Range extension and distribution of the invasive Moreau’s Tropical House Gecko, Hemidactylus mabouia (Moreau de Jonnès, 1818) (Squamata: Gekkonidae), in Suriname

Abstract

We document a population of Moreau’s Tropical House Gecko, Hemidactylus mabouia (Moreau de Jonnès, 1818), at a remote Amerindian village, Kwamalasamutu, Suriname, South America. This village is approximately 370 km southwest of the northern coastal region where the presence of H. mabouia was previously recorded. Numerous individuals and a gravid female provide evidence of a viable population. The morphological characters of the two female specimens examined fall within the range of characters recorded from African and Ascension Island specimens. Due to its overland inaccessibility, we believe that colonization occurred anthropogenically through air or boat transport from the coastal region.