A Guide to the Amphibians
and Reptiles of California

Coleonyx variegatus abbotti - San Diego Banded Gecko

Click on a picture for a larger view

Range in California: Green

Red: Desert Banded Gecko

Listen to a gecko of this species.

See more pictures of this lizard
from Baja California here

Adult, Riverside County

Adult, San Diego County. © Stuart Young

Adult, Riverside County

Sub-adult, Riverside County

Adult, San Diego County. © Nathan Smith

Desert Banded Gecko on left with San Diego Banded Gecko on right for comparison. © Bruce Edley

Habitat

Habitat, Riverside County

Habitat, San Diego County

Short Video

Watch a short video of this gecko crawling along a boulder.

Description

Size

2 - 3 inches long from snout to vent (5.1 - 7.6 cm).

Appearance

A small, slender lizard with movable eyelids and vertical pupils. The head is triangular in shape and wider than the neck, and is usually not spotted, but dark in color. There is a narrow, light collar mark, extending from the eyes to the collar. The skin is soft with fine granular scales (without tubercles). Toes are long and slender. Tail is constricted at the base.

Color pattern is variable, with a pale yellow, pink, or light gray background, and tan or brown bands on the body and tail. These bands typically are uniform in color and do not break up into blotches as they do on adult C. v. variegatus. The width of the dark bands is equal to or narrower than the width of the light areas. Juveniles tend to have more prominent unbroken bands.

Males have spurs on each side of the base of the tail.

Behavior

Active at night, hiding in burrows or under surface objects during daylight. Hibernates through the winter (generally November to February).
Curls the tail up and waves it back and forth off the ground when stalking prey.
When grasped, this gecko may emit a short squeak. Listen.
When threatened, it may drop its tail to distract a predator. The tail will grow back, typically without the banding pattern matching the rest of the lizard's body.

Diet

A variety of small invertebrates.

Reproduction

Breeding occurs during April and May. Females lay 1 or two eggs from May to September, which hatch in 45 days.

Range

In California, Coleonyx variegatus abbotti is found in the interior southern coastal region, generally west of the Peninsular ranges and south of the Transverse ranges, and north up the coast to Ventura County. It ranges beyond California south into Baja California to just north of the Viscaino Desert where it intergrades with the Mexican subspecies, C. v. peninsularis.

The species C. variegatus ranges through most of Southern California north into the extreme southern part of Nevada and the southwestern tip of Utah, across northwest, southwest, and southeast Arizona into the bootheel of New Mexico, and south down the western edge of the state of Sonora, Mexico and down the entire length of Baja California.

Habitat

Prefers rocky areas in coastal sage and chaparral.

Taxonomic Notes

The species Coleonyx variegatus consists of four supspecies in the US, (two in California) with two more in Mexico.

Conservation Issues (Conservation Status)

This subspecies has dissappeared from much of its former habitat as the region has been heavily developed.

Taxonomy
Family	Gekkonidae (Eublepharidae)	Geckos
Genus	Coleonyx	Banded Geckos
Species	variegatus	Western Banded Gecko
Subspecies	abbotti	San Diego Banded Gecko
Original Description
Coleonyx variegatus - (Baird, 1858) - Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, Vol. 10, p. 254 Coleonyx variegatus abbotti - Klauber, 1945 - Trans. San Diego Soc. Nat. Hist., Vol. 10, No. 11, p. 154 from Original Description Citations for the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America © Ellin Beltz
Meaning of the Scientific Name
Coleonyx - Greek: koleos - sheath and onyx - nail, talon or claw- refers to sheathed claws variegatus - Latin - of different colors - refers to contrasting elements of color pattern abbotti - honors Abbott, Clinton G. from Scientific and Common Names of the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America - Explained © Ellin Beltz
Alternate Names
None
Related or Similar California Lizards
Desert Banded Gecko - C. v. variegatus Peninsular Banded Gecko - C. switaki
More Information and References
Natureserve Explorer California Dept. of Fish and Game Stebbins, Robert C. A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians. 3rd Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2003. Behler, John L., and F. Wayne King. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians. Alfred A. Knopf, 1992. Powell, Robert., Joseph T. Collins, and Errol D. Hooper Jr. A Key to Amphibians and Reptiles of the Continental United States and Canada. The University Press of Kansas, 1998. Lemm, Jeffrey. Field Guide to Amphibians and Reptiles of the San Diego Region (California Natural History Guides). University of California Press, 2006. Bartlett, R. D. & Patricia P. Bartlett. Guide and Reference to the Turtles and Lizards of Western North America (North of Mexico) and Hawaii. University Press of Florida, 2009. Jones, Lawrence, Rob Lovich, editors. Lizards of the American Southwest: A Photographic Field Guide. Rio Nuevo Publishers, 2009. Smith, Hobart M. Handbook of Lizards, Lizards of the United States and of Canada. Cornell University Press, 1946. Grismer, L. Lee. Amphibians and Reptiles of Baja California, Including Its Pacific Islands and the Islands in the Sea of Cortés. The University of California Press, 2002. McPeak, Ron H. Amphibians and Reptiles of Baja California. Sea Challengers, 2000.

Conservation Status
The following status listings come from the Special Animals List which is published several times each year by the California Department of Fish and Game.
Organization	Status Listing
U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA)	None
California Endangered Species Act (CESA)	None
California Department of Fish and Game	None
Bureau of Land Management	None
USDA Forest Service	None
Natureserve Global Conservation Status Ranks	G5T3T4S2S3	Secure
World Conservation Union - IUCN Red List	LC	Least Concern

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