Anolis equestris: Miami’s Favorite Cannibal

Anolis equestris with a smaller Anolis equestris in its jaws.

An Anolis equestris captures a smaller A. equestris in South Miami.

Cannibalism in Anolis equestris is nothing new, but that doesn’t make it any less surprising to witness! On a morning stroll in South Miami this past weekend, I noticed a flash of green movement on a tree. Upon closer inspection I realized there was a medium-large A. equestris with a smaller A. equestris wedged between its jaws. I hurried to snap a few photos with my wife’s phone, and while they aren’t Neal Losin-caliber (ha ha), I still wanted to share them with my favorite anole community!

Once I got too close, the A. equestris decided it was time to take its meal higher up the tree. An unsuspecting A. distichus saw the approaching A. equestris and began to dewlap enthusiastically. You can see the A. distichus near the top of the last photo. Enjoy!

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Winter Beckles

Graduate student in the Uy lab at the University of Miami. Using introduced species of Anolis lizards to study the influence of anthropogenic factors on signal divergence and speciation.

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