This little guy lives behind our toilet. He's teeny--just about an inch long--and so fast you'd miss him if you blinked!
This is one of at least four adult lizards we have in the house. One of them lost its tail and it makes me wonder what else we have creeping around he could have scrapped with to lose his behind.
One thing is for sure, for such a tiny creature, they make a lot of noise. I had no clue that reptiles can make little chirping sounds, but these do... and they do so rather loudly!!
Evidently, these guys are native Hondurans who end up hitching rides on plátano shipments.
Finally, this little guy is one that Mi Amor was none too pleased about. He says that back in the day they used to chase you and bite you (even though this one was all of 3 inches long and very definitely afraid of me). He's definitely much more menacing looking than the other guys... if a 3 inch lizard can be menacing.
All in all, the flora and fauna is definitely keeping me entertained.
7 comments:
My husband swears to me that those (the last picture) are dangerous and MUST be killed. They came from the US supposedly, and they are the bad geckos. Ok, so I know they aren't geckos, but my kids call them the bad geckos. He wont tell me why they are dangerous, just that they are. It makes me wonder if they really are or not. I do know that they run fast, LOL.
~Jennifer
http://followingmycatracho.blogspot.com
Ay, the bugs...that is the one thing that I think I would have a problem with if we decide to move to El Salvador or Honduras one day...I would have to invest in some good screens, and a mosquito net. I think my biggest issue would be with spiders. I HATE spiders, especially big ones. And all other kinds of creepy big bugs. Lizards and ants don't bother me, as long as they don't bite me. I remember those lizard noises from when I was in Mexico.
An interesting story which I believe to be true is that a gringo doctor (Phd. in agriculture, I believe) imported geckos to Honduras about 30 years ago. They do a terrific job of keeping the house clean of bugs and they are entertaining. We rarely ever find a fly in our house or spider, except for the mini-daddy-longlegs, which are apparently not to their taste.
The ants are another story! From the tiny little "crazy ants" to the stinging fire ants to the destructive leaf cutter ants -- we seem to have them all. Thankfully, they generally stay outside.
I'm so glad to hear that, Gringa! Maybe there's hope for me yet!
Jennifer, I was trying to do some research and they look similar to, but not exactly like, the Four-lined Amieva... if that's what they are, I saw nothing saying they were dangerous. However, as both of our men say it's bad, I would tend to think they're bad too! :)
LS, I'm getting over the creepiness of the bugs, I just can't stand that they are everywhere. Because our house is so open, the ants have no problem making themselves at home inside and it's just annoying. I want to build a home just to have some screens in the windows and to put better seals on the doors and windows! The mosquitoes are horrible. We're still trying to figure out the best way to keep them away. For some reason, La Hija and I are the only ones they bite... and we both have been feasted on.
LG, I do enjoy the house geckos. La Hija keeps asking for a ladder so she can go see them! As far as the ants go, I sure wish our ants would be as polite as yours and stay out of the house!! ;)
You must spray the ants. Spray around the outside of the house and possibly spray the grass. I love the geckos because they eat all the other bugs. The creepy thing is when they lose their tails as an escape. But they sometimes just pop them off when they are in danger. So gross when they keep wiggling.
Those other lizards. I think I've heard they will bite. But they run away really fast most of the time.
My husband is a mosquito freak. He hunts them down in the house almost every night to make sure no one gets bit. Me, being from MN and since we have horrible mosquitoes there in the summer, I don't seem to be bothered by them much. Unfortunately, we have to worry about malaria and denge.
Mama Sprout, does he have any secrets for keeping the mosquitoes away? We've tried just about everything and they still find their way to us... which makes me paranoid for if La Hija even shows the slightest sign of a fever.
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