Can someone please identify this lizard to species? Is it an anole?
The preserved lizard, and the bat next to it, are sitting on a shelf in Ernest Hemingway’s bathroom, which I visited this past January. (Okay, I visited his estate and former home near Havana, Cuba, but you can’t actually step inside the house so I had to take the photograph–with my iPhone–through the open bathroom window.)
As everyone knows, Hemingway was a consummate sportsman, fisherman and hunter. He especially was a fan of big game; many trophy heads of large African mammals decorate the walls of his living room. Surely, however, there is no bigger game than the giant lizard shown here. I presume that it was taken on his estate, but as far as I can tell there is no collecting tag or other kind of identifying label and nobody whom I asked could shed any additional light. Indeed, no one else whom I was with had even noticed the two prize specimens sitting in adjacent jars.
For more information about the estate, look here: <http://www.hemingwaycuba.com/finca-la-vigia.html>.
Thanks very much.
- The Old Man and the Lizard: Hemingway’s Anole - March 19, 2012
Rich Glor
This is a giant giant anole. It could be one of several species in the equestris series, but its impossible to tell which one based on this photo. It’s so robust that I initially considered the possibility that it might be a rock iguana, but it clearly has lamellae and a prominent dewlap.
Carlos Infante
Looks to me like a good size male Anolis barbatus. We had some of these in the lab and they are pretty hefty beasts.
Will Baugher
All of our barbatus have a shorter tail than SVL, so I would guess that the lizard in the jar has too long of a tail to be barbatus, but it does look like a chamaeleolis to me too.
Jonathan Losos
Much as it pains me to say this, I agree with Glor and think it’s an equestris group anole.
Yoel Stuart
Imagine if Anoles were large, edible, and difficult to wrangle.
“He was an old man who herped alone with a noose in the Sierra Maestra and he had gone eighty-four days now without taking a lizard.”
Martha Munoz
Love it!
Armando Pou
It does appear to be some subspecies of Anolis equestris. If the location of the estate is in Havana, my guess would be Anolis equestris equestris. BTW, they need to change that gin that Hemingway used as embalming liquid, it’s starting to yellow! :))
Pat Shipman
I would have thought Ernest embalmed in rum not gin. 🙂 Isn’t that the Caribbean rule?
Armando Pou
True, some Bacardi rum would probably have been in order, but I think Ernesto was a gin man. “Ginebra” was a popular drink back during his time in Cuba. 🙂
Legendary fellow.
Pat Shipman
I think Ernest would’ve used rum precisely because he did drink gin — why waste perfectly good gin? And though I have no personal knowledge of the species, I know there is a giant anole in Jamaica… so that’s my guess.
Martha Munoz
It could just be the angle, but this anole seems enormous to me! Even for a Crown-Giant, it seems very hefty. Like Rich, I considered a small iguana at first. I wonder – are truly behemoth CGs getting harder to find? Are there fewer? Perhaps some human-mediated selection for smaller body size? I wish I could see live one that big.
Armando Pou
That’s a very astute and interesting observation Martha. Never really thought about it; perhaps the original release of Anolis equestris in Coral Gables came from smaller stock and have perpetuated that trait? I have seen a couple of very healthy and robust 15-16” male equestris over the years in south Florida. Fewer after the 2010 freeze (although there has been an observable spike in young A.equestris now that the larger specimens are less in number). Maybe the periodic freezes have something to do with the smaller size? Additionally, even though they are great hunters they do enjoy a wide range of fruits; perhaps this part of their diet is not as complete here in Florida? Finally, it is also possible that that particular specimen was collected precisely because it was superb, like a trophy? There could be various reasons, both genetic and environmental as to why the Florida specimens may be smaller.
Wes Chun
I believe it has something to do with the magnifying effects of the glass jar.