Category: All Posts Page 20 of 149

A Female Green Anole Eats a Freshly Laid Egg

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On April 18, 2021

In All Posts, Anole Videos, Ask the Experts

 

 

I recently observed one of my female green anoles swallowing a freshly laid egg, which I suspect came from the other female in the harem. I looked online to see if this behavior is common in green anoles and I was unable to find any information about it. It seems that this exceptional behavior has yet to be reported. I am not sure why my lizard did this.

Considering that my anoles have access to ample resources, including fruit baby food and plenty of gut-loaded crickets and mealworms, I do not believe that her behavior was prompted by a nutritional deficiency. Perhaps it is a novel form of intraspecific maternal competition. Maybe it is unique to mating in captivity. Or maybe this behavior is unique to this particular female — she does eat a lot, and rather indiscriminately. It is also worth mentioning that she is the comparatively larger and more dominant female out of the two.

I am curious to know if anyone else has witnessed this sort of behavior in green anoles, or if they have any ideas about why she did it. Luckily, I was able to catch some of it on video with my cellphone (please excuse the quality and my shaky hands!) just before she swallowed the egg in its entirety.

 

Is It Curtains for the World’s Most Famous TV Anole?

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On April 16, 2021

In All Posts

Harry, the lizard, clearly a Lesser Antillean anole from the fictitious island of Saint Marie near Martinique and Guadeloupe in the British detective series Death in Paradise, is in jeopardy. Read all about it, but beware of spoilers.

#DidYouAnole – Anolis alutaceus

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On April 15, 2021

In All Posts

Anolis alutaceus [image] | EurekAlert! Science News

Photo: Luke Mahler

Hey there!

I’m really into these tiny anoles now, and I promise we will venture next week, but for right now. I would like to talk about Anolis alutaceus.

Anolis alutaceus, also known as the Blue-eyed grass-bush anole or Monte Verde anole, is a forest-dwelling Cuban anole that can also be found on Isla de Juventud. It is one of the anoles in the alutaceus series of 14 closely related Cuban grass-bush anoles.

Photo by Yasel Alfonso, iNaturalist

They have a sizable pale yellow dewlap, and tan brown bodies with a lateral striping running from shoulder to vent, as well as diamond patterning on their backs. Monte Verde anoles have a SVL of around 37.5mm. They can be found close to the ground on the skinny surfaces their body plans are suited for, and like many of the other anoles in their ecomorph, they move mostly by jumping.

Photo by Alex Alfil, iNaturalist

Congrats to the Newest Anole PhD: Dr. Avilés-Rodríguez!

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On April 13, 2021

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A PhD that started with a hurricane and ended with a pandemic couldn’t slow down Kevin Avilés-Rodríguez — this past Friday Kevin became the newest anole doctorate when he defended his dissertation over Zoom on the interacting effects of urbanization and hurricane Maria on Anolis cristatellus.

Congratulations to Dr. Avilés-Rodríguez! And check out his amazing celebratory cake!

Anolis allisoni in Florida: a Mini-Documentary

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On April 10, 2021

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#DidYouAnole – Anolis pulchellus

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On April 8, 2021

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Photo: Steve Silvestrini, iNaturalist

Hello again!

I thought we’d continue with very small anoles and so I picked another grass-bush anole! Anolis pulchellus, also known as the Puerto Rican bush anole or the Sharp-mouthed lizard (locally).

This anole is from Puerto Rico, but is also found on the islands of Culebra, Vieques, and a majority of the Virgin Islands. The Sharp-mouthed lizard is one of the most common lizards in Puerto Rico. They have an average SVL of 35-43 mm and are yellow-brown in colour with a lateral tan stripe from its mouth to the base of its tail. The dewlaps of the males are purple at the neck, fading into crimson.

Image
Photo: Alex Gunderson, Twitter

It has been reported to show aquatic tendencies, jumping into nearby water when approached and swimming to safety. They are also able to sit on the surface of the water without penetrating it, and when submerged, they have a silvery appearance due to a thin layer of air surrounding its body, much like Anolis aquaticus.

In another unexpected move from this tiny anole, it has also been found engaging in carnivory. Carnivory tends to be common in anoles, but usually in the ones larger than the grass-bush ecomorph, think Crested Anoles, and they eat lizards smaller themselves. Here you can find a report of a Sharp-mouth lizard consuming a Big-scaled Dwarf gecko.


Photo: Kevin de Queiroz, Jonathan Losos

Evidence also suggests that Sharp-mouthed anoles may be hybridising with another, very similar grass anole found in Puerto Rico, Anolis krugi. Check out the post (and paper) on this here.

#DidYouAnole – Anolis olssoni

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On April 1, 2021

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Photo: Pedro Genaro Rodriguez, iNaturalist

Hi! It’s been brought to my attention that I haven’t done a small anole in a while. Today’s anole is a grass-bush anole, Anolis olssoni, also known as the Desert Grass or Monte Cristi anole.

This anole is native to Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic). There are eightsubspecies of the Desert Grass anole found in different locations on the island.


Photo: Pedro Genaro Rodriguez, iNaturalist

Like other grass-bush anoles, Anolis olssoni has a slender body and a very long tail, as well as brown colouring and lateral striping. Grass-bush anoles tend to move by hopping and have long hindlimbs. For this ecomorph, the SVL ranges from 33-51 mm, with the Desert Grass anole somewhere around 39-50 mm, depending on the subspecies.

Subspecies vary from each other by colour, either being darker or paler, as well as by scale pattern. Lighter-coloured Desert Grass anole subspecies are found in xeric areas, while darker-coloured subspecies are found in more mesic areas. The dewlap of this species is a rusty orange with yellow scales.


Photo: Francis Reyes, iNaturalist

More Anoles on Postage Stamps

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On March 24, 2021

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Over the years, Anole Annals has featured several posts on the appearance of anoles on postage stamps from countries around the world (e.g., 1, 2, 3), mostly thanks to Uwe Bartelt. Now AA stalwart George Gorman has taken up the mantle.

In reference to the stamps above, George writes:

“Djibouti, on the Horn of Africa somehow must have learned from P.T. Barnum that there’s a sucker born every minute. As a collector of anoles on postage stamps , I couldn’t  refrain from purchasing this recent issue that featured two very classy anoles: Anolis gorgonae and A. proboscis (male and female). I would bet there aren’t five people in Djibouti who have ever heard of these species, let alone who worry that they are endangered.”

And with regard to the famous iguana ecomorph (below), George writes: “I had enough trouble dealing with Dactyloa and “Norops” and the like… but this is getting out of hand. This mini-stamp- sheet from Nevis .. (ok.. it is labeled “reptiles of the Caribbean”)  identifies the creature as…Anegada Ground Iguana, Cyclura pinguis!”

Finally, I can’t keep from reprising a post of mine from nine years ago, in which I point out that one of my photographs was used without permission on a postage stamp. Anyone know a good anole intellectual property attorney?

 

#DidYouAnole – Ranking This Year’s Anoles (so far)

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On March 18, 2021

In All Posts

Hello!!

It’s me again, but I don’t have an anole this week. This week I actually am going to share some of my personal anole rankings with you. I’m only going to use the anoles I’ve talked about so far for the year and I will give you very good reasons why.

Tell me what yours would be, I’d love to know. I read all your comments.

 

#7 – Anolis landestoyi, Hispanolian Chameleon anole

Photo: Miguel Landestoy

I love false chameleons and I can’t wait for us to know more about this closely related anole. It has amazing camouflage (lichen is always a good choice).

 

#6 – Anolis cuvieri, Puerto Rican Giant anole

Photo from Anolis cuvieri on the prowl”

Juveniles are brown and shift to green when they mature!

 

#5 – Anolis garmani, Jamaican Giant anole

Photo: Tom McLellan

Crown-giants are one of my favourite anole ecomorphs. I haven’t gotten the chance to see one in person, but growing up on an island with iguanas, large green lizards have a special place in my heart. The Jamaican Giant anole also shares its territory with other males for some time.

 

#4 – Anolis agassizi, Mapelo Island anole

Blue feet, permanently erect crest (on large males), and beautiful spotted patterning make this anole visually striking. Also of note is its weird interest in the colour orange. Why? Who knows, but I will gladly research this quirk if anyone wants to fund that.

 

#3 – Anolis lucius, Slender Cliff anole

Photo: Shea Lambert

Built-in sunglasses will take you pretty far in life, especially if you’re a cave dwelling lizard (possibly).

 

#2 – Anolis equestris, Cuban Knight Anole

Photo: Karl Guyton II

The largest known anole species! I appreciate this crown-giant, especially the A. e. poitor subspecies also known as the ‘Blue Beauty’.

 

#1 – Anolis bartschi, Western Cliff anole

More blue feet!
This clever little cliff dwelling anole has a lot of odd or uncommon behaviours that I would love to observe, including communal nesting in rock crevices. Read about the rest of them in the post! They’re definitely a dream study species as well.

#DidYouAnole? – Anolis landestoyi

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On March 11, 2021

In All Posts

Photo by Miguel Landestoy

Hello, it’s me your favourite PhD student!
If you don’t follow me on Twitter I was celebrating getting into a PhD program last week. I’m still really excited but the anoles wait for no one and I found an anole I really like so I’m here to pass this knowledge on to you.

This week’s anole is Anolis landestoyi, another chameleon-like anole, and closely related to the anoles of the chamaeleonides clade of Cuba.

These anoles, found in the forest of the Dominican Republic, have an SVL of 122-135 mm and short tails. Similar to the chamaeleonides anoles, they have large heads, though not quite as large as the snail-eating anoles.

How a Well-Hidden Giant Got Uncovered: the Discovery of a New Anole Species from Hispaniola - Anole Annals
Photo: Miguel Landestoy

Anolis landestoyi is a mossy green in colour with spotches of brown, giving it a similar appearance to tree bark covered in the lichen or moss that are abundant in its range. Males have a pale coloured dewlap with some light blue and white stripes, while females have smaller slightly lighter coloured dewlaps. Like other chameleon-like anoles, their diet includes various species of arthropods, but no mention of snails sadly.

Anolis landestoyi (2 of 2) [image] | EurekAlert! Science News
Photo: Miguel Landestoy

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