Category: New Research Page 5 of 66

Ectotherms rely on interactions with surrounding thermal environments to regulate their body temperature. If their body temperatures get too low or too high, ectotherms may be unable to move effectively or escape dangerous temperatures, potentially leading to death. One plastic physiological response which may help ectotherms avoid the effects of dangerously high body temperatures is heat hardening. Heat hardening is a type of physiological flexibility that entails an organism increasing its heat tolerance after a previous exposure to high temperatures. In areas with high temperatures, differences between ectotherms in their abilities to effectively conduct heat hardening could affect competition between them.

A green anole (Anolis carolinensis) basks at an elevated perch.

Sean Deery, a masters student in the Gunderson lab at Tulane University, chose to investigate heat hardening capacity in two species of anoles, the native green anole (Anolis carolinensis) and the invasive brown anole (Anolis sagrei), both of which are present in New Orleans. As brown anoles have expanded throughout the area, they have displaced green anoles, forcing them higher into vegetation, a pattern repeated in other areas of the southeastern U.S.

Brown anoles are particularly adept at exploiting urban habitats, where temperatures may be considerably higher than surrounding natural areas due to the urban heat island effect. Sean wondered whether the competitive advantage of brown anoles over green anoles might be based in part on a superior heat hardening capacity, which could support their dominance in urban areas.

(a) A male green anole and (b) and a displaying male brown anole in Florida.

To quantify heat hardening in this system, Sean captured green and brown anoles and first measured their upper critical thermal maximum (CTMax) by steadily ramping up their body temperatures until the lizards lost coordination. CTMax represents a temperature that could prove lethal to a lizard as it would be unable to escape these hot conditions. After allowing lizards to recover, Sean measured their CTMax again after periods of 2, 4, and 24 hours. Heat hardening was calculated as the difference between the initial CTMax and the subsequent measurement after exposure to those initial high temperatures.

Sean’s results were surprising: He found that brown anoles showed no evidence of heat hardening at any time after an initial measurement of CTMax. In fact, brown anoles showed a reduction in CTMax, suggesting that the initial testing may have stressed them and reduced their ability to cope physiologically with higher temperatures. Green anoles on the other hand showed a moderate heat hardening response, with significant increases in CTMax just 2 hours after exposure to high temperatures. Sean’s results also suggest that individual lizards with lower initial CTMax values showed greater heat hardening.

For now, it appears that heat hardening is not a factor driving invasions of brown anoles in the southeastern U.S., but the differences between these two species are intriguing. Sean hopes to expand on this work by investigating molecular mechanisms that may support or inhibit heat hardening, such as expression of heat shock proteins.

Anolis cusuco as Prey of a Praying Mantis

By Tom Brown

On October 13, 2019

In All Posts, Anole Photographs, Natural History Observations, New Research, Notes from the Field

Predation event between a Praying Mantis (Mantodea: sp.) and a sub-adult female of Anolis cusuco. Photo Credit – George Lonsdale

A natural history note published September 2019 in the journal SAURIA details an unusual observation of anolivory by a Praying Mantis. Specifically, it discusses an event involving the predation of a sub-adult female Anolis (Norops) cusuco.

Anolis cusuco owes its name to its type locality in the cloud-forest of Cusuco National Park, Honduras, and is a species endemic to the country. Few publications exist regarding the natural history of this species and much regarding its ecology, including its potential predators, remain unknown. While a small contribution, this observation describes the first, albeit somewhat unsuspecting predator for Anolis cusuco.

Seeking Support for New Research Investigating Color Change in Green Anoles

By Victoria Pagano

On October 11, 2019

In All Posts, New Research, Research Methods

Victoria Pagano’s page from the crowd-funding platform Experiment

Green anoles (Anolis carolinensis) are talked about quite frequently here on Anole Annals, with 11 articles being published in 2018 and 2019 combined! As I am sure many of you are aware, green anoles change color from green to brown, and while it is known how, it is not yet known why. Although there have been multiple field studies into what causes green anoles to change color, the data have been inconclusive. This is why an experimental study is necessary to try to determine the cause of the color change.

In this experimental study, there will be two main hypotheses tested:

The first is the well known thermoregulation hypothesis. I will be testing this by establishing separate light and heat sources, and turning them on and off for different scenarios. If anoles change color for thermoregulation, then they would turn brown more frequently when the heat is off and the light is on.

The second hypothesis is the effect of increased stress. Stress will be induced by sliding a red disk towards the anoles multiple times at a high speed. Any color change that occurs within the red disk moving and the following 10 minutes will be documented as stress-induced.

I will not be able to test the advertisement signaling hypothesis due to feasibility. Because funding and space is limited, I do not have the capacity to house male anoles, as each one needs his own setup. Therefore, testing only females is the only feasible option, and by doing so, the advertisement signaling hypothesis will not be able to be tested, as this hypothesis pertains mainly to males.

To raise funding for this project, I am using an all or nothing crowdfunding platform called Experiment. As fellow anole lovers, I hope that you can help support my scientific endeavors by visiting my project page. All forms of support are greatly appreciated, from donations, to telling your friends about the project, or even by just reading my project page and commenting your thoughts! Whatever the contribution, I am very grateful, and am simply excited to be able to share what I am doing with all of you!

If you wish to learn more about this project, you can visit the project page, “What drives the color change in green anoles?”, where I have posted my methodology, protocols, and will be posting continuous updates on the progression of the project. If you become a contributor, you will have exclusive access to more updates, and will be able to learn more about the research.

My project page stops accepting donations on November 1st at 12:00 AM PT, so be sure to make your way over to the page by then to give your support!

Thank you for taking the time to read this article. I hope that you will explore the project page, and help support this cool and unique research!

Colour Change in the Gorgetal Scales of an Anole Dewlap

By Tom Brown

On October 8, 2019

In All Posts, Natural History Observations, New Research, Notes from the Field

An adult male *Anolis amplisquamosus* with black gorgetal scales immediately after capture (left); the same individual ~10 min later with white gorgetal scales. Photo Credit – John David Curlis

Anole dewlaps are excellent examples of a “complex signalling system.” They exhibit a staggering diversity of colours and patterns. Each dewlap is species specific and adapted to enable these lizards to communicate, attract mates and guard their territories from rivals or competitors. Generally, the colour of a dewlap (and its gorgetal scales) is considered an unchangeable descriptive trait. This colouration is not only relied upon by scientists looking to identify a species, but also by anoles that co-occur and partition with different species in their select niche.

Therefore, it might be surprising to learn that recent observations prove rapid colour change in anole gorgetal scales is possible. The question is, what implications does this have?

A recent publication in IRCF Reptiles & Amphibians details an observation of Anolis amplisquamosus whereby a male individual upon capture possessed black gorgetal scales that quickly changed to pale yellow. Upon consulting the literature, it seems only one prior documentation of colour change in gorgetal scales was reported (Leenders and Watkins-Colwell, 2003), coincidentally also involving a member of the same species clade.

This recent observation of chromatophoric regulation in anole gorgetal scales may be significant in the wider context of anole biology, in confirming photographically that coloration is not always a fixed descriptive or diagnostic feature — at least among members of the A. crassulus species group. Accordingly, this information suggests that some anoles may have the ability to regulate the colour of their gorgetal scales in the same manner as they regulate dorsal and lateral scale colour.

Because the colour of gorgetal scales is a character often used in species identification, understanding the mechanics and the purpose of such a change is crucial; as well as any implications to display behaviour, communication and anole interactions.

Cranial Ornamentation in Anolis baleatus

By Alex Tinius

On August 28, 2019

In All Posts, New Research

When I first encountered Anolis baleatus, this Hispaniolan crown-giant was mostly an inconvenience. At the time I was gathering data for my doctoral thesis by cycling preserved anoles through a µCT-scanner. Most of the adult specimens of A. baleatus were just too large to easily fit into the scan chamber, so it took a lot of patience and creativity to acquire any decent images of the appendicular girdles, which are the body parts I was interested in.

During that process I also acquired radiographic images of the head skeleton, and found unusual patterns of crenulation in this species. The cranium of Anolis baleatus displays a great degree of seemingly asymmetrical (or at least somewhat irregular) ornamentation across its dorsal surface. This is especially pronounced on the prefrontal and frontal bones, and completely obscures all superficial distinction between them in adult lizards. In adults, cranial ornamentation is also borne by the paired nasals, maxillae, and postorbitals, and the parietal (see figure).

Both Steven Poe (1998) and Susan Evans (2008) mentioned this ossified garnish, but a thorough account of their variation among anoles remains absent from the primary literature. Richard Etheridge and Kevin de Queiroz (1988) were probably the first to report on skull ornaments in anoles (as part of a discussion of several iguanian lizards with similar cranial adornments), and remarked that the distribution patterns of dermal rugae may reflect those of the topographically associated epidermal scales.

Overall, this ornamentation appears to be relatively uncommon among anoles, especially to the degree expressed in Anolis baleatus (and several other crown-giant ecomorph anoles). Considering the osteologically robust appearance of crown-giants, even at early stages of ontogenetic development, this gives rise to questions regarding the development of these ornamental patterns. Thanks to the collection efforts of Luke Mahler (University of Toronto), and a postdoctoral position in his lab, I was able to acquire CT-image data representing an ontogenetic series of this species, ranging from very young juveniles to skeletally mature adults.

While parts of the paired frontals of juveniles are covered in modest eminences, prominent cranial ornamentation is absent from small specimens (see figure). Likely, growth of these ornaments begins very late during ontogenetic development. Ornaments on the prefrontals and parietal are only evident in specimens that, to the best of our judgement, are approaching sexual maturity. We looked at fifteen specimens per sex, representing a range of juvenile and subadult sizes, and this general pattern is consistent throughout the image data. Schwartz (1974) inferred that anoles in the ricordii group reach sexual maturity between 100 and 110 mm snout-vent length (SVL), and we observed the first prominent ornaments at sizes between 90 and 95 mm SVL. Assuming that differences in size directly represent ontogenetic growth, these findings imply that Anolis baleatus starts to grow elaborate ornamentation as it approaches sexual maturity, and that expansion and growth of these ornaments then continues into skeletal maturity. Interestingly, both males and females appear to develop them at roughly the same body size.

The function and evolutionary cause of these structures remain unknown, and these are questions we are currently investigating. Body size is an important correlate for the occurrence of cranial ornaments, but these structures may also conceivably play roles in defense, feeding, or intraspecific agonistic interactions. Stay tuned!

Videos

A. baleatus, female, 55 mm SVL

A. baleatus, female, 65 mm SVL

A. baleatus, female, 96 mm SVL

A. baleatus, female, 126 mm SVL

References

Etheridge, R. & de Queiroz, K. (1988): A phylogeny of Iguanidae.─ [In:] Estes, R.D. & Pregill, G.K. (eds.): Phylogenetic Relationships of the Lizard Families: Essays Commemorating Charles L Camp, 283-367; Stanford: Stanford University Press.

Evans, S. (2008): The skull of lizards and tuatara.─ [In:] Gans, C., Gaunt, A.S. & Adler, K. (eds.), Biology of the Reptilia, vol. 20:1-347; Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles, Ithaca, New York.

Poe, S. (1998): Skull characters and the cladistic relationships of the Hispaniolan dwarf twig Anolis.─ Herpetological Monographs, 12:192-236; The Herpetologists’ League.

Schwartz, A. (1974): An analysis of variation in the Hispaniolan giant anole, Anolis ricordi Dumeril and Bibron.─ Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 146:89-146.

Anoles and Drones, a Dispatch from Island Biology 2019

By Graham Reynolds

On August 26, 2019

In New Research

Emma Higgins presenting her work at Island Biology 2019

The third meeting of the nascent Society for Island Biology took place recently in stunning La Reunion in the western Indian Ocean. Conference goers were treated to a wonderful venue at the Université de La Réunion in St. Denis, whose campus looks out down the gentle slope to the open sea. Four hundred attendees from around the world reinforced what we already knew— that island biology as a study attracts a large number of researchers from very diverse fields of study. The conference organizers also are leading the way on making our meetings in remote locations more responsible; using live streaming of the sessions meant that some interested scientists could skip the travel and stay home to watch the sessions. But the real asset was that the organizers calculated the air travel carbon footprint for all attendees, finding that ~30 hectares of forest would need to be planted to offset the carbon emissions. Happily, that is exactly what they did! The conference organizers and hosts, in partnership with communities and other organizations, committed to reforesting exactly that amount in La Réunion and Mauritius.

OK, now on to the anoles! Well, given the remoteness of the meeting location (nearly the antipode of the Caribbean*) perhaps it is not too surprising that few anologists attended. But I am happy to report that Emma Higgins did, and gave an excellent presentation on her work with anoles on the island of Utila, one of the Honduran Bay Islands.

Emma is a 3^rd year PhD student in Adam Algar’s lab at the University of Nottingham, where her thesis is focused on using emerging technology to study lizard thermal biology under changing conditions (think development, climate change, and species introductions). When I say using emerging technology, I mean using #allthetech; Emma uses 3D printing, drones fitted with thermal cameras, Sentinel satellites, and LIDAR to generate her data! Her motivation follows from asking what factors control the abundance, distribution, and microhabitat of anoles on Utila, and whether these variables might be better estimated at extremely fine scales using emerging technology.

A bit of background, there are four species of anoles on Utila, including the endemics A. bicaorum and A. utilensis. An additional native species is A. sericeus, which also occurs elsewhere in the Bay Islands as well as on the mainland. The fourth species is everyone’s favorite— A. sagrei! Utila has experienced a surge of development in the last 10 years, with new roads and development going up faster than conservationists can keep track of. This is a major threat to the island wildlife, which includes an endemic iguana known as The Swamper (Ctenosaura bakeri) which favors the dwindling mangrove forests.

Emma’s work involves collecting data both at anole-level as well as above the canopy. She uses a DJI Phantom 4 drone platform fitted with a near-infrared camera to estimate a normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI, a measure of “greenness”) of the forest canopy across habitats, and found that just NDVI explains 28% of the spatial heterogeneity of lizard operative temperatures (in a mixed-model framework). This suggests that her drone can identify suitable thermal environments for lizards from above the canopy. I should mention that her resolution here is 4cm/pixel! She plans to zoom out to space and test whether similar imagery from the Sentinel 2 satellite will also be useful. Below the canopy, Emma is using LIDAR to simultaneously conduct forest shade modeling (for super fine-scale temporal variation in thermal microhabitat). LIDAR also detects perch availability, as it detects tree trunks very well. Emma also uses 3D printing to produce hundreds of anole models, each fitted with an iButton® temperature recorder and placed on perches in the forest. Each lizard print takes 52 minutes, so Emma ended up taking the printer to her flat to print 24/7 in preparation for her field season!

I should mention that Emma was joined at the conference by two other excellent scientists— lab mate Vanessa Cutts and fellow Utila lizard biologist Daisy Maryon, both of whom won awards for their posters at the conference!

Stay tuned for the announcement for the 2022 Island Biology meeting, to be held on either Mallorca in the Balearic Islands or Wellington, New Zealand. Also stay tuned for Emma’s results; we look forward to hearing more about her work!

Climate Change Will Lead to Negative Effects on Population Dynamics of an Amazonian Anole

By Luisa Diele-Viegas

On August 23, 2019

In New Research

Climate change is negatively affecting Squamates all over the world, and the perspectives for the next 50 years are worrisome. Although more than 200 studies were published in the last 20 years on this subject, only 23 present some information on Anoles, and none of them focused on population dynamics – until now. In the most recent issue of Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part A: Molecular & Integrative Physiology, Diele-Viegas et al. evaluated the possible effects of climate change on two populations of three species of lizards from the Brazilian Amazonia, including Norops fuscoauratus.

The idea of this research came from the first author, Dr. Luisa, during her PhD classes back in 2017. She was taking classes on population ecology and had the idea of to combine environmental thermal adequacy with the b-d model, which considers survival and reproductive rates to calculate population dynamics andevaluate the impact of climate change on population dynamics of her study objects, Amazonian lizards. She thus started to search in the literature for articles that focused on something like what she was thinking, and discovered that this had not been done before, at least not for squamate reptiles. She also noticed that data on Amazonian lizards’ life history is very scarce on literature, which could be a deterrent to her getting the job done. After speaking with her advisors (Dr. Fred Rocha and Dr. Fernanda Werneck), Luisa decided to estimate a tolerance index considering the relationship between the upper temperature limit of the animal activity restriction and the environmental temperature of the microhabitat in which this animal occurs and used this index as an approximation of the populations’ survival rates. This allowed her and her advisors (both coauthors of this article) to circumvent the data scarcity and put Luisa’s idea into practice, leading to the publication of this article.

Considering the tolerance index mentioned, the authors predicted that Norops fuscoauratus is likely to became locally extinct at one of the evaluated sites, Reserva Ducke, which is an almost urban reserve in the Amazonian heart. The hatchlings’ tolerance to environmental change was considered the most sensitive vital trait evaluated, highlighting the species’ vulnerability. Also, considering that the response to selection is likely to be too slow in anoles, an evolutionary change in N. fuscoauratus is unlikely to occur considering current rates of environmental change, which reinforces the species’ vulnerability at local scale. This study represents the first effort to evaluate population sensitivity to climate change among reptiles. The authors highlight the need for new studies focusing on this subject to provide theoretical and empirical basis for biologically informed conservation strategies and actions to avoid the extinction of several species around the world. Also, Luisa highlights that, as scientists, we should always value our ideas – our curiosity is the fuel that moves science into progress.

Visualising the 3D Surface Structure of Lizard Skin

By Simon Baeckens

On August 18, 2019

In New Research

Imaging the surface topography of lizard skin using gel-based stereo-profilometry.
(Baeckens et al. 2019)

The skin surface structure of lizards varies greatly among species, likely because it plays a key role in a range of tasks, such as camouflage, locomotion, self-cleaning, mitigation of water loss and protection from physical damage. Yet, we still know remarkably little about how variation in skin surface structure translates to functional variation. Part of this gap in our understanding can be traced back to the lack of means to perform high-throughput and detailed analysis of the 3D anatomy of lizard skin in a non-destructive manner.

To tackle this hiatus, I was fortunate enough to be able to round up a great team of scientists and to start exploring the possibilities of a new imaging technique, termed gel-based stereo-profilometry. In this approach, a deformable transparent gel pad with one opaque surface is pressed onto the object of interest, creating a surface impression. While the gel pad is still in contact with the object, a series of photographs from six different illumination angles are acquired, and a topographical 3D map of the surface is created by merging the acquired images using
specialized surface analysis software.

Using this technique, we successfully imaged the 3D skin surface structure of Anolis cristatellus specimens in great detail (pixel resolution of 0.86 µm) and in a short-time frame (average acquisition time of imaging and digital reconstruction combined was 90 seconds). In our new paper, we demonstrate that this technique is exceptionally useful for the rapid 3D structural characterisation of lizard skin surfaces without any specimen preparation, permitting 3D visualization in situ and even in vivo. This technique opens exciting new avenues for investigating structure–function relationships in lizard skin.

In addition to the ability to quantify the micro- and macro-structural details of lizard skin, the 3D data sets acquired using gel-based stereo-profilometry can be directly converted into surface meshes, which can in turn be 3D printed. These tangible models can then be directly employed for studies to investigate the role of scale geometry on animal–substrate interactions, or enlarged for educational purposes to illustrate key differences between different squamate taxa.

Baeckens S, Wainwright DK, Weaver JC, Irschick DJ & Losos JB (2019) Ontogenetic scaling patterns of lizard skin surface structure as revealed by gel‐based stereo‐profilometry. Journal of Anatomy 235, 346–356.

If You Thought that Brown Anoles Bully Green Anoles, You Were Right

By Nick Herrmann

On July 24, 2019

In All Posts, Introduced Anoles, New Research

Interactions between native Anolis carolinensis (green anoles) and invasive Anolis sagrei (brown anoles) in the United States are discussed often here on Anole Annals. Most recently, this blog featured a local news broadcast from Louisiana and newspaper article from Florida, both of which describe a pattern that is repeated across the southern United States: When brown anoles invade a habitat, green anoles begin perching higher off the ground and thus become more difficult for anole enthusiasts to find.

Why do green anoles and brown anoles tend to occupy different perch heights in areas where they co-occur? By far the most popular explanation is that these species partition space as a means of partitioning resources, namely arthropod food. In simpler terms, they are competitors. But competition itself is not always simple. To better understand and study competition, biologists often classify competition as one of two types. Species can compete directly via aggressive encounters (termed “interference competition”) or indirectly through their shared use of a limited resource (termed “exploitative competition”). We know that green and brown anoles eat similar prey, suggesting that their competition is at least partly exploitative. Do they also engage in direct interference?

In a recently published paper in Oecologia, Katherine Culbertson (Harvard ESPP ‘18, former undergrad researcher in the Losos lab) and I tested the hypothesis that interference competition between native green anoles and invasive brown anoles occurs in the field. More specifically, we wondered if an asymmetry in interference competition might contribute to the vertical displacement of green anoles by brown anoles. To test for competitive asymmetries between the species, we used a classic method in behavioral ecology: tethered intruder trials. We presented adult male intruders to previously undisturbed focal individuals of the opposite species and videotaped the interactions. Intruders were tied around the waist with string at the end of a fishing pole with enough slack to move freely. We analyzed several aspects of the behavior of the focal lizards to evaluate asymmetries in interspecific aggression between the species: how often they attacked, how often they displayed (throat fan extensions, headbobs, and pushups), how often they retreated, and in what direction they retreated. (Disclaimer: Whenever an attack occurred, we ended the trial immediately so no lizards were harmed.)

As anticipated, we found that interference competition is asymmetric in favor of brown anoles, which are more likely to display and less likely to retreat from interactions than green anoles. In line with their arboreal tendencies, male green anoles also trend toward retreating upward more often than expected by chance. Somewhat surprisingly, these asymmetries are prevalent despite the almost complete absence of physical attacks (there were only two attacks in nearly one hundred trials, both by brown anoles). All told, our results suggest that signaling between the species and avoidance behavior by green anoles resolve most potential conflicts before they escalate to combat.

Figure 2 from our paper, which displays posterior predictions for the (a) probability of display, (b) display rate, and (c) probability of retreat of male *Anolis sagrei* (brown anoles, “SA”) and male Anolis carolinensis (green anoles, “CA”) when presented with a male intruder of the opposite species. Brown anoles were more likely to display and less likely to retreat than green anoles.

Many Floridians I’ve met in the course of my fieldwork have described brown anoles as bullies. Although anecdotal observations of animal behavior do not always reliably represent biological truths, in this case, the collective of observations made the residents I’ve spoken with are concordant with our data. Kudos to the many local naturalists who’ve shared their stories!

In closing, I’ll attempt to refine the metaphor of brown anoles as bullies, in acknowledgement that metaphors are often imperfect and with apologies to those who bristle at any attempt to anthropomorphize non-human animals. First, what makes a bully effective? On the playground, a bully might gain a reputation as such by initiating and winning a fight. Afterward, the mere threat of physical combat is often enough for the bully to exert his or her will on others. At our study sites, where green anoles and brown anoles have co-existed for several generations, brown anoles tend to dominate interactions with green anoles without attacking them. Perhaps physical combat is more common during the incipient stages of brown anole invasion, a hypothesis which could be tested by applying our methods across sites that vary in their invasion history.

Second, what’s the best way to deal with a bully? Many children learn to ignore bullies, a strategy rendered possible by the existence of alternative space to play or activities to engage in. Green anoles appear to find refuge in the canopy, where brown anoles seldom venture. Anecdotally, areas where no such canopy exists (i.e. areas with few plants or with only short, shrubby vegetation) are the areas where green anoles are most likely to disappear entirely following brown anole invasion. This hypothesis deserves a formal test.

Special thanks to the Aquatic Preserve Program run by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection for making this work possible. Check out the paper to learn more about our methods, results, and the implications of our findings.

Katherine Culbertson marking the location of a captured green anole in the field.

Distribution Models for Puerto Rican Anoles under Predicted Climate Change

By Anna Thonis

On July 5, 2019

In New Research

SDMs for (A) A. cooki, (B) A. cristatellus, (C) A. evermanni, and (D) A. gundlachi. Left images are current suitable habitat. Right images are predicted suitable habitat in 2070 under HadGEM2-AO RCP8.5. The warmer the color (the redder it is), the more suitable the habitat.

Species Distribution Models (SDMs), although relatively new compared to other ecological methods, have been built for a wide range of taxa over a variety of habitat types and regions of the world. Given their widespread use, it was surprising to Brad Lister and me that there were very few SDMs for anoles, and in particular, none for Puerto Rican anoles. Brad and I decided to model the potential suitable habitat for all ten Puerto Rican Anolis species under various climatic scenarios for the years 2050 and 2070. The results of our study showed declines in suitable habitat for nearly all ten mainland Puerto Rican anoles with the exception of Anolis cooki. Declines in suitable habitat have the potential to substantially increase extinction risks for anoles. Although this study focused on Puerto Rican anoles, it is plausible that similar climate change impacts could be seen throughout the West Indies.

Species Distribution Modeling is a rapidly developing subfield of ecology, but we found a paucity of useful information that linked all the steps together. I am now working on a step-by-step tutorial that will fill in a lot of missing information on the steps that many tutorials breeze past. For me, an important component of creating SDMs was using software with the greatest potential for widespread use and method replication. For instance, ArcGIS is exceptionally powerful, but comes with steep licensing fees. For that reason, we opted to use comparable, open-source packages QGIS and DIVA-GIS. With respect to the actual modeling software, MaxEnt is a great option with no associated cost. Additionally, although we did not use it for this paper, Wallace is a very useful platform that incorporates different algorithms (including MaxEnt) for creating SDMs in a user-friendly series of guided steps.

As a part of my doctoral research in the Akcakaya Lab at Stony Brook University, I intend to build more accurate SDMs for Puerto Rican anoles by incorporating biotic interactions and more relevant predictor variables. I am also interested in working on SDMs that output multi-species range shifts given forecasts of future climate change. With these initiatives in mind, I anticipate reporting on new developments in Anolis SDMs in the near future. In general, the study of Anolis SDMs is just beginning and many important research directions remain to be explored. As we expand the use of SDMs I think it’s useful to keep George Box’s quote in mind: “All models are wrong, but some are useful.” It’s an informative mindset to have when building and interpreting any SDM. Although they can be helpful in conservation decision making, their results are just predictions based on more predictions and we need to keep asking ourselves how those predictions can be improved.