Per usual, I spotted this weeks observation while walking my dog. At first, this little gecko seemed so cute in my eyes. (I definitely have friends who would disagree with the word “cute” for a gecko, as they are terrified of them. Yes, even when they are this small). Upon identifying this little thang, I found out that it is invasive to the US. In fact, the website that helped me identify it is called texasinvasives.org. Its most established populations in the US are in Florida.
According to the website, they are resistant to pesticides and have an ability to reproduce rapidly, capable of laying multiple clutches of two eggs during the summer. Because of these traits, they have steady populations across the Southern US. However, these populations are disjunct, and therefore there is hope for native species according to that same website. The Mediterranean house gecko (Hemidactylus turcicus) is also mostly found in developed areas, as its common name implies. They will often be seen at night below sources of light, eating insects.
My iNaturalist observation can be found here.