Although it may seem paradoxical given their natural history, I often see nocturnal geckos basking during the day. They usually occupy trunks between 1-3m, which is prime trunk-ground and trunk ecomorph territory. In Miami we have two of the former (A. sagrei and A. cristatellus), and one of the latter (A. distichus). Here is a photo fresh from today showing such overlap in habitat use. I have yet to see any interactions between anoles and geckos in Miami, has anyone else observed any here or elsewhere?
Cuban brown anole (Anolis sagrei – left) and gecko (Hemidactylus sp., most likely H. mabouia – right) sharing habitat space
Of note – this was taken 23rd Feb 2014 in south Miami (FL) at roughly 1:30pm. It’s hot and sunny.
I am most interested in understanding how different species of lizards live together. Specifically, I research the ecological mechanisms that facilitate coexistence and the subsequent evolutionary consequences. I am a post-doc in the Losos Lab at Washington University in St. Louis. Website: www.jamesTstroud.com
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Tom McLellan
3 Non-Natives on 1 tree!
Top to bottom;
Mediterranean Gecko, (Hemidactylus turcicus)
Jamaica Giant Anole, (Anolis garmani)
Giant Day Gecko, (Phelsuma grandis)
Dade Co. Florida, 09-16-2012
James Stroud
Wow! That is awesome! Where in Dade county? (feel free to email me – jamesTstroud (at) gmail.com)
I haven’t seen any Phelsuma around here yet!
James Stroud
Are the garmani mating too?!
Tom McLellan
Yes they were breeding.
& as for the location…..I’m sorry to inform everyone that this location is gone!
It is now reduced to million dollar+ homes, most of which will undoubtedly be occupied by non-sympathetic humans .
This was the friendliest population of A. garmani & P. grandis in Florida, & the most northern population of P. grandis in the state. It was a sad day when it happened.
Tom McLellan
Here is some interesting habitat / territorial “Overlap” for everyone.
P. grandis eating Hemidactylus!
James Stroud
What a crazy photo! Do you now if the P. grandis actually managed to consumer the gecko? It looks huge.
Rob Heathcote
Hi mate, I’ve seen big male sagrei eating young Hemidactylus a few times on Marco Island (four occasions that I can clearly remember). All occasions were in the early morning, but unfortunately I’ve only ever observed it after the gecko had already been grabbed so can’t tell you the exact context. I’ve also seen Hemidactylus pop out of retreats in the daytime during apparent territorial disputes, so I imagine Anole predation could easily involve a vanquished gecko getting nailed as it tried to find somewhere to hide!
James Stroud
Interesting. I’ve seen lizard-lizard predation very rarely in Florida.
Daniel Scantlebury
It’s certainly possible to see interactions between anoles and native geckos, too. I’ve seen a situation similar to the posted photo involving Anolis brevirostris and Aristelliger expectatus on Hispaniola. Another situation arises at night when Anolis distichus gather around the same lights that attract the non-native Hemidactylus angulatus and the native Aristelliger lar.
I’ve also noticed Hemidactylus mabouia is prone to basking. I wonder if some individuals choose retreats that overheat during the day. Is the animal in your photo in full sun or in the shade?
James Stroud
The gecko in this photo was in the shade, but I have previously seen multiple Hemidactylus basking in the open sun during the day.
Gerrut Norval
In Chiayi County, southwestern Taiwan, the common house gecko (Hemidactylus frenatus) can often be seen during the day basking. They tend to do so on cloudy or cooler days. In my study area they are sympatric with an exotic invasive brown anole (Anolis sagrei) population. I rarely see the two species occupy the same perches. I have however recorded and reported on an instance of A. sagrei predation on a hatchling of H. frenatus (citation below). Last year I also found an A. sagrei male and a H. frenatus male sheltering inside an electricity distribution box (attached photo).
Note: there is a strong likelihood that in Taiwan H. frenatus is also an exotic invasive species.
Norval, G. 2007. A report on male Anolis sagrei saurophagy in Chiayi County, Taiwan. Herpetological Bulletin. 102: 34–37.
Skip Lazell
And, of course, anoles often become nocturnal and occupy the gecko niche at lights at night. Citations in Lazell (2005) Island…. U. Cal. Berkeley, Press.
James Stroud
Of course Skip, great point that I forgot to mention! Thanks
Also see: Stroud and Giery (2013) Herp Review…
Aaron
Good Read, being in the Termite Control business, we get a lot of pest control visits, if we had more of these guys around maybe the bugs wouldn’t be so bad around here!
Brian Hillen
I see brown anoles staying up “late” and encroaching on the territory of the geckos near my porch light in the early evening every once in a while. (North Coral Gables) The bug feast near my light must be hard to pass up 🙂
James Stroud
Cool observation! I have also seen that too. Try and get some photos and post them up on here!