1 species (Coborn,1995). I have never seen any in captivity or offered for sale.
| Scientific Name | Common Name | Distribution | Size | Notes |
| Chondrodactylus | ||||
| C. angulifer
|
(Namib) Sand Gecko | Southern Africa (S. Namibia, Botswana, RSA [Cape Province]) | 7" | Robust terrestrial gecko of the savannahs and deserts, distinguished by a relatively large head and the comb-like scales on its digits (hence the Latin name) that enable it to cross sand. It is attractively marked, with an overall brownish hue with various markings (often chevron-shaped) down the back. Males can be told apart by a number (one to four) of white markings with dark outlines on their back or sides. In the wild they often install themselves in the burrows of other animals, and in captivity they like to burrow in the substrate (obviously necessitating a deeper amount of sand than usual). They are nocturnal. Coborn recommends a terrarium of 18" x 12" x 12" for a pair, Rogner a desert terrarium of 50 x 40 x 40cm for 2-3 animals. Substrate should be a mixture of coarse sand and shingle, with burrows formed either from rocks (glued together to avoid accidental collapse through lizard activity) or strong plastic piping. Temperatures should rise to 86 deg F/30 deg C during the day with a "hot spot" of about 35 deg C in one corner, but at twilight the heaters should be all turned off so that temperatures can drop to room levels, simulating the very noticeable decrease in desert temperatures at night. Lights should obviously also go off at this time. Only Sand Geckos of similar size should be kept together as these geckos will eat smaller lizards, including possibly their own species. |
The information above was culled from a number of sources, including Mattison:
Lizards of the World, Mattison
Keeping and Breeding Lizards, Mattison
Geckos: Keeping and Breeding Them in Captivity, Walls and Walls, TFH 1999.
Breeding and Keeping Geckos, Coborn, TFH 1995.
Echsen [Lizards] 1, Rogner, Ullmer, 1992
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