I received my Ph.D. in Vascular Physiology from The University of Texas at Austin in 2009. I am currently a postdoctoral fellow/research faculty at the University of Colorado-Boulder in the Integrative Physiology of Aging Laboratory. My research focuses on the effects of aging, exercise, nutraceuticals and disease on endothelial function and large elastic artery stiffness in humans. Although I do not formally research Anolis, I have bred and kept Anolis carolinensis for more than 20 years.
Some previous posts on Anole Annals have stimulated excellent discussions regarding the care of Anolis eggs in a laboratory setting. To this, I’d like to share a few tips as a hobbyist who has successfully incubated A. carolinensis eggs outside the laboratory for many years.
A month before breeding season, I place a small organic (fertilizer-free) potted basil plant in each cage. This plant is watered weekly to keep the soil moist enough to prevent egg dessication without making the soil too heavy for easy digging. Every few days, I comb through the soil with my fingers to check for eggs.
A 2-dimensional ultrasound image of an egg inside a female A. carolinensis in 2008. Though I was supposed to be imaging human blood vessels during my doctorate, I snuck in some imaging of my anoles.
My first baby Anolis carolinensis hatched in 2003. Since that time, I have had 9 eggs hatch. Cultivating the eggs, feeding the tiny newborns and caring for the gravid females has certainly been a challenging adventure.
So far this summer, I’ve been fortunate to have 3 Anolis carolinensis eggs hatch under my watch. Below are some video clips of these delicate and inquisitive creatures as they emerge from their eggs and discover their new world. All videos are filmed in real time.
Hatchling #1 (aka Watson).
Below: Filming began when he was half way out of the egg. Note how a portion of the egg contents (experts, what is this?) remain attached after he emerges.
Have any of you witnessed a female anole biting a male anole without provocation and without preceding dewlap displays or bobbing? In my 20+ years experience with anole husbandry, I have never observed the following behavior by a female Anolis carolinensis.
To make room for a new baby A. carolinensis, this two-year-old gravid female was moved from her solitary home in a 20 gallon aquarium to a 40 gallon aquarium with a roommate. Her roommate was not new to her as she had previously lived peacefully (and copulated) with this old male A. carolinensis. Immediately, I noticed bite marks on the female’s head which I assumed were a result of the old male “missing” her neck during breeding attempts (he is pretty old at 7 years of age after all). What drew my attention; however, were the bite marks on the male’s head, neck, and leg. Later, I observed this female biting while bobbing and pulling on the neck of the male. Even after I moved her to another aquarium to live with a different male, I found similar wounds on his neck, leg, and tail. Now she lives alone again and I thought this would end the attacks but today, while she was out of her aquarium, she ambushed another male, firmly biting his neck, and did not release until I intervened. I captured a portion of her attack in the video below:
As you can see, she is clearly stressed as evidenced by the black patches behind her eyes and she seems intent on causing as much damage as possible to the male. I’m interested to know if others have observed this type of “Guerrilla warfare” by female anoles. Any insight into its etiology or purpose?
This past weekend, I came across one A. sagrei perched on a building in Savannah, Georgia. It appears that this introduced lizard’s invasion is spreading north from Florida.
Ann Melton’s Galloping Snail Studio in Georgia features beautiful and accurate natural sculptures in ceramic, stoneware and pewter including an anole pin, figurine, letter opener, jar and vase. She describes her artistic journey as beginning with “…clay at an early age and over time developed a wide range of ceramic techniques. I began formal ceramic studies in Manises, Spain. At Mountain Empire Community College I participated in an intense two year Studio Potter program. Then went on to graduate from Virginia Commonwealth University with a Bachelor of Fine Art. For 10 years I designed for an international pewter company. I now live on Melton Farm in Beachton, Georgia and work out of “Galloping Snail Studio” where I combine the two disciplines. The resulting work is both functional and decorative which savor the uniqueness of the red hills region.” Her work can be purchased directly at her website or at sportingartisans.com
