Mediterranean Gecko
Hemidactylus turcicus
Photographed in Phoenix, Arizona, October 2003.
This nocturnal lizard is native to the Mediterranean region, but is now common in warm climate areas of the southern United States. Mediterranean Gecko is most common in urban areas; it would be unlikely to find it in undisturbed Sonoran Desert habitat.
Mediterranean Gecko has warty skin with spots and bands. These lizards have special padded feet that allow them to move on verticle or even inverted surfaces, which our native Western Banded Gecko -- Coleonyx variegatus -- lack. They can also make faint clicks and squeaks as part of their mating and alarm communications.