Spencer Asperilla presenting his poster, “A Biodiversity Survey of Parasites from Anolis Lizards on Andros Island, Bahamas”, at the 2018 Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists (JMIH).

Anolis species inhabiting the Caribbean provide a great example of adaptive radiation and convergent evolution in ecology, morphology, and behavior. Adaptation, diversification, and specialization to a particular microhabitat and dietary resource, created a great diversity among anoles. But what about their parasite assemblages? Andros Island in the Bahamas is the fifth largest island in the Caribbean Archipelago. However, it is still unclear if the parasite fauna hosted by Anolis lizards show similar evolutionary pathways.

In 2016, after an amazing experience studying abroad at ForFar Field Station on Andros Island, Spencer Asperilla and Katie Brittain joined the Langford Lab at Florida Southern College. Spencer and Katie were interested in documenting parasite species present in Bahamian Anolis lizards to determine if these are specialists or generalists among ecomorphs and identify if parasite populations vary seasonally. They conducted parasite biodiversity surveys on three sites on Andros Island, which involved capturing lizards and collecting blood smears and fecal matter. Specimens and samples were transported to Florida Southern College where they were processed and analyzed for parasites.

Spencer and collaborators found that parasitic infection rate was highest during the Summer (66.66%), and lowest during the Spring (60.56%); however these differences were not significant. Climate variables, such as mean daily temperature and precipitation, were evaluated, but no seasonal pattern could be determined for parasite infections in Bahamian lizards. As for parasite diversity, Brown Anole (Anolis sagrei; trunk-ground ecomorph) lizards had most species of parasites present, while A. angusticeps (twig ecomorph), A. distichus (Bark Anole; trunk ecomorph), and A. smaragdinus (Green Anole; trunk-crown ecomorph) had lower species diversity. The authors suggest these differences are related to the biology of the different ecomorphs. Trunk-ground anoles, such as A. sagrei, might be more susceptible to parasite infection by descending to the ground to capture prey or interact with a conspecific, whereas the other ecomorphs remain higher up in the tree. Ground-dwelling insects may serve as intermediate hosts for parasites found in trunk-ground anoles. Spencer and collaborators propose that habitat use, as well as dietary composition, serve as an ecological explanation for parasite distribution among ecomorphs.

The big question remains unanswered: have parasite species coevolved with specific lizard hosts? The Langford Lab continues identifying parasites species to assess the diversity, host-specificity and infection patterns of Bahamian Anolis lizards. Spencer wants to resume this project as part of his master’s thesis and he looks forward to traveling back to Andros Island to collect additional samples.

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