When I arrived in Hawaii, I was expecting to photograph black sand beaches, volcanoes, and the odd native bird. I didn't see it coming. How could I? Sometimes when I travel the trip, and my time, gets hijacked by something completely unexpected. Cue the Gold Dust Day Gecko.
The Gold Dust Day Gecko is small reptile with beautiful color and flourescent markings. Its green, red, and blue can be seen darting from leaf to leaf on the Big Island of Hawaii. Now, I obviously had no idea about this animal and the first time I saw it, I ran to get my gear, sweating like a kid on his first date. My brother had spotted one eating a grasshoper and I quickly got into position to get a shot. I managed to grab a few shots before he scurried away and was happy I had at least "recorded" the encounter. I thought nothing more of it.
The next day, the manager at the property we were staying at was around doing some gardening. I was out for a morning walk and noticed a few more geckos in the bushes. "What are these beautiful geckos over here?" Without even looking she replied, "Madagascar Day Gecko." i was almost taken aback by how quickly she knew what I was talking about, obviously they were fairly common around the yard. Clearly my excitement the previous day had been premature, everywhere I looked I saw another gecko. I calmy grabbed my gear, no longer worried about the rarity of these animals, and proceeded to spend the next hour in the garden photographing a plethora of geckos.
I am inquisitive by nature and went to bed that night and thought, why is it called the Madagascar Day Gecko? I took the obvious next step of opening up Google on my phone and the real interesting story began to come to light. The Madagascar Day Gecko was actually a species found on the island but I had been photographing the Gold Dust Day Gecko, a similar, more common species. The Gold Dust species is also from Madagascar so it gets a little confusing. I dug a little deeper into the history of the species and it seems to have divided opinion among the locals. It was introduced in the 1970's. Some reckion it keeps the insect population down and is a good thing for the island. Others think it is ruining the fine ecological balance that exists on the island. Whatever the case, the beauty of the Gold Dust Day Gecko is undeniable. I spent the next 2 days photographing this invasive species and thouroughly enjoyed interacting with them.
This is why I love photographing on my travels. I went to Hawaii, the land of beaches, volcanoes, and stunning scenery. I love landscapes, and enjoy photographing them more than anything else. I have always been a bird photographer, and Hawaii boasts some extraordinary native birdlife. Yet, my trip will always be remembered for a small, introduced gecko from halfway around the world, still dividing opinion including my own. I photograph for the stories, and more often than not, they come from unexpected places...
