No — and the reason is not aggression, it is that one of these two geckos cannot repair the damage. Crested geckos are one of only about fourteen gecko species out of more than 1,850 that have lost the ability to regrow a shed tail. A gargoyle gecko regrows its tail in a couple of months, looking almost identical. A crested gecko never does. Housing them together bets a permanent injury against a temporary one.
Quick answer
- Crested + gargoyle: no. Different genera, different temperaments, and one has a mismatched risk profile.
- Two gargoyles: no, except deliberately and briefly for breeding. They do best alone.
- Two crested geckos: females of similar size sometimes work in a large enclosure. Never two males.
- Gargoyles have larger teeth and can be feistier; crested geckos climb glass, gargoyles largely cannot.
- Most cohabitation problems appear as missing toes, dropped tails and one animal quietly not eating.
The tail is the whole argument
Autotomy — dropping the tail to escape — is standard equipment across geckos, and in most species the tail grows back. Correlophus ciliatus, the crested gecko, is a rare exception: it is one of roughly fourteen described gecko species that no longer regenerate, and the only one of those commonly kept in the hobby. A crested gecko that drops its tail is tailless for the rest of its life.
Rhacodactylus auriculatus, the gargoyle, sits on the other side of that line. Its tail regenerates over a couple of months and usually comes back looking close to original.
So in a shared enclosure the two animals are not running the same risk. A startle, a squabble over a feeding ledge, one grab — the gargoyle recovers and the crested does not. That asymmetry is the argument, and it does not go away with a bigger enclosure.
They are not even the same genus
| Crested gecko | Gargoyle gecko | |
|---|---|---|
| Species | Correlophus ciliatus | Rhacodactylus auriculatus |
| Tail regrows | No — permanent | Yes, in a couple of months |
| Climbs smooth glass | Yes | Largely not |
| Teeth / temperament | Smaller teeth, generally placid | Larger teeth, occasionally feistier |
| IUCN status | Vulnerable | Least Concern |
| Cohabits with own kind | Females sometimes, never two males | Best kept alone |
Both are endemic to New Caledonia and both were once filed under Rhacodactylus — the crested gecko was moved to Correlophus after genetic work published in 2012. Shared history and similar husbandry are exactly why people assume they can share a cage. Similar requirements are not the same thing as compatible animals.
What about two of the same species?
Gargoyles. The species has a reputation for being hard on its own kind, including females on females. The standard practice among breeders is to house them individually and pair them only intentionally, for breeding, under supervision.
Crested geckos. More forgiving. Several females of similar size can work in a genuinely large, heavily planted enclosure with multiple feeding stations and sight breaks. Two males will fight. A male and a female will breed, which is a decision rather than an accident — and gravid females need calcium and a lay box before anyone is ready for that.
Size matters more than sex. Two geckos of noticeably different sizes is the setup that ends with a missing toe, regardless of species.
How cohabitation actually fails
It rarely looks like a fight. It looks like one animal always on the cool side, always last to the food, gradually lighter than its cage-mate. Weigh both animals weekly on a kitchen scale; a divergence of a few grams is the earliest signal you will get, and it appears long before anything visible.
The visible signs come later: nipped toes, a shed tail, or a bite at the base of the tail. By then the damage on a crested gecko is done.
Husbandry that removes the pressure is in crested gecko care. For gargoyle-specific questions, see how often to feed a gargoyle gecko, do gargoyle geckos have sticky feet and summer heat tolerance.
What to do instead
Two enclosures. It is a smaller cost than it sounds — these are not large animals, and a pair of 18×18×24 enclosures is a modest footprint against fifteen to twenty years of animal. You also get to feed each one properly, weigh each one honestly, and quarantine a new arrival without risking the one you already have.
Our current geckos are under geckos for sale, lifespans across the group are in how long do lizards live, and everything ships under our live arrival guarantee.
Common questions
Can crested and gargoyle geckos live together?
No. They are different genera with different temperaments, and crested geckos cannot regrow a shed tail while gargoyles can — so the same incident causes permanent damage to one animal and temporary damage to the other.
Can two gargoyle geckos live together?
They are best housed alone. Gargoyles are hard on their own kind, females included, and breeders generally pair them only deliberately and temporarily for breeding.
Can two crested geckos live together?
Females of similar size can sometimes share a large, heavily planted enclosure with several feeding stations. Never house two males. A male and female will breed.
Can crested and gargoyle geckos breed together?
They are separate genera and pairing them is not something to attempt. Deliberately producing crosses between distinct species muddies lineage for every keeper downstream, which is the opposite of what a records-based collection is for.
How do I know if cohabitation is going badly?
Weigh both animals weekly. A steady divergence in weight is the earliest sign, and it shows up well before nipped toes or a dropped tail.