Hey there!
I’ve been wanting to do this anole for a while so I’m kind of excited. These posts keep me going sometimes when the news is rough. I hope anoles bring you some respite as well.
Anolis agassizi is an anole that is endemic to Malpelo Island (off the coast of Colombia).
The island has rocky terrain and no vegetation, and the anoles are not territorial, and will willingly overlap or share perches and food sources. The insects that they eat are mainly beetles that are attracted to the colonies of birds that nest there. They also seem to have an attraction to the colour orange.
Anolis agassizi males have an average SVL of 105.4 mm, and females at 85.2 mm. They are mainly predated on by the Malpelo (or Dotted) galliwasp and seabirds.
Large males have large nuchal crests that are permanently erect, unlike other anoles. The small morphs of the male anoles also differ in colour, having spotted heads like the females do. All males have very small dewlaps.
Photo by Daniel Vásquez-Restrepo, iNaturalist
...And also like every other anole. Every week. #DidYouAnole?
- #DidYouAnole – Anolis allogus - December 24, 2021
- #DidYouAnole – Anolis gundlachi - November 12, 2021
- #DidYouAnole – Anolis phyllorhinus - November 5, 2021
Rick Wallach
This is one of my favorite anole species; it pains me sometimes that we haven’t got any feral populations of this nifty looking lizard here in Miami.
I also loved that Malpelo Island expedition video – the sight of those crowds of agassizi gathered around that slice or orange was an absolute hoot. Who figured out they loved oranges?
Also, does the spotted galliwasp predate the anoles? All I’ve been able to find on that lizard indicates they eat small crustaceans and nestling seabirds; on the other hand, there’s a brief sequence in the video wherein the anole orgy around that orange suddenly evaporates as if by magic and a second later the galliwasp turns up. It seemed like the anoles were well and truly terrified of it.
Chelsea Connor
Yes its amazing that they are attracted to the colour. Smithonsian researchers on the island noticed that they had a liking for it: https://www.anoleannals.org/2013/09/19/lizard-preference-for-the-color-orange-the-famous-chuckles-experiment/
Did you mean the Dotted galliwasp? The Dotted galliwasp and the Malpelo galliwasp I mentioned are one and the same actually. I’ll edit it to include both names of the lizard. So yes, they do eat the anoles!
Michael Salutin
I would really like to know more about this ecosystem. Is there a link to the expedition video? Thanks!