Second largest among the gecko species, the foot-long aggressive Tokay gecko, with its blue grey body sporting red-orange spots and its large head, is unforgettable when unexpectedly encountered! (Incidentally, their Maker gave the Tokay the not-by-accident ability to tone down their amazing colors when they sense danger, so they can better blend with their surroundings.)
If its appearance were not enough—its mating call would get your attention. (It surely has gotten ours during certain night seasons in the past.) It's the only gecko that has been given a true voice—which gets pretty loud at times, while it seems to be saying its name: "To-kay, To-kay!"
A unique not-by-accident defense God gave the lowly gecko is the extra fold of skin that prevents the creature from casting a shadow. While resting against a tree the gecko simply opens up that skin fold and spreads it around itself so it blends, unseen, into the tree.
Add to that the gecko's well-known ability to cast off all or part of its tail when grabbed. No permanent handicap, the gecko then regenerates another tail in three weeks time.
But beyond the wonder of sound and appearance, the gecko's feet are also fascinating. In fact much of what is known about a gecko's ability to adhere to a smooth surface comes from studies of the hundreds of microscopic hairs the Creator placed (not by accident) at the tip of the adhesive pads on the Tokay's four toes. When the molecules of those toe hairs get close to the molecules of another surface an intermolecular force (called Van der Waals force) takes place. The attraction (adhesion) is so strong it allows a gecko to scamper straight up or run upside down if needed, going after insect delicacies for lunch, or another gecko for mating purposes. In fact, if they wish, the gecko can hang its whole body from the ceiling by just one toe, "attached" by the unbalanced electrical charges of attracted molecules! And the gecko easily breaks that adhesion by simply curling up its toe, if it so chooses.
Finally, then, the female gecko can lay her oval-shaped eggs on almost any surface, even vertical, because she has been given the not-by-accident ability to produce a glue which holds the eggs in place—even straight above us on the ceiling in our garage—which is where we found the geckos here in the first place, and where their pictures were taken for this book. (Originally from Indonesia, the Tokay gecko has arrived in other parts of the world due, it is said, because of that same strong adhesive glue which carries gecko eggs on shipping crates and deposits them in faraway lands where some survive when the climate and other conditions are quite suitable.)
Every need of a gecko, from start to finish, was met by its Creator! And He has done the same for us humans, planning for and meeting our needs—along with deliberately giving us freedom to choose Him as our Lord!
"NOT BY ACCIDENT" (c) Juanita Kretschmar is used by permission and was first published in the book "Not By Accident 2" page 41.
Picture originally found here
