Top 10 Gear List

The Anolis field season, in the Northern Hemisphere at least, lasts from about mid-April to late-August. As winter finally loosens its grip on 2011, anole biologists everywhere are planning trips, breaking out field kits, shaking out field clothes, and gathering replacement equipment in preparation for another exciting season of Anolis field biology. Thus, be sure to stay tuned to this blog throughout the summer for breaking Anolis news.

In light of the upcoming field season, I’ve compiled a Top-10 list of field gear essential, in my opinion, to Anolis field research. And they are:

10. Insect repellent

9. Hat

8. Point-and-shoot camera

7. Binoculars (especially ones that can focus in close for behavioral observations)

6. Very bright flashlights for spotting lizards during night collections

5. Handheld GPS unit

4. Lizard bags

3. Tape measure

2. Lizard poles and favorite noosing material.

1. Trusty field pen and field notebook

Would you have different items in your list? Would your items be ordered differently? What would you include if the list were expanded to 15 items? Let the anole community know what you think is essential in the comments section.

Also, are there items that don’t make your top-10 list but that you wouldn’t go to the field without?

My favorite, non-top-10 item is a small flashlight like this one. Small enough to carry in a pocket, easy to hold in one’s mouth for hands-free applications, and not blindingly bright during close-up night work.

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Yoel Stuart

I am interested in whether, how, and why ecology shapes evolution (and evolution shapes ecology) through time, with an emphasis on microevolutionary pattern and process, adaptation, and field experiments. I completed my Ph.D. on Anolis lizards in the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University. I am currently a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Texas, Austin studying threespine stickleback. They're not anoles, but they're cool too.

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