Herpetological Review has yet to make its content available on-line, so this is a cell phone camera image of the figure from the Krysko et al. report. (The original image was also taken with a cell phone, making this perhaps the first cell phone photo of a cell phone photo to appear on Anole Annals.)
Krysko et al. report in the March 2012 issue of Herpetological Review on a new element of Florida’s food-web: one species of diurnal, arboreal, and non-indigenous lizard eating another species of diurnal, arboreal, and non-indigenous lizard. Anole lovers will not be pleased to learn that this event involved a Madagascan day gecko (Phelsuma grandis) eating a bark anole (A. distichus) on Ramrod Key in Florida. Krysko et al. note that this it he first report of a non-indigenous gecko consuming a non-indigenous anole. This interaction ups the ante on the gecko/anole dynamics in Florida and Hawaii that have been reported previously here on Anole Annals and elsewhere.
Editor’s Update: Here’s a non-cell phone version of the same, courtesy of Ken Krysko.
Photo by Kenney Krysko
- JMIH 2014: Early Records of Fossil Anolis from the Oligocene and Miocene of Florida, USA - August 13, 2014
- JMIH 2014: Relative Contribution of Genetic and Ecological Factors to Morphological Differentiation in Island Populations of Anolis sagrei - August 7, 2014
- JMIH 2014: The Ultrastructure of Spermatid Development within the Anole, Anolis sagrei - August 5, 2014
Jonathan Losos
This species is the big boy of Phelsuma and approaches the size of a small crown-giant. And it does just what any crown-giant does: it eats smaller anoles.I wonder if knight anoles eat smaller day geckos in Hawaii?
Philip M. Fortman
While I have not personally observed P. grandis, I am not surprised since there is a local breeder specializing in the species here in Ft. Lauderdale with a Web site: Giant Day Gecko.
The lesser Anole species (exotic and not) are being preyed upon by a variety of larger species such as this Basilisk holding a brown anole in its jaws photographed through my back porch screen. Cattle Egret common in this urban area have left their traditional pastures to prowl hedges to eat anoles. I even have a photo of a young Great White Egret in the shrubbery of a nearby hospital with an anole in its beak.
Armando Pou
I have personally observed a knight anolis catch and eat a giant day gecko on a queen palm in the Pinecrest area of Miami; where a small population of Phelsuma was purposely established and may still exist. I have also seen a knight anolis eat an immature garmani when both were more numerous several years ago.
Tommy
Dear Armando,
Are you aware of whether the P. grandis population in Pinecrest is still extant? I am studying them as part of my Ph.D. research.
Any information would be greatly appreciated.
Many thanks.
Jonathan Losos
Wow! I don’t suppose you have photos of either. Spectacular. I’ve always wondered how equestris and garmani would get along.
Armando Pou
Unfortunately both took place a few years back and I do not have photographs of either encounter. In both encounters the equestris were very large and probably males. The encounter with the garmani was more interesting because there was a headbobbing display before the attack. It seemed that the encounter with the grandis was more of a simple predator-prey. The grandis fled and the equestris chased and after a few bites and violent side to side thrashing it ate the smaller grandis.