Mo’o - Gecko

Every morning, the kids fight over who gets to open the "gecko door," the screen door leading down the stairs where the mo’o live. We have a family of at least three. Although there were more before "the accident."

RaeRae had a visitor in her room one night. It was a Madagascar gold dust day gecko. Unlike the other types of lizards and geckos that sneak inside, this one was cute. I tried to catch it or chase it outside, but it just ran around the ceiling, so we let him stay. And he stayed for two days, and during that time he became her "best gecko fwiend" and she couldn't sleep without him watching over her.

Reading to her gecko "fwiends"

One night, I shut the window to keep out the rain. But it didn't shut quite right. I didn't think about it until the next day, when I saw something that used to resemble a gecko in the window frame. Thankfully it was up high enough that Rae couldn't see the mess. I enlisted the help of Kyle to get it out and dispose of it before she could find out. She was disappointed that her gecko "fwiend" wasn't watching her at bedtime, but she thought he'd return the next day after getting some bugs.

Those happy thoughts didn't last long, as I heard crying in the bathroom. Seems the gecko had been disposed of in the toilet, but not flushed. To this day, she'll occasionally ask "Who smashed my best gecko fwiend"?

Distinctive gold spots on his neck and tail

As you can tell by their name, the Madagascar gold dust geckos are not native to Hawaii, which usually is a problem for plant and animal species. For some species, like their larger cousin the giant day gecko, you should call and report a sighting, but not these cute little guys. For a brief history of geckos in Hawaii, you can read more here.

They startle easily, sorry for the shot through the screen door

There are other kinds of lizards and geckos around, but they are mostly nocturnal - and uglier. Although we might be influenced by the talking mo‘o from the Geico ads, we love seeing these guys. Not only are they brightly colored, but they also eat nasty bugs!

And we'll be a little more careful with doors and windows so hopefully we won't have any more tragic accidents in the future!