Acoustic Behavior 
291 
TIME 
Figure 3. Mean number of multiple chirp calls of Hemidactylus frenatus per hour, mean hourly gecko 
census, and hours of light intensity less than 10.67 lux for 5 nights. Vertical lines on light intensity line 
indicate variation in time of sunset and sunrise. 
tative studies, also discuss calls consisting 
of a series of clicks or chirps. Several of the 
authors cited above have also mentioned 
squeaks (single chirps), generally in re- 
sponse to rough handling. The churr call, or 
something akin to it, has been reported in 
Gekko gecko (Wever et al., 1963) and in 
Nephrurus asper (Bustard, 19676). The 
churr has not been reported in other geckos, 
although this may be due to its low intensity 
and infrequent occurrence. 
Contexts of Calls 
The contexts of the multiple chirps are 
seldom mentioned in the literature. Haacke 
(1969) states that calls are produced when 
animals emerge from diurnal retreats. 
Frankenberg (1974) mentions that geckos 
may call in response to another animal’s call. 
Curry-Lindahl (1961) states that JT. mabouia 
call upon seeing their mates. Such state- 
ments and my own observations indicate that 
multiple chirp calls have varied contexts and 
are often associated with social behavior. 
Single chirps occur in fewer contexts. 
Single chirps have been reported in response 
to rough handling (Mahendra, 1936; Green- 
berg, 1943; Frankenberg, 1974) or when an 
animal is bitten by a conspecific (Marcellini, 
1974). 
Published observations of churr calls indi- 
cate that they always occur as response to a 
