"The Gecko Effect" is the 33rd episode of Season 1 of Wild Kratts, originally airing on PBS Kids on October 23, 2012.[1] The episode was written and directed by Martin Kratt.

In this episode, the Kratt brothers wonder why a gecko is able to walk on glass surfaces. They gather the crew and mini-size themselves in order to get a closer look at the gecko's ability, but Zach Varmitech sees this as an opportunity to sneak into the Tortuga HQ to steal the Wild Kratts' inventions.


The episode begins with a live action segment, in which the Kratt brothers narrow the characteristics of animal feet to the feet of geckos. Afterwards, they ask their "What if?" question and the show transitions into the cartoon segment.

The Kratt brothers notice a gecko climbing on the Tortuga's sunroof. Not understanding how they are able to do that, the Kratt brothers decide to begin an experiment. They think that gecko feet have suction cups on them, so Martin and Chris sneak into the garage and Martin grabs two pairs of suction cups. He places a pair on his hands and the other on his boots. He bounces up onto the sunroof via trampoline, successfully sticking to the sunroof. However, he is unable to move because the suction cups tightly cement him to the sunroof. Chris lassos a bungee cord around Martin's chest and tries pulling him off the sunroof, but the cord snaps, and he falls into the garage and sets off the alarm. The alarm wakes Aviva and Koki up. Aviva and Koki, just wanting this all to end, successfully pull Martin off the sunroof with the help of Chris. The force, however, causes all four to roll out the Tortuga and into the forest, where they are surrounded by geckos. Meanwhile, Zach Varmitech finds out that the alarm in the Tortuga has been set off, and prepares to land his jet nearby so that he can steal the inventions inside.

Aviva analyzes the toe pads of one gecko and finds out that the "secret" is too small to see, so she, Koki, and the Kratt brothers head back into the Tortuga. Aviva grabs her newest invention: the Mobile Invention Kit, or M.I.K, a backpack that holds everything she needs to make Creature Power Discs. Martin also wakes up Jimmy Z by whispering into his ear that he is lost his controller. All five then miniaturize and return to the forest. Martin distracts a gecko as Aviva gets a closer look at the gecko's toe pads. The Wild Kratts find out that geckos can stick to countless surfaces because they have feet that allow them to "electrically attach" to the surface, and to remove that tension, they peel their toes off from the tips inward. But then, two moon rats chase the Wild Kratts and the gecko into the Tortuga. Zach suddenly appears right in front of them and encloses them in a glass container. Knowing that geckos can climb on glass, Martin convinces Zach to drop a gecko into the container. Aviva crafts Creature Power Discs, and the Kratt brothers activate their Creature Power Suits. The rest of the crew grabs onto their tails as they climb up. The Wild Kratts return to normal size with the Miniaturizer, and unexpectedly, the two Moon rats expand in size. Zach freaks out and runs out screaming. At the end, the Kratt brothers trap the moon rats and prepare to return them to their original size.

The show transitions into the ending live action segment, The Kratt brothers watch as geckos climb on glass walls. Afterwards, they conclude the episode by saying "Keep on creature adventuring; we'll see you on the creature trail!"





Note: Featured animals are in bold.

Live Action

Note: Live action animals are linked to Wikipedia.


  • This is the first time a villain sneaks into the Tortuga HQ.
  • Zach is revealed to be a thief in this episode, with the Kratt brothers first mentioning that the with the security system in the invention garage, Zach would not be able to steal their inventions without setting off an alarm, and then later with Zach actually stealing the unguarded Miniaturizer.
  • This is the first time Zach steals the Miniaturizer.

Key facts and Creature Moments

  • A Tokay Gecko using it's electrostatic toe pad grip to climb glass


  1. "Wild Kratts - The Gecko Effect." KET. Kentucky Educational Television. Retrieved January 5, 2014.
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