Like the Jurassic Park dinosaurs, this lesbian gecko doesn’t need a man – she’s a queer icon
The lesbian gecko (left) is the animal kingdom’s gay icon. (Getty/Universal)
Lesbian gecko might sound like an alternative rock band, but it’s actually another name for the New Mexico whiptail.
The whiptail is a female-only species of lizard that can reproduce without males, Jurassic Park style. Hence why the species has been fondly dubbed a lesbian gecko, or leaping lesbian lizard (which is also a good band name).
In short, like the fictional velociraptors in the 1993 Spielberg movie, this New Mexico reptile is an independent woman who doesn’t need a man.
The gay icon of reptiles, New Mexico whiptails are black or brown with yellow stripes down their back and light-coloured spots. They also have a white or pale underbelly.
The species is found in New Mexico, Arizona, and Chihuahua in northern Mexico, they’re lovers of arid heat, and sunbathers at heart.
The official state reptile of New Mexico, the New Mexico whiptail is inherently a skittish creature – they are quick on their feet to dart from predators.
Additionally, the queer reptile is the inspiration behind the Pokémon named Salazzle which evolves from female Pokémon only. The males of their pre-evolutions never evolve.
How does the lesbian gecko reproduce?
The all-female New Mexico whiptail population can reproduce asexually through parthenogenesis: the ability to produce an embryo without fertilising an egg with sperm.
The lesbian lizards still mount each other and entwine their tails, and though this suggests sex, they have asexual reproduction capabilities.
It’s believed this mating behaviour stimulates ovulation. Lizards who don’t perform this mating action don’t lay eggs, so it seems the act triggers hormones.
Through parthenogenesis, up to four unfertilised eggs are laid in the summer and, after eight weeks, they will hatch.
The New Mexico whiptail can copy her genetic material for her offspring. Meaning, mothers and daughters are effectively clones of each other with matching genetics.
The New Mexico whiptail itself is a result of inter-breeding the Little Striped Whiptail and the Western Whiptail.
This species hybridization creates sterile males from which the all-female population grew.
This hybridization of the lesbian lizard renders the male species entirely unnecessary which results in sort of a female reptile utopia.
In the straight-washed animal kingdom, the New Mexico whiptail is another addition to the list of animals that display same-sex sexual behaviour including the likes of the horny giant tortoise, homosexual swans, and queer monkeys.
