Editing Gecko (section)

==Reproduction==
{{See also|Parthenogenesis in squamata#Lizards}}
{{Expand section|date=February 2020}}
Most geckos lay a small clutch of eggs. Some are live-bearing, and a few can [[Asexual reproduction|reproduce asexually]] via [[parthenogenesis]]. Geckos also have a large diversity of sex-determining mechanisms, including [[temperature-dependent sex determination]] and both XX/XY and ZZ/ZW [[sex chromosome]]s with multiple transitions among them over evolutionary time.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Gamble |first1=Tony |author2=Coryell, J. |author3=Ezaz, T. | author4=Lynch, J. |author5=Scantlebury, D. |author6=Zarkower, D. |title=Restriction site-associated DNA sequencing (RAD-seq) reveals an extraordinary number of transitions among gecko sex-determining systems |journal=Molecular Biology and Evolution |volume=32 |issue=5 |pages=1296–1309 |year=2015 |pmid=25657328  |doi=10.1093/molbev/msv023|doi-access=free }}</ref>
Madagascar day geckos engage in a mating ritual in which sexually mature males produce a waxy substance from pores on the back of their legs. Males approach females with a head swaying motion along with rapid tongue flicking in the female.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Fry |first1=Courtney |last2=Roycroft |first2=Carl |title=Phelsuma madagascariensis (Madagascar Day Gecko) |url=https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Phelsuma_madagascariensis/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231001011236/https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Phelsuma_madagascariensis/ |archive-date=2023-10-01 |access-date=2024-02-07 |website=Animal Diversity Web |language=en}}</ref>

Obligate [[parthenogenesis]] as a reproductive system has evolved multiple times in the family Gekkonidae.<ref name="Dedukh2022">{{Cite journal |last1=Dedukh |first1=Dmitrij |last2=Altmanová |first2=Marie |last3=Klíma |first3=Jiří |last4=Kratochvíl |first4=Lukáš |date=2022-04-01 |title=Premeiotic endoreplication is essential for obligate parthenogenesis in geckos |url=https://journals.biologists.com/dev/article/149/7/dev200345/275038/Premeiotic-endoreplication-is-essential-for |journal=Development |volume=149 |issue=7 |pages=dev200345 |doi=10.1242/dev.200345 |issn=1477-9129 |pmid=35388415|s2cid=248001402 }}</ref> It has been shown that [[oocyte]]s are able to undergo [[meiosis]] in three different obligate parthenogenetic complexes of geckos. An extra premeiotic endoreplication of [[chromosome]]s is essential for obligate parthenogenesis in these geckos.<ref name = Dedukh2022/> Appropriate segregation during meiosis to form viable progeny is facilitated by the formation of [[bivalent (genetics)|bivalents]] made from copies of identical chromosomes.