iHerp Answers! mail us Problem? search Search       Create an Account, It's Free!
  Home > iHerp Answers > Help understanding Crested Gecko colors
Q: Help understanding Crested Gecko colors
Posted By:

HurricaneJen

In Relation To:

Mercury [FlameCrested2]

Hello everyone!

This isn't terribly urgent but the more I learn about cresteds, the more I like mine and the more curious I get about the colors.  And why certain animals cost so much! 

In as far as cost, my impression is that what you are generally paying for with a high end gecko is not only the color of the animal, but the genetics behind it - it was the result of selective breeding, so you have a better chance of the babies being just that much prettier or furthering your own breeding goal.  In this, cresteds seem to be a lot like pedigreed mammals, ie cats or dogs, where when you pay for a pedigreed animal you're not just paying for that animal, you're paying for its history and selective breeding.  Is this accurate or am I missing something?

Now, colors.  I adore the crap out of my little guys and have been picking them up one by one based on "oooh I like THAT one", pretty much.  Can anyone familiar with geckos tell me what the colors are?  I've attached a picture of my three smallest babies, and if you check the animal assigned, there should be a picture of my two bigger girls to check out as well. 

Thanks for any insight!  :)

~Jen


Points: 100
Topics: Skin
Tags: Color, Crestedgecko
Species: Lizards > Geckos > Correlophus ciliatus
Administrative: Show/Hide

Author Comment 2/24/2011 5:34:03 PM

HurricaneJen

Tried to attach pictures... didn't work so well!  So here's the three little babies....

and here's the two juvies:

 
Accepted Answer 2/24/2011 6:41:42 PM

ansli

Crested geckos are usually classified by their fired up color, that being said, I'm pretty sure you have a hand full of Harlequins (except for the baby on your thumb in the first photo) who looks like he has some minor side patterning, but I might would consider a flame.

Top Gecko on Thumb: Flame (Maybe a black or brown, I don't know what his fired up color would be) Dalmatian
Top Gecko on Fingers: 90-95% harley pinstripe
Top Gecko on Pinky: Partial pinstripe tri-color harley
Bottom Gecko Left: Red Harlequin
Bottom Gecko Right: Chocolate (that looks like it would be his fired up color) Harley Dalmatian.

Those are my opinions, I am sure there are other people who could help you more or give you better descriptions! Congrats, the Red Harley is nice. The top on-pinky-gecko is going to be a good looker also, but they're all nice.

 
Member Comment 2/24/2011 7:35:25 PM

Sylvias

Ansli got it right as far as I can say. With reptiles you are not necessarily getting animals based on health...the vast majority of what we breed and produce we do for color...not for healthy genetics... I mean look at spider ball pythons... they are well known for having a nuerological problem associated with their genetics yet we continue to breed them...for their color...not for their health.

a lot of reptiles are inbred in order to achieve desired color morphs so that also takes away from their genetic health yet if done carefully it wont immediately present any problems...

 
Author Comment 2/24/2011 8:13:00 PM

HurricaneJen

Thanks for the help on the colors!  The little guy on my thumb fires up to a kind of charcoal-y color, I'm hoping as he grows that he gets blacker.  I love that little red harlequin, she's gotten prettier and prettier the longer I've had her.

Sylvias - I was referring to selecting exclusively for color in reptile "pedigrees" (it's worth it to pay for 3 generations of color); although I don't see why we shouldn't also select for health.  I know when I hold back my baby ball pythons, I hold back the strongest feeders with the best color.  I have two spiders and neither one has a wobble, though both share the same father, who had a very slight wobble.
I bred fancy rats for a couple years and became very familiar with genetics, inbreeding, outcrossing, and selecting for traits while maintaining health in the line.  I wish more reptile breeders had a better grasp of how to select for vigor in addition to color, I think that would alleviate a lot of the problems we're starting to see pop up in populations that have been bred in captivity for extended periods of time (leopard geckos, anyone?).

But that's neither here nor there!  Thanks Ansli, that was the answer I was looking for.  :)  I'll leave this open for a while longer and see if anyone else has input on them too. 

 
Member Comment 2/24/2011 10:53:24 PM

ansli

I love the idea of cresteds being pedigree'd. I try to collect all the information on my geckos when I purchase. Of all the ones I have the info on- I have photos of their parents stored on my computer.

It seems to be very unpopular in the crested gecko community to inbreed or linebreed, however no thought to structure was put into breeding pairs. So now you have plenty of beautifully colored geckos that look like the sides of their heads were shaved (my gecko Wallace is a great example- hopefully I can get a nice fully-crested male to breed her with one day).

I'm glad you have experience with breeding fancy rats! I do wish more people put more thought into some of their pairings. Or people that think they can breed low-quality animals, sell the babies, and work up to high quality.

That little flame that is charcoal-y when fired will probably be black as adult, instantly making it my favorite :P I love black cresteds.

 
Member Comment 2/24/2011 11:42:34 PM

Ihkura

Here is a forum section dedicated to morphs and colors: Pangea Crested Gecko Morphs and Colors

You'll notice the user crestedkeeper has entire stickies devoted to things like, "Independent traits," "harlequin," "bi-color," etc. I highly recommend looking through all these sticky threads, they are the most informative and correct out there right now.

 
Member Comment 2/25/2011 12:23:08 AM

HerpAlicious

Just wanted to say that you've got some beautiful Cresteds! My hubby and I just starting adding Cresteds to our collection, so we're still learning a lot about the colors and morphs as well! We have some that look a lot like yours- like the one on your thumb and pinky in the first pic. 

 
Author Comment 2/25/2011 1:23:38 AM

HurricaneJen

I know if I was going to spend $200+ on an animal otherwise commonly available for $30, there'd better be a darn good reason! 

Ihkura, I actually had already checked that out and that was all great information.  It was the inbetween from looking at the website's descriptors and then back at my geckos that I wondered if I was just seeing more in them than was really there or if they were in fact what I'd hoped for - pretty little harly's and a pinstripe.  :)

Thanks again everyone!

You are not logged in. If you would like to participate (it's free!), you must log in, or Become a Member!
  

Member Login
Forgot My Password
Copyright ©2008, All Rights Reserved. iHerp, LLC | Terms of Use 11/8/2025 12:03:23 AM | 0.0.0.0