A new species story that began on a misty building wall
Gunung Alab in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo, is a cool and wet mountain site at roughly 1,900 m. Researchers found small geckos hunting insects at night on building walls and eaves and determined that, although they resembled a species from nearby Mount Kinabalu, they were not the same species. Formally described in Zootaxa on 22 September 2026, the new name is Lepidodactylus crockerensis, the Crocker Range Mourning Gecko.
The case does not rest on a single impression that the animals “look a little different.” DNA phylogeny, body proportions, scales beneath the toes and male pore counts, and geographic separation between mountain ranges all pointed in the same direction. However, because confirmed records are still limited to the Gunung Alab area, population size, full range and threat level remain unknown.
The 30-second summary
- The species was described on 22 September 2026 in Zootaxa volume 5881, issue 3.
- The holotype was collected on 23 August 2025 at 1,909 m on Gunung Alab.
- Its closest sister species is L. ranauensis on Mount Kinabalu, about 36 km away.
- The diagnosis combines genetic, morphometric, scalation and geographic evidence.
- There is no IUCN assessment; surveys of range and abundance are the first priority.
Species information
| Field | Verified information |
| Korean common name | Crocker Range Mourning Gecko (provisional Korean name) |
| English name | Crocker Range Mourning Gecko |
| Scientific name | Lepidodactylus crockerensis Quah, Dukit, Tuh & Grismer, 2026 |
| Classification | Squamata · Gekkonidae · genus Lepidodactylus |
| Range | Officially confirmed only around Gunung Alab, Crocker Range, Sabah, Malaysia |
| Conservation status | Not evaluated by IUCN; abundance and full range unknown |
The question created by 36 km between two mountains
The researchers recovered L. crockerensis as the sister species of L. ranauensis from Mount Kinabalu. The two mountain localities are only about 36 km apart in a straight line, but the lower, warmer terrain between them may be more than empty space for a small gecko associated with cool uplands. The paper interprets this allopatric distribution together with the genetic separation.
Researchers reported nighttime conditions of about 14–16°C at Gunung Alab. The holotype was collected on 23 August 2025 at the old Rhododendron Hut, where geckos hunted insects attracted to artificial lights. This records use of a human-made surface; it does not prove that the species depends on buildings. Microhabitats inside the forest and the complete elevational range still require study.
What toes, scales and DNA said together
The diagnostic combination includes 10–14 lamellae beneath the fourth toe, 32–40 contiguous pore-bearing femoro-precloacal scales in males, and slight webbing between toes III and IV. The subcylindrical tail lacks a lateral fringe of enlarged scales. In life, dorsal colour can shift from light brownish grey to dark brown, with variable markings.
No single number established the species. The authors statistically compared morphometrics, examined digital scalation and recovered an independent genetic lineage. Because colour can change with light and condition, separating L. crockerensis from L. ranauensis from the hue in one photograph would not be reliable.
Why it matters
This is the third species of Lepidodactylus recorded from Borneo. It shows that isolated mountain systems on the same island can preserve different evolutionary lineages. Even in a comparatively well-known protected landscape, the actual diversity of small nocturnal lizards has not been completely inventoried.
A new name begins conservation work; it does not complete an assessment. A narrow known range does not automatically equal a threatened category, but it provides a reason to examine how roads, tourism infrastructure and climate change may affect cool montane microhabitats. Surveys across elevations and forest interiors are needed to establish range, population structure, breeding and seasonality.
What not to overinterpret
- “Confirmed only at Gunung Alab” is not the same as “exists nowhere else.”
- A record on a building wall does not prove preference for human structures over natural habitat.
- A 36 km gap is evidence relevant to divergence, not a complete account of when or how it happened.
- Formal species description is separate from an IUCN risk assessment or population estimate.
Four things to remember
- L. crockerensis is a Bornean montane gecko formally described in 2026.
- DNA, morphology, scalation and geography were combined to separate it from its sister species.
- The holotype locality is at 1,909 m and about 36 km from the closest sister-species locality.
- The largest remaining gaps are the full range, abundance and actual threat level.
Related HERP.BLOG articles
- Parthenogenesis, clones and dispersal in mourning geckos
- The evolution and physics of gecko toe adhesion
- Mourning gecko natural-history wiki
- What is a reptile?
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