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Ringed wall gecko

Tarentola annularis · Lizards · Reptiles

Ringed wall gecko (Tarentola annularis): Large, stocky gecko, up to about 15 cm total length (USGS notes about 108 mm snout-vent). Gray to tan back covered with rows of large rough tubercular scales; a distinctive group of four white spots on the shoulders. This profile does not establish whether taking it is legal anywhere.

Check rules for a place and dateOpen the ringed wall gecko map

Certified rules currently represented in Hunt: coverage in development. This is coverage, not a legal answer.

Scientific name
Tarentola annularis
Family
Gekkonidae
In North America
Introduced
Range
Native to northern and Saharan/sub-Saharan Africa. Introduced in the United States: Florida (known since the 1990s from scattered sites including Lee and Miami-Dade counties) and California (Redlands, San Bernardino County, since the early 2000s; San Juan Capistrano, Orange County, 2020); NatureServe lists it as non-native. Not in Canada.
Biology

How to identify it

Large, stocky gecko, up to about 15 cm total length (USGS notes about 108 mm snout-vent). [1][2][3]

Gray to tan back covered with rows of large rough tubercular scales; a distinctive group of four white spots on the shoulders. [1][2][3]

White belly with shingle-like round, slightly overlapping scales; large bulging eyes with fixed transparent covering. [1][2][3]

Undivided toepads (house geckos have divided pads). [1][2][3]

Compared with the common (moorish) wall gecko: Lacks the two pairs of white shoulder spots (GeckoWeb). [1][2][3]

Compared with the bibron's thick-toed gecko: Lacks the pairs of white shoulder spots (GeckoWeb). [1][2][3]

Field notes

  • Identification Confirm a ringed wall gecko before you act. Compared with the common (moorish) wall gecko: Lacks the two pairs of white shoulder spots (GeckoWeb).[1][2][3]
Field knowledge

Where it lives

Introduced populations are associated with buildings and urban environs; in its native North African range habitat is desert. [1][2][3]

Field knowledge

How it behaves

In Florida lives on the walls of buildings; pugnacious, bites and squeaks when grabbed. [1][2][3]

Preys on insects and smaller lizards, including house geckos; native-range clutches are 1-2 eggs, several per year. [1][2][3]

Regulatory handoff

Where it is listed for removal or nuisance take

These authorities list this species as nuisance, invasive or unprotected wildlife that may be taken. This is not a game season.

Where legal take is listed

Being listed is not an open season. Seasons, zones, licences, methods and limits decide whether this animal may be taken on a given day and place — check Hunt or the authority before you go. Listings read 2026-09-30.

Geospatial intelligence

Where it is found

Native to northern and Saharan/sub-Saharan Africa. Introduced in the United States: Florida (known since the 1990s from scattered sites including Lee and Miami-Dade counties) and California (Redlands, San Bernardino County, since the early 2000s; San Juan Capistrano, Orange County, 2020); NatureServe lists it as non-native. Not in Canada.

Biology

Sources

Every claim above is attributed to one of these published sources.

  1. NatureServe · reviewed 2026-09-30

    NatureServe

  2. U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center · reviewed 2026-09-30

    U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center

  3. GeckoWeb, Finding Species · reviewed 2026-09-30

    GeckoWeb, Finding Species