One of the greatest escape artists in the animal kingdom has just been discovered: a gecko that, due to its tear-away skin, leaves would-be predators with a mouthful of gross, chewy scales as it makes a speedy getaway.
The new gecko, named Geckolepis megalepis and described in the journal PeerJ, has skin that is made up of unusually large scales. Consisting of keratin and bony calcium-rich components, the scales are at the heart of the gecko's defense system.
Birds, snakes and even other bigger geckos that try to eat Geckolepis often fail.
"A typical predator encounter might start with the predator trying to grasp the lizard in its jaws or claws, triggering the scale sloughing, which ideally lets the gecko escape denuded but alive," lead author Mark Scherz told Seeker.
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http://www.seeker.com/this-geckos-tear-away-skin-helps-it-escape-the-jaws-of-predators-2245058272.htmlA couple of pics at link.
