It’s been 2 weeks now since we held the long-anticipated Anolis Symposium at the Fairchild Gardens in Miami, Florida. Although we called it the 7th symposium, it was in fact only the 4th of these meetings which have previously been held in 1989, 1999, and 2009. In case you are wondering, the 7 corresponds to the number of Anolis newsletters that have been published over the years, the last 3 following each Anolis Symposium (a tradition we would like to keep up).
It was an excellent weekend full of exceptional talks, great Cuban food, catching up with old friends and making new ones, and of course, lots of lizards! For those of you who were not in attendance, here’s a brief recap:
We had a great group of 68 attendees. Over half of the attendees presented talks or posters. As you can see from the picture, there were a lot of the younger generation (graduate students and post-docs) in attendance. The rest of you missed out on a great time!
The 34 talks spanned a broad range of topics, including genomics (CRISPR in Anoles!), phylogenetic methods, behavior, diet, morphology, invasion biology, adaptation and natural selection, and (my favorite) anoles in urban areas. There was a little bit of something for everyone and a lot of great work being done. It’s a very exciting time to be an anole biologist!
Organizers James Stroud and Anthony Geneva did a wonderful job with all the bells and whistles, including lizard beers brewed especially for the symposium!
And of course, the lizards did not disappoint!
Let’s not wait another 10 years to make the next one happen! We would like to hold the next one in 2023, who wants to help us plan it? Send me an email (kmwinchell@gmail.com) or comment here if you have suggestions for the next meeting or would like to be kept in the loop about planning. Where should we have it? What time of year? And if you were at the meeting, let us know in the comments what your favorite part of the meeting was.
- Puerto Rico Herpetology Symposium - September 21, 2023
- Anole Symposium This Fall? - July 14, 2023
- Parallel Urban Adaptation from Phenotype to Genotype in Anolis Lizards - January 20, 2023
James T. Stroud
Thanks everyone that came for making it a great meeting!!
Stuart Nielsen
I’m sure I could start a project on Anolis by 2023!…
Kristin Winchell
does that mean you’re volunteering to help plan, Stu?
Janson
It was certainly a blast on all fronts — the talks, the romps, the photos, and photobombs. An absolute blast. My thanks to all, and it was fantastic getting to meet so many of y’all in the flesh!
Janson
Question for y’all!
Was this Anolis (Chamaeleolis) barbatus? (image attached)
I think the other set was Anolis smallwoodi, right? (no image attached)
Wrapping up my abundance of photos and want to tag these little tanks correctly!!!
Janson
Gah. Not letting me attach, but anybody who was there should know what I’m talking about. The specimens on display — the big ones. Anolis (Chamaeleolis) barbatus? Thanks!