Arnd Wiegmann/Reuters A man is suing Heineken and Kroger after he says he drank a beer with two geckos sealed inside. 
 
 In a lawsuit filed last week, George Toubbeh claims he purchased cans of Heineken beer from a Ralph's Grocery (a regional grocery chain owned by Kroger) in Fountain Valley, California. Toubbeh drank a can of the beer in August 2015, noticing a "foul taste." 
 
 Toubbeh then says he immediately experienced severe abdominal pain and began vomiting. His daughter allegedly examined the can and found two geckos inside. 
 
 "When discovered, the geckos had not been decomposed at all and were likely alive when the beer was poured and sealed into the cans in the bottling and/or canning facility," the suit reads. "Based upon information and belief, the subject geckos likely got into the Heineken canning facility and into a can before the Heineken beer was poured and the top was sealed." 
 
 This is what Eublepharis macularius — or Leopard geckos — look like. According to the suit, two of these were sealed in Toubbeh's 24-ounce can of beer. Wikimedia Toubbeh was violently ill and had to visit the emergency room, the suit claims, experiencing "severe stomach pains and cramps, loss of sensation, hyperactive bowel movements, and nearly complete loss of appetite" in the days following the incident. 
 
 "He also suffered from extreme anxiety and post traumatic stress disorder ("PTSD") as a result of finding the two geckos in his Heineken beer," the suit reads. 
 
 Toubbeh is demanding that Heineken, Kroger, and local distributors pay for his medical expenses, loss of earnings (as he missed work following the incident), and other damages. Heineken says that Toubbeh's claims claims are meritless. 
 
 "Heineken USA holds the safety and integrity of the products we import to the highest standards," the company said in a statement. "We have investigated this isolated claim and based on a number of factors we confidently believe there is no merit to this claim." 
 
 As Consumerist notes, this isn't the first time that people have accused beverage makers of accidentally selling cans with critters packed inside. In April, a South Dakota man claimed he drank from a can of Coke with a mouse sealed inside — something that Coca-Cola says would be impossible, as the mouse would have decomposed. 

 Heineken Drinker Claims He Became Violently Ill After Finding 2 Geckos In His Beer 
 
 There’s nothing quite like sitting back and enjoying a cool beverage. But according to a new lawsuit, one man’s beer-drinking experience was anything but relaxing after he claims he found two geckos submerged in his can of Heineken. 
 
 According to a lawsuit [PDF] filed last week in California that names both Heineken and grocery chain Kroger as defendants, the plaintiff says he’d purchased 24-ounce cans of Heineken from a Ralph’s store — owned by Kroger — in Fountain Valley, CA, back in Aug. 2015. 
 
 A “foul taste” 
 
 When he went to drink one of those beers, he claims he “noted that the beer had a foul taste,” and experienced “severe abdominal pain followed by vomiting.” 
 
 His daughter examined the can he’d been drinking out of, and allegedly discovered two lizards, which the lawsuit says have been identified as juvenile leopard geckos. Though the lawsuit notes that type of lizard is not indigenous to the U.S., it’s worth noting that they are available as pets, depending on where you live. 
 
 The plaintiff believes that the geckos got into the can at a Heineken canning facility, before the beer was poured in. 
 
 “When discovered, the geckos had not been decomposed at all and were likely alive when the beer was poured and sealed into the cans in the bottling and/or canning facility,” the lawsuit claims. 
 
 After drinking the allegedly gecko-filled beer and becoming “violently ill,” the man went to the emergency room. He was discharged with prescriptions for Xanax and Zofran and was told to return if his symptoms didn’t improve. 
 
 He claims things didn’t get better, and he went to urgent care two days later with “severe stomach pains and cramps, loss of sensation, hyperactive bowel movements, and nearly complete loss of appetite.” He continues to “experience severe gastrointestinal ailments, emotional distress, trauma, and anxiety” as a result of finding the two geckos in his Heineken beer, the lawsuit states. 
 
 He’s seeking damages on claims of strict product liability, negligence, breach of implied warranty of merchantability, and negligent infliction of emotional distress. 
 
 Heineken says the accusation is false. 
 
 “Heineken USA holds the safety and integrity of the products we import to the highest standards,” a spokeswoman for the company told Consumerist. “We are currently investigating this isolated claim and based on a number of factors we confidently believe there is no merit to this claim.” 
 
 We’ve reached out to Kroger for comment as well and will update this post if we hear back. 
 
 Free frogs 
 
 This is far from the first time we’ve heard of folks who claim to have found animals in their food or beverages. In just the past few years or so, there have been many reports of frogs, rats, lizards, and other critters allegedly surprising people. 
 
 • After a South Dakota man claimed he drank from a can of Coca-Cola that had a mouse sealed inside, Coke claimed it couldn’t be possible, as any mouse entombed in a can of soda would have been more decomposed than what he says he found. 
 
 • Shoppers in Maryland claimed they found a live scorpion in their bag of spinach. 
 
 • NYC health officials investigated a report of a fried rat head served at Popeyes in 2016. 
 
 • Canned green beans were recalled that same year after a church group discovered a snake head in their food. 
 
 • A family found a free lizard inside a bundle of salad greens — and then brought it to live at their kid’s school. 
 
 • Across the pond, someone found a dead baby weasel in her salad. She was not pleased. 
 
 • A pasta lover in Minnesota claimed she found a mummified frog in her box of Barilla pasta 
 
 • A frog allegedly showed up yet again, in England, where a girl claimed McDonald’s served her a McFrog wrap. 
 
 • A Subway customer once claimed to have received a free dead rat with his spinach-filled sandwich. 
 
 • Yet another frog was allegedly discovered in a package of spinach, this time, from Sam’s Club. 
 
 • A Target shopper found a black widow spider in a package of grapes. 
 
 • Toxic beetles showed up in shoppers’ salads from Canada to Texas back in 2015. 
 
 • Yet another bag of fresh spinach contained a free animal surprise — in this case back in 2015, it was a dead mouse. 
 
 • A McDonald’s customer claimed in 2014 that he’d received a mouse in his coffee. 
 
 • A woman eating Kellogg’s crunchy nut cereal claimed there was an added crunch in her food by way of a dead rodent in 2014. 
 
 We could go on, but it’s getting close to lunchtime and we don’t want to totally ruin that for anyone reading (if we haven’t already). 

 The Leopard Gecko, Eublepharis macularius, is one of the most popular of all reptilian pets, and much has been written on its care and breeding. But this lizard’s other side – how and where it lives in the wild – is less familiar. 
 
 Classification 
 
 First a bit on where the Leopard Gecko fits in among other lizards, and the species to which it is related. 
 
 Along with over 1,050 other species, Leopard Geckos were originally classified in Gekkonidae, the largest lizard family (please see article below). Today they are placed within their own family, Eublepharidae, along with relatives such as the Fat-Tailed and Banded Geckos (please see photo). Certain other family members are also commonly referred to as “Leopard Geckos” (i.e. the Vietnamese Leopard Gecko, Goniurosaurus araneus). 
 
 In addition to the Leopard Gecko, the genus Eublepharis contains 4 closely related species, the Dusky Leopard Gecko (at 10 inches in snout-vent length, the largest), the East Indian Leopard Gecko, the Iraqi Eyelid Gecko and the Turkmenistan Eyelid Gecko. 
 
 The Leopard Gecko’s Latin name is Eublepharis macularius. Five subspecies have been identified, but not all herpetologists are in agreement on this. Most of the Leopard Geckos in the pet trade today came from animals originally collected in Pakistan. 
 
 Comparison with other Geckos 
 
 The Leopard Gecko and its relatives are the only geckos to have movable eyelids. The genus name means “true eyelid” while the species name translates as “spotted”. In all other geckos, the eyelids are fused into an immobile, transparent cap known as the spectacle. As in snakes, the eyes thus remain permanently open. 
 
 Also unique is the Leopard Gecko’s lack of adhesive foot pads, known as lamellae. Lamellae enable other geckos to perform such feats as climbing glass and running upside-down on ceilings. Herpetologists believe that these microscopically-grooved pads would not be effective in the dry, dusty places inhabited by Leopard Geckos. 
 
 Leopard Gecko ears are unusual in their alignment…at the right angle, you can look in one ear and see right through to the other side of the gecko’s head! 
 
 Range and Habitat 
 
 The Leopard Gecko is found in Southeastern Afghanistan, Western India, Pakistan, Iraq, and Iran, where it frequents semi-deserts and arid grasslands. 
 
 Leopard Gecko habitat is characterized by sandy-gravel, rocks, hard clay, coarse grasses and drought-resistant shrubs (please see photo). The lizard’s bumpy, spotted skin, which stands out so well in captivity, provides excellent camouflage against the substrates of its natural habitat. These are harsh lands, where food and water may be unavailable for months on end…perhaps the Leopard Gecko’s adaptation to such extremes explains its hardiness in captivity. 
 
 Widely fluctuating temperatures are typical. In the Peshawar region of Pakistan, for example, winter temperatures average 41-59 F but soar to 104 F or more in the summer. While captive Leopard Geckos generally remain active year round, wild specimens become dormant during the colder months. 
 
 Diet and Enemies 
 
 Leopard Geckos prey upon a wide variety of invertebrates, and store fat within the tail. Included in their diet are some quite formidable creatures, such as large spiders, scorpions and centipedes. Smaller lizards and perhaps nestling rodents may be taken on occasion. 
 
 Foxes, snakes, monitor lizards, owls and the large invertebrates mentioned above are the Leopard Gecko’s most likely predators, but field research is lacking. 
 
 Conservation 
 
 Almost nothing is known of the status of Leopard Gecko populations; political instability and military conflicts are likely to prevent field research for the foreseeable future. 
 
 Further Reading 
 
 A list of all species in the family Eublepharidae and their ranges is posted here. 
 
 Gecko Overview: interesting facts and figures 
 
 Feeding Leopard Geckos 
 
 Female and Juvenile Leopard Gecko (banded) image referenced from wikipedia and originally posted by Jerome66
– We've heard of skunky beer, but never gecko-y beer. The latter seems to be much worse than the former, based on a lawsuit filed in California against Heineken and the Kroger grocery chain. Consumerist reports on the complaint, which came about after Orange County's George Toubbeh said he bought 24-ounce cans of Heineken in August 2015 from a Kroger-owned Ralphs in Fountain Valley, and had a decidedly unpleasant experience after drinking from one. Per the suit, Toubbeh picked up on a "foul taste" in his brew; soon after sipping it he fell victim to "severe abdominal pain followed by vomiting." He says when his daughter went to examine the can, she made an alarming discovery inside: two un-decomposed juvenile leopard geckos, which aren't native to the US—they're indigenous to parts of Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Iran, and Iraq—but can be kept as pets here. Toubbeh notes in the suit that he became "violently ill" and went to the ER, where he was given anxiety and nausea medication. Business Insider also notes his claim that he developed "extreme anxiety and … PTSD," which he says continue to this day, as a result of his allegedly lizard-steeped libation. Toubbeh thinks the geckos were probably alive and sealed in the can at the packaging plant. Heineken, for its part, is calling this incident "isolated" and says "based on a number of factors we confidently believe there is no merit to this claim." If you've got a strong stomach, Consumerist documents other instances of surprise "ingredients" in food and beverage items.