Understanding Invasive Species in the Galapagos Islands by María de Lourdes Torres & Carlos F. Mena

Author:María de Lourdes Torres & Carlos F. Mena
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Springer International Publishing, Cham

Common house gecko Hemidactylus frenatus is a nocturnal species native to Southeast Asia (Lever 2003). It has invaded several areas across the planet, including many islands in the Indian and Pacific oceans and several areas of Africa and America and currently has the widest worldwide non-native distribution of its genus (Lever 2003; Kraus 2009). Torres-Carvajal and Tapia (2011) reported the first record of H. frenatus in Galapagos, based on five individuals found at Puerto Villamil, Isabela Island, but an established population was not confirmed. On 24 October 2016, three H. frenatus were recorded at Puerto Villamil, thus suggesting that an established population is indeed present in Isabela Island (T. Schramer and Y. Kalki, in litt. 2016). It seems to have also established in Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, San Cristobal Island, where over ten individuals were recorded between September and November 2016 in human buildings (T. Schramer and Y. Kalki, in litt. 2016). Due to its recent arrival, no information is available for any type of interactions or effects of H. frenatus on the endemic Phyllodactylus geckos. However, its arrival has raised concerns due to reported impacts on native fauna in other areas where it has established (Torres-Carvajal and Tapia 2011; Torres-Carvajal 2015). Hemidactylus frenatus has outcompeted and excluded non-native Lepidodactylus lugubris from several Pacific islands by competitive exclusion (Petren and Case 1998; Kraus 2009). Preliminary evidence suggests that H. frenatus may be also excluding L. lugubris in San Cristobal (T. Schramer and Y. Kalki, in litt. 2016). At the Mascarene Islands, H. frenatus contributed to the decline and population extirpation of endemic geckos of the genus Nactus (Cole et al. 2005). Furthermore, it could carry novel parasites that might impact native reptile species (Hoskin 2011).

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