Saturday, January 29, 2011

Wildlife Photo: Ryukyu (Okinawa) Ground Gecko an Endangered Species

Photo by Shawn Miller taken with a Nikon D3000 18-55mm lens at focal length 44mm  f/5.3  1/60 using camera flash.  Location: In the dark jungles of Onna Son Okinawa, Japan  1 MAY 2010.

The Ryukyu Ground Gecko (Goniurosaurus kuroiwae)  is an Endangered Species found only on the Okinawa Islands and Tokunoshima of the Amami Islands.

These creatures cannot climb trees. They don't have the specialized suction cup toe pads seen on most geckos so, are restricted to ground areas.

Their diet consists of worms, insects and spiders. Unlike other geckos, these critters can close their eyelids.

The fact that this animal is rare has contributed to it being endangered. Exotic pet dealers have created a black market trade for them.

If you spot an Okinawa Ground Gecko anywhere outside these islands call the authorities and have the greedy humans thrown in jail. They kidnapped an endangered species.

Make them send the Goniurosaurus kuroiwae back to the Ryukyu Islands where they belong !

See more of Shawn Miller's OKINAWA NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY HERE



8 comments:

VagabondQuest said...

Gorgeous eyes!

RyukyuMike said...

VagabondQuest,
Thank you and I thank you for Shawn, the cameraman who do the shooting. I hope you visit his Flickr page and give him a ThumbsUp over there !

Cheers,
Mike

Jim said...

Good shot! And the trade in exotic species needs to be stamped out. Glad you highlighted it.

RyukyuMike said...

Jim,
Thanks. A friend named Shawn made the shot. I'll pass your kind words along to him. And, yes, I do what I can to highlight our endangered species so, if you ever snag a photo of one and want me to promote it, give me a holler !

Cheers,
Mike

Jessie V said...

amazing photo - i can't blv he stood still enough!

Cathy Sweeney said...

Shawn got a great shot there! Very interesting about the Ground Gecko -- I wasn't aware. Thanks.

RyukyuMike said...

Cathy,
Thank you. I'll have to contact Shawn and see what other teasures he's got in his collection.
I'm not much of an activist but, really think humans would treat the earth and wildlife much better if they understood them better.

RyukyuMike said...

Jessie,
A fellow named Shawn made the shot. I forgot to ask him if the critter ran when he used the flash !