About ACR Crested Geckos

Lineages Developed Entirely In-House for Over 20 Years

Our exclusive crested gecko (Correlophus ciliatus) lineages have been in development here since the 2004 breeding season, comprised of geckos representing every distinct lineage that was available in the hobby back in the early to mid 2000's. There have been no imports of crested geckos since then, meaning our gene pool is literally as deep as it gets, barring the resumption of export of wild collected specimens (not likely to ever happen).

While most breeders focus strictly on pattern and color mutations, our work doesn't stop with the paint job - we have too large a colony to focus only on pattern/color.  Because genetic sustainability has been a priority from day one, we have consistently outcrossed our lineages, selecting for a specific appearance in each project, effectively turning would-be lineages/bloodlines into self-sufficient breeding populations.  This has taken place slowly and deliberately, over a 20 year period. This outcrossing, while simultaneously breeding for a particular appearance (and avoiding new  genes that negatively impact appearance, health or structure), has allowed us to develop these lines to not only be good looking, but also to grow big and strong. Many of our modern-day crested top out at over 70 grams by 5 years of age, and it's not unusual to see geckos that weigh 80-90 plus grams - and that's feeding them only twice per week.

If you're playing the long game, much like we've done here, then you want geckos with not only cool genetic mutations, but geckos that have also been bred with other factors taken into consideration - things like color quality, size and structure aren't easily or quickly fixed, especially if you've ignored those things for multiple generations.  Reproducing genes is easy - just an odds game. Playing that odds game - while simultaneously maintaining your selective breeding - is where it can get tricky.   If you're buying geckos for the presence of a gene that's currently new/rare and you're ignoring everything else, those things you ignore will haunt you for years - long after that new gene is no longer new, rare or valuable (unless, of course it's on a nice gecko).

If you're new to ACR, be sure to read up about the various genes and bloodlines that we've identified and developed over the years!  Click HERE to view our GENETICS & LINEAGE section in a new tab.