Most people tend to show a special repulsion towards reptiles. Maybe it's because of that disturbing touch of poikilothermic or cold-blooded animals: a touch that many link with that of death.
In any case, it is an atavistic, irrational feeling that does not allow us to assess in its proper measure the important role played by reptiles for the normal functioning of natural ecosystems.
Because beyond that natural aversion, the truth is that reptiles fulfill a fundamental mission as pest controllers, keeping at bay, for example, the populations of insects and arachnids of our environment.
That is the case of the salamanquesa (Tarentola mauritanica): the famous dragon that on summer nights is usually seen on the outer walls and the low roofs of buildings, crouched in the shadows; an animal as fascinating as it is beneficial to human beings.
The gecko is one of the most common reptiles in the domestic environments of cities and towns, where it usually becomes the habitual (not parasite) tenant of our homes. Because despite all the legends that drag against him, the truth is that this little saur is totally harmless.
The false belief that it feeds on the clothes of the cabinets is as crazy as it is unfair, because besides not causing any damage to the tissues, its mere presence is the best dissuasive agent of the moths, which are those that lay their eggs between the garments so that the larvae feed on them.
Knowing this and many other virtues associated with their company, the people of the field not only do not bother them but are complacent in their presence, they know that with them hanging around the outside of the house reduces the presence of insects that parasitize the home.
If we stop to observe its anatomy and its behavior, far from being scared we will be fascinated by the biology of this curious nocturnal reptile. With a size of about 15 centimeters from head to tail, its skin, rough, scaly, grayish brown or ashen gray, allows it to blend in with the texture of the walls and ceilings in which it establishes its territory.
There it remains for most of the day, half hidden in any molding or ledge, until night falls. Then he goes stealthily to the limits of the shadows to stop, just before the light of his presence, and stay for long minutes completely motionless, waiting for the precise moment to swoop by surprise on their prey: moths, turtles, flies and mosquitoes, spiders, beetles, cockroaches ... its menu is made up of the least esteemed visitors of our homes.
Scientists have discovered that the secret of these reptiles to show such amazing ability of adherence is in sophisticated pilosities that conserve between the folds of the palms of the hand. Thanks to these filaments, they can move vertically on any surface, including the glass of the windows.
If we have the opportunity to admire these curious geckos in detail, with the help of binoculars, we will be struck by the appearance of their huge eyes: golden, like fillers of glitter, and with a vertical black pupil that crosses the eyeball from top to bottom to give it that galactic creature aspect.
When the summer passes, any hole will serve as a burrow to spend the winter without causing any discomfort, reserving their strength to start again their amazing raids on walls and ceilings as soon as spring arrives.
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