While reading reports on the colonization events of the brown anole and its impacts on local fauna, I never thought I would have the chance to see this lizard, so interesting from an ecological point of view, in the wild. However, years ago, thanks to an invitation from a colleague in Guayaquil, I participated in the first report of the occurrence of Anolis sagrei in Ecuador. At that time, only a few individuals were seen, and encounters were casual in two specific locations. However, since 2018, I have had the opportunity to start monitoring the brown anole in Guayaquil, Guayas province.

In past experiences searching for native anoles over five years in forests and other vegetation formations in Ecuador, I knew the local anoles are animals that hide a lot and are not seen frequently. I was used to recording few encounters over long distances (finding five or at best 10 individuals after several days and nights of searching). To my surprise, the scenario changed in Guayas. During our first excursion, we found more than ten individuals in five minutes within an area of five square meters in the middle of the city. These animals did not hide or try to escape; instead, they initiated displays.

This marked the beginning of our efforts to search for them not only in the areas reported by Amador et al. (2017) but also in various places throughout the city. This included garden areas and urban parks, as well as remnants of forest found in the city’s outskirts. Thanks to these observations, we gathered information on their diet, behavioral activity, and ecology, which will surely help us understand why they are so successful in these environments.

In this study, we managed to report not only the sites where we personally searched but also incorporated casual observations from citizens using citizen science tools like iNaturalist. Thanks to this, we now know that the species has spread to different provinces in the country (Esmeraldas and Manabí provinces), including one in the Amazon region (Orellana province). It’s interesting that thanks to this tool, we included points where we would not have thought to look for them. Additionally, the brown anole is very charismatic, and many people have felt an affinity and attraction to the little creatures that move their dewlaps, hence fortunately, the records provided by citizens were of good quality, allowing us to corroborate identification and data accuracy.

The adaptability of this lizard is evident in its ability to occupy different spaces, including urban areas such as parks, gardens, and natural areas along riverbanks. Consequently, new questions arise: where did these animals come from? How long ago did they arrive? Does their current distribution result from one or multiple introduction events? What impact will this lizard have on local species in terms of displacement or competition? We know it is a dominant species, but we still lack indications of its effect, particularly in Isla Santay reserve, where two other native species are found in sympatry (Cruz-García et al. 2023). Since we registered that several families of insects that are considered agricultural pests are part of their diet, may they have a positive or negative impact on humans? (Narvaez et al. 2020)

We feel obligated to review how the dispersal processes of this lizard can be controlled. However, more information on the species’ actions is needed to start recommending control measures or other actions at the local level. These lizards have been found in nurseries around the city, which are also used to support reforestation efforts in areas of native vegetation, facilitating the dispersal processes and the possible ecological consequences associated with their spread.

In sum, we have a love-hate relationship with the brown anole. As behavioral ecologists, we recognize that Anolis sagrei represents an excellent model for studying the biological invasion process, and we hope to share more about our findings from the past seven years soon. However, we are also concerned about how to manage this species. Probably, containment or eradication measures may need to be established to prevent problems experienced in other regions from occurring with Ecuadorian anoles.

We want to share our experience with other enthusiasts of this fascinating invader and our efforts to understand its dispersal mechanisms, ecological and behavioral adaptations, and the strategies suggested for its management. By doing so, we hope to collaborate and contribute to a broader understanding and effective management of the brown anole.

You can read the full article here.

I would like to acknowledge the invaluable contribution of Fernando Ayala-Varela to this blog.

REFERENCES

Amador, L., Ayala-Varela, F., Nárvaez, A. E., Cruz, K., & Torres-Carvajal, O. (2017). First record of the invasive brown anole, Anolis sagrei Duméril & Bibron, 1837 (squamata: iguanidae: dactyloinae), in South America. Check List, 13(2), 2083-2083.

Cruz-García, K., Barreno, M., Cuadrado, S., Moretta-Urdiales, M. D. M., Molina-Moreira, N., Salas, J. A., … & Narváez, A. E. (2023). Amphibians and reptiles of Isla Santay (Durán, Ecuador). Check List, 19(3), 347-369.

Narváez, A. E., Ghia, T., Moretta-Urdiales, M. M., & Moreira, N. M. (2020). Feeding habits of Anolis sagrei, an introduced species, in urban ecosystems of Guayas Province. Urban Ecosystems, 23(6), 1371-1376.

Narváez, A. E., Ayala-Varela, F., Cuadrado, S., Cruz-García, K., Yánez-Muñoz, M. H., & Amador, L. (2024). Updated distribution of the brown anole in continental Ecuador: a case of urban spaces favoring the establishment of an opportunistic exotic species. BioInvasions Records, 13(2), 373-384.

Hey fellow Anole lovers!

We are a group of passionate Colombians who are absolutely fascinated by Anolis lizards. You know, those charming little reptiles with their vibrant dewlaps and incredible diversity. And let’s be honest, who needs geckos when you’ve got Anoles? (Just kidding, gecko fans – we love them too, but anoles have a special place in our hearts!)

The Birth of a Dream

Our journey began with a simple idea: to create a comprehensive, visually stunning field guide that captures the beauty and diversity of Anolis lizards in Colombia. With over 80 species in our biodiverse country, we knew this would be no small feat, but we were up for the challenge!

Imagine flipping through pages filled with beautiful illustrations, detailed maps showing where each species can be found, and handy tips on how to tell them apart from their look-alikes. That’s exactly what we’re creating – a guide that’s not only informative but also a joy to use.

The Magic of Illustrations

One of the coolest aspects of our field guide is the artwork. Each species will have detailed illustrations of adult males and females, all in their characteristic poses. Our talented illustrator is working hard to bring these lizards to life on the page. Here’s a sneak peek at how the book will look:

Why It Matters

Colombia is bursting with all kinds of amazing wildlife, and Anolis lizards are a big part of what makes our nature so special. This guide isn’t just a book; it’s a tool for education, conservation, and accurate taxonomy. By highlighting these incredible lizards, we hope to foster a deeper appreciation and understanding of our natural heritage and make identifying these species easier and more precise for everyone.

How You Can Get Involved

We have an exciting way for you to support our project – Adopt a Species! Here’s how it works:

• Pick Your Favorite Anole: For a $50 donation, you can sponsor a species of your choice.
• Get Your Name in the Book: Your name will appear on the species page as its sponsor.
• Receive Exclusive Perks: You’ll get a certificate and a digital illustration of the species you adopt.

Your contribution will help us bring this guide to life and support the conservation and study of these wonderful creatures. And for research labs, institutions, and universities that want to donate larger amounts, we’d love to include your logos backing the book. It’s a great way to show your support for biodiversity and conservation.

Join us on This Journey

We’re calling on all anole fans, researchers, and conservationists to join us. Whether you’re a university, research lab, or just someone who loves these lizards as much as we do, your support means the world to us. Want to get involved or learn more? Reach out to us!

Thank you for being a part of this exciting journey. Let’s celebrate the amazing diversity of Anolis lizards in Colombia together!

Happy herping!

You can contact us at:

fundacioninterandinos@gmail.com

camiloestupinan12@gmail.com

Camilo A. Estupiñan

Fundación Interandinos
Universidad Icesi

I enjoyed visiting with anole researchers for my book “The Lizard Scientists” so much that I wanted to give nonscientists an example of the hard work it takes to learn about how Nature functions. I focused on James Stroud’s research as a good illustration of “what it takes” to study Nature in meaningful ways. Take a look at DorothyPatent.substack.com for ‘How Scientists “Do” Science’ and pass it on.

I’m now living on Kaua’i, where A. sagrei thrives in a number of environments. For example, I see almost totally black individuals on the long black volcanic rock walls along a walking path and long-tailed basically brown ones with a bright yellowish stripe along their backs along the paths bordered by dense vegetation. I know they can modify their colors depending on the background, but still, It looks to me like what one might call “secondary evolution” is going on.

Biologist Damion Whyte reports from Jamaica: On April 11, 2024, at 10:50 am, Mrs. Lisa Bowman Lee was at her garage in Kingston, the capital of Jamaica. She saw a Greater Antillean Grackle  (Quiscalus niger) and a Jamaican Twig Anole (Anolis valencienni). She had never seen that lizard before, and she had seen a bird trying to eat it. She contacted Damion Whyte, who has done much work with wildlife in Jamaica. He advised her to put the lizard in a nearby tree. She was amazed by its colourful dewlap. This is the first time we have seen an Anolis valencienni fight for its life like that.

The Caribbean’s history of tropical cyclones (e.g., hurricanes, tropical storms, tropical depressions) is well-known, and a number of studies have quantified how anole populations differ before and after a storm. Previous studies have recorded changes in anole phenotype, behavior, and population density following a tropical cyclone. That said, these are almost always opportunistic studies in which researchers collected data on anoles at a given site, a tropical cyclone impacted the area in which the data were collected, and then the researchers subsequently returned to the study site to collect the same type of data, this time post-storm. From these important studies, it is clear that tropical cyclones can have a near-immediate impact on anole populations, but what about over the long-term?

Tropical cyclones track passing within 500 km of Puerto Rico since 1955.

To understand if tropical cyclones have played a role in shaping the present-day distributions of anoles, we used random forests to individually model the distributions of all ten Puerto Rican anole species with and without data from the National Hurricane Center (NHC). Using the NHC data, we quantified variables related to tropical cyclone intensity (e.g., storm category, wind speed) and frequency (e.g., the number of tropical cyclones an individual anole experienced in a one-year window) to be used in species distribution models. Our results indicate that incorporating data on tropical cyclone intensity and frequency into species distribution models improves model predictive performance for nearly all ten Puerto Rican anole species. Additionally, the wind speed variable was identified as potentially important in shaping present-day species distribution patterns, particularly for A. cristatellus, A. krugi, A. pulchellus, and A. stratulus.

Linear regression of AUCtest with and without tropical cyclone variables for each of Puerto Rico’s anole species. AUCtest is a common metric used to assess species distribution models, with values closer to 1 indicative of more predictive models. The dashed red line follows y=x, where any values along that line indicate no change in model performance between models with and without tropical cyclone variables.

Although species distribution models can tell us which environmental variables are potentially important in shaping species distributions, they are limited in that they cannot tell us if there are underlying mechanisms shaping those spatial patterns. For example, hurricane wind speed is a potentially important variable in shaping anole distributions, but how? According to the wind speed response curve, it appears that anole habitat suitability (sometimes also referred to as “probability of presence”) decreases as wind speed increases… but why? I do not think anoles are getting ripped from the trees by powerful winds at a rate such that wind speeds are shaping anole distributions. Rather, it is more likely (and supported by other studies of how hurricanes impact wildlife) that tropical cyclones are shaping anole microhabitat and microclimate over long periods of time and thereby indirectly shaping anole distributions. More work is needed to understand how hurricanes shape anole distributions, but we believe this work is a step in the right direction.

You can read the full article here. If you don’t have access, please email me at anna.thonis@stonybrook.edu or anna.thonis8@gmail.com and I will happily send you a PDF copy.