# Leopard Gecko Behaviour



## SleepyD (Feb 13, 2008)

This is part of a study I've been working on over the years and which I thought may be of help to others ~ big thanks go to Olivine, Suez and Jools for proof-reading the original study for me : victory:


We are often asked questions regarding how a leo moves its tail and why it does so or why does a leo do a specific thing, I hope the following article helps explain some aspects of a leopard geckos behaviour. 

 Leopard Gecko Behaviour 

Leos have a wide range of behaviour ie: movements and stances which ~ if recognized ~ can help understand your leo better and, if you keep several leos together, can sometimes forewarn you of possible problems. 
Usually when keeping just one leo most behaviour is not witnessed and even if keeping two or more together when certain behaviour patterns are more prevalent they are usually missed or mistaken for 'cuteness'. Leos often set up hierarchies when in groups and bullying can be quite common ~ bullying does not always involve them physically fighting.

Tail Movement 

The tail can be quite expressive; for instance most leos ~ especially younger ones ~ will display an excited tail ‘rattle’ movement just before pouncing on some livefood and many breeders are familiar with the sound and sight of a rapid 'thump,thump,thump' tail rattle of a male prior to mating where he rapidly vibrates his tail against an object (usually on the floor)… however a similar tail movement is also displayed by a male when seeing another leo in its territory. It can also be a precursor to fighting especially if the other leo replies with the same movement which signals that he is also possibly a male ~ I say possibly as sometimes a female has been known to ‘reply’ with this action and again it often precedes biting/fighting.
Another tail movement displayed by both sexes young and old is the slow 'S' shaped wave ~ usually (but not always) accompanied by them standing high on stiff legs ~ this generally happens if a leo feels threatened or territorial and is a 'flight or fight' signal ~ the leo will either run away from whatever has caused this reaction or in the case of another leo present (or even yourself) it will fight; and contrary to popular belief leos, especially adults, can bite quite hard ~ hard enough to break the skin and draw blood 

Bullying and Dominance 

The slow tail wag already described above is also one way for a leo to intimidate or bully another leo; other examples include ~ standing high on stiff legs and/or posturing in front of another leo; raising the neck/head from a relaxed horizontal position to a more vertical position as well as walking with its tail held stiffly off of the floor. 

The raised head is usually more often seen between two evenly sized leos where both will use the posture in a sort of ‘stiff neck’ competition ~ generally if both evenly matched then eventually they’ll both break at the same time and wander off as if nothing untoward had happened; if however one is smaller, younger etc then it will either break away first or not even attempt to challenge the ‘top’ female in which case it will always be the ‘under-dog’ and at the bottom of the pecking order. 

Gaping – opening the mouth wide – accompanied by stiff legged stance and raised neck is also a warning/ threat display and is sometimes accompanied by hissing, although more commonly used by hatchlings or young leos it can be seen in adults during dominance issues or when threatened.

Another form of bullying/domination is ‘following’ ~ by following after another leo the dominant leo is not only enforcing their position but also trying to drive the other out ~ unfortunately, unlike in the wild, the other leo has no escape from the situation.

Other less physical signs of bullying to watch out for would be ‘blocking’ where one leo constantly lies over or partially over a food dish thereby blocking the other one from getting to it ~ this behaviour is also used effectively to block another leo from a particular hide or section in the viv.
Scent can also be used to ‘bully’ or stress another leo. 

Scent and Taste 

Leopard geckos have quite a developed sense of taste and smell and will often use both extensively when checking out a new home or new furnishings and especially if put with another leo either through sniffing or by tasting/licking. 
Leos ~ particularly the males ~ can be territorial to one degree or another; males will often drag their vent area along the floor, over hides etc rubbing their pores along the surfaces and effectively scent marking ~ females have been witnessed exhibiting a similar behaviour and I have found that each gecko has its own unique ‘scent’ which is why ~ when introducing a new leo ~ either for mating or to form a group ~ they should be put together in a neutral and/or clean viv.
Several studies have shown that leopard geckos can ‘recognise’ not only their own territory, furnishings etc but also another gecko, which is why if bullying is suspected then I always advocate moving the stressed/bullied leo into a new home or viv not the dominant leo, as if the bullied/stressed leo is left in the original viv they will still have the scent of the other one there and will continue to be bullied/stressed by proxy.

Other important aspects on this is how it affects breeding and cohabitation, for instance two examples being ~
Why a female who seemingly failed to become gravid or mate while with one male is put fairly quickly with another; only for the second male to attack her
Why previously separated females ~ when put back together after separation exhibit the previous behaviour again ~ either bullying or fighting.

Lastly another aspect of a leos sense of smell and taste is how they can react to certain smells on their owners ~ it’s not unknown for a change in soap, deodorant etc to affect the leos reaction causing a previously ‘placid’ leo to go on the defensive or even for a male leo to become ‘enamoured’ with it’s owners hand ~ so if the leos behaviour changes and there is no obvious reason why check for any changes in the 'smell' department including yours.

Taking note of natural behaviour and what it means as opposed to 'humanising' it can help you to understand more about your leo and help avoid potential problems and to a degree un-necessary stress.

©SleepyDeeGeckos


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## purple-vixen (Feb 4, 2009)

I found that a very interesting, informative read. It was easy to follow and I learnt a few things from that.

Thanks very much for taking the time to put that up, if it was helpful to me, especially the scent paragraph, and I am sure lots of others will find it invaluable. 

Awesome


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## Chinn (May 10, 2010)

Thanks SleepyD this is very informative. I will be looking for any of these signs of behaviour from now on :2thumb:


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## SleepyD (Feb 13, 2008)

thanks both 
purple-vixen ~ glad you found the scent and taste section handy... it's another aspect that can often be missed.


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## purple-vixen (Feb 4, 2009)

It was very interesting. I always use the hand gel we have but I am always washing my hands during various tasks throughout the day, and therefore if I have washed my hands and then pick up Horacio for example, he does take a moment to taste my skin and wriggles a little. 

I never thought about it before much, so now I will stick to using the hand gel everytime. Saves the stress I can imagine. 

It's fascinating.


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## SleepyD (Feb 13, 2008)

purple-vixen said:


> I always use the hand gel we have but I am always washing my hands during various tasks throughout the day, and therefore if I have washed my hands and then pick up Horacio for example, he does take a moment to taste my skin and wriggles a little.
> 
> I never thought about it before much, so now I will stick to using the hand gel everytime. Saves the stress I can imagine.


*nods* many know that for instance handling a male forgetting to wash and handling another leo (male or female) can get a reaction but not that products we use can affect them........ another scent/smell that they can detect that we don't (not consciously anyway) is pheromones ~ both their own species and ours


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## purple-vixen (Feb 4, 2009)

SleepyD said:


> *nods* many know that for instance handling a male forgetting to wash and handling another leo (male or female) can get a reaction but not that products we use can affect them........ another scent/smell that they can detect that we don't (not consciously anyway) is pheromones ~ both their own species and ours


See I have only done that once, I put Horacio back, touched Lana, and she vibrated her tail and went mad, then I realised I forgot to wash my hands. 

Once I did that, she was fine. It's all actually a little bit of common sense thrown in with a little research and observation.

Aye, the pheromones, that's the same with the crested gecko, I got bitten because of not being careful :blush:

You learn all the time though, which is why I took the time to read your post. 

Jac


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## SleepyD (Feb 13, 2008)

purple-vixen said:


> Aye, the pheromones, that's the same with the crested gecko, I got bitten because of not being careful :blush:


:lol2: think we've all been caught out by that one way or another


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## Dingle87 (Apr 18, 2009)

Great read, very informative, 

I think this should be a sticky, would be great for newbies and also ppl like me that have kept them for two years and still got something out of it
:no1:


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## SleepyD (Feb 13, 2008)

Dingle87 said:


> Great read, very informative,
> 
> I think this should be a sticky, would be great for newbies and also ppl like me that have kept them for two years and still got something out of it
> :no1:


thankyou :blush:


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## MrMike (Jun 28, 2008)

Excellent Mel! :no1:


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## SleepyD (Feb 13, 2008)

MrMike said:


> Excellent Mel! :no1:


:blush::blush: am not blushing ~ it's a hot flush :blush::blush::lol2:


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## jillygirl (Feb 1, 2010)

Great read... interesting about the taste and smell... when my daughter puts her hand in the: victory: viv for my male to climb on her ignores her yet when i put mine in he walks straight over to me.. licks me, and climbs on board... he certainly knows me


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## olivine (Feb 5, 2009)

SleepyD said:


> :blush::blush: am not blushing ~ it's a hot flush :blush::blush::lol2:


Or the effects of a wee dram or two....? :whistling2:

Great post containing some excellent info :2thumb:


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## suez (Jul 8, 2007)

olivine said:


> Or the effects of a wee dram or two....? :whistling2:
> 
> Great post containing some excellent info :2thumb:


 
oh yes a very old wee dram :whistling2:

great info will help a lot of people : victory:


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## SleepyD (Feb 13, 2008)

olivine said:


> Or the effects of a wee dram or two....? :whistling2:



Great post containing some excellent info :2thumb:[/QUOTE]
not saying :whistling2: and thankyou 



suez said:


> oh yes a very old wee dram :whistling2:


lmao the best is always older : victory: 



> great info will help a lot of people : victory:


thanks hun can only hope so


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## swift_wraith (Jan 4, 2009)

extremely informative Mel.


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## cat001 (Mar 4, 2008)

This is the sort of information I love to read :no1:


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## Mal (Jul 22, 2007)

Fantastic piece of work Mel. Ive told you before and I will say it again. You should write a book about caring for leos. Of all the books available, most are basic guides (not many UK ones) or focussed mainly on leo morphs. Im sure there is a place for a guide that is written from experience and in a way that people can relate to.


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## jools (Apr 4, 2009)

Mal said:


> Fantastic piece of work Mel. Ive told you before and I will say it again. You should write a book about caring for leos. Of all the books available, most are basic guides (not many UK ones) or focussed mainly on leo morphs. Im sure there is a place for a guide that is written from experience and in a way that people can relate to.


I completely agree with this. You have so much knowledge and can put things in a very clear and concise way.

As for hot flushes - you're FAR too young for that surely :lol2:


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## SleepyD (Feb 13, 2008)

Mal said:


> Fantastic piece of work Mel. Ive told you before and I will say it again. You should write a book about caring for leos. Of all the books available, most are basic guides (not many UK ones) or focussed mainly on leo morphs. Im sure there is a place for a guide that is written from experience and in a way that people can relate to.


:blush: thanks Mal that means a lot ~ I don't know if I'd do a book though as to be honest even after all these years I'm still learning new things myself and I am by no means an authority on leos.......... and sides which when would I get the time to write it :lol2::lol2:


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## geks (May 18, 2010)

*TY*

Good on you for taking the time to write that barrie piece.Ive done lots of research and got my son one for his birthday he only 1month old (geks that is ha)I will be looking out for anymore advice you put on.
TY:2thumb:


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## hollydominique (Apr 8, 2009)

*moar scenting behaviours!*

Brilliant post 

They have lots of great behaviours and I've seen a lot of these!

Something one of my leos did when I moved her to a temporary tank (which previously had a snake in - but I had cleaned/disinfected it as best I could) was quite odd.

She licked her face as much as she could (flicking her tounge out the side of her mouth stretching back really far - looked weird almost like a crestie!) and then would rub her face along the sides of the tank.

The other thing she did was much like bears scent mark. She licked her front feet and then stretched up as high as she could on her back legs (to make herself appear bigger I guess!) and would rub her hands high up on the sides of the tank!

One of my leos is very talkative. Shes quite a bit heavier than the others and if taken out and forced to excersise she sometimes makes a straining 'groan' if pulling herself up, and will chatter when shes had enough and wants to go back. The others are silent most of the time.

Another thing - my girls did have some disagreements the first couple of months but since they seem to have settled down. Instead they lick each others faces when they see each other - is this some sort of 'who are you' or scenting messages?

They make me giggle! :2thumb:


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## SleepyD (Feb 13, 2008)

leo behaviour questions have cropped up a couple of times recently both in threads and pm's so thought it worth bumping this up for people as opposed to pointing them to the link : victory:


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## Jeffers3 (May 18, 2010)

Top effort!:no1:

I agree with Mal that a book that deals with Leopard Geckos, without just focussing on breeding pretty skin patterns is really needed. I have a book at home and, to be honest, I almost wonder whether the author has ever watched any Leopard Geckos. There is a load of rubbish information in the book - you had more useful and interesting information in your short article than I found in the entire book!


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## SleepyD (Feb 13, 2008)

:blush: thanks ~ glad you found it informative : victory:
As to a printed effort ... that may be in the pipeline at a later date when I have more time to collate all my personal studies, scribbles etc into a coherent format


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## deevtec (Mar 31, 2010)

Xcellent very informative well done max. Kudos to you


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## jools (Apr 4, 2009)

I have always said that SleepyD should write a book on Leos (have tried a few times to persuade her lol). Most books that are available here are either fairly out of date or American (no offense to our friends across the pond but there are a few differences in things like equipment / livefood availablity etc.)


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## dorian (Nov 27, 2010)

My male leo which is a whopper still shakes his tail before pouncing on its prey, he's still a little kid inside


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## IainGecko (Mar 20, 2011)

A Brilliant guide lots of excellent information there thank you


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## mandyT (Aug 23, 2007)

very good, printed off and put in folder of general notes. thank you


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## Dreamz21 (Apr 12, 2009)

superb read sleepy :2thumb: loads of top info there :no1:

thanks for taking the time to put this together and sharing


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