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