Green anoles have become a cause for concern in Japan, as the arrival of this invasive species commenced the decline of several range-restricted arthropods. Credit Judy Gallagher, Wikimedia Commons.
While green anoles may be a pleasant sight throughout their native range, they’ve become cause for concern in Japan–just one region of the Pacific where this species has invaded and become successfully established. The arrival of these anoles initiated a decline of several endemic arthropods, propelling a handful of subsequent studies on the invasion biology of this species. The most recent contribution to Anolis carolinensis ecology and biology in Japan is from Mitani (2022), who collected and analyzed perch ecology data on the Ogasawara Islands–check it out!
New literature alert!
Selectivity of Perch Diameter by Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis) for Trapping in Ogasawara
Mitani (2022)
Abstract:
In the Ogasawara Islands adhesive traps are the primary means of controlling non-native Anolis carolinensis. If the types of tree trunks most frequently used by this lizard are identified, trapping efficiency can be improved by concentrating traps at such points. To analyze selectivity by trunk diameter, the diameters of 270 tree trunks used by the lizards and 1,024 tree trunks in the study area were measured. The analysis indicated the lizards avoided trunks of 1 cm or less in diameter. On the other hand, trunks with diameters over 2 cm appeared to be used randomly, regardless of diameter size. The diameter class distribution of trees varies by region and by forest. The range of tree trunk diameters commonly used by lizards is thus expected to vary by location. It would be advantageous to develop a capture technique that is effective for trunks and branches of various diameters.
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Gianna Coppola
This post made me think: anoles seem to be invasive all over the place. Also, do these traps kill the anoles? An interesting solution that this post made me think about is capturing invasive anoles, whether they are brown anoles in the U.S. or green anoles in Japan, and selling them in pet stores after a vet check for parasites (which, according to Petsmart, is something that’s done for their animals, but considering that they keep four species of herptiles all together in a 3 or 5-gal. tank, I’m not sure how thorough their checks are.) I don’t know if this would be a realistic or attainable solution in real life, but it’s interesting to think about. Many people don’t like the idea of taking animals out of their native habitat, but taking them from places that they don’t belong and selling them to responsible owners may be something that helps the environment. Even taking the captured Ogasawara anoles and releasing them where green anoles have declined might be an idea. I’d like to hear others’ thoughts about this.
Ethan
Problem is that inevitably some of these anoles would escape from captivity into the wild, spreading even further and increasing the invasive spread. Besides, this would need to be done on a rather large scale if it would even come close to being effective – not sure who would be hiring vets for the sole purpose of giving thousands of lizard check-ups.
Gianna Coppola
That is a good point. I’d hate to be that vet XD and also you are right, anoles became invasive because they escaped.