Tag: #Didyouanole Page 4 of 5

Photo by Pascal Samson, iNaturalist

Hey!

It is still the best month ever, Halloween, and so we are continuing with anoles that channel that.

Today, is an anole masquerading as another lizard, Anolis barbatus.

Anolis barbatus is one of six species of anoles in the Chamaeleolis clade. This clade of anoles, all from Cuba, are called False Chameleons… because they look like chameleons. Bet you weren’t expecting that.

A. chamaeleonides by Alex Alfil, iNaturalist

False Chameleons have independent eye movement much like true Chameleons, and additionally have that bony casque. They have very cryptic colouring which helps them blend into the twigs they spend time on, and move slowly while swaying in order to mimic a twig swaying in the wind. But they can move fast to get away from persistent negative stimulus. They are also fairly large anoles, but despite this spend most of their time on twigs and small branches. These anoles are pretty stocky with an SVL of about 15-17cm and short limbs and tail.

False Chameleons exhibit very little sexual dimorphism. Both sexes have dewlaps and males are somewhat larger than the females, but the best way to tell is to by checking the postanal scales.

Photo by Veronika Zahradníčková

These anoles are also called Snail-eating Anoles because, well, they eat snails. They have broad, blunt teeth which enables them to crush the shells. They also feed on insects and because of their adaptations for crunching through snail shells, they are also able to feed on beetles and other insects with harder exoskeletons. They crush the shells, spit them out and then eat the snail. False Chameleon anoles also lack caudal autotomy, so they can’t drop their tails like other anoles do.

Photo by Veronika Holáňová

The five other species in this clade are A. agueroi, A. chamaeleonides, A. porcus, A. guamuhaya and A. sierramaestrae and it turns out this was kind of about all of them, but that’s OK! I can change my format like that if I want!

I’m not sure if their tails are prehensile, so if you do, please let me know!

#DidYouAnole – Anolis dracula

By Chelsea Connor

On October 15, 2020

In All Posts

Adult male, male, female and subadult male

Hey y’all!! Happy Halloween month!

I found a really cool anole, that I know you will all enjoy.

This week we are looking at Anolis dracula, which sadly didn’t get its specific epithet from the vampire, but from the reserve where it was found.

Dracula Anole (top) and Equatorial Anole (bottom). Images from Yánez-Muñoz et al. (2018)

Anolis dracula can be found at ~2200m in the Andes in Ecuador and Southern Colombia, and is very similar in appearance to the Equatorial Anole. It can only be distinguished from Equatorial Anoles, that inhabit the same range, by closer examination of the skull or hemipene, or by genetic analysis. They have a snout-to-vent length of about 70-82mm. Female Dracula Anoles can also have a dewlap smaller than that of the male.

Dewlaps of A) Adult male Dracula Anole, B) Female, C) Subadult female, and D) Male Equatorial Anole. Images from Yánez-Muñoz et al. (2018)

They are also active on the ground, and were caught in pitfall traps as noted in Yánez-Muñoz et al. (2018), where the species is described.

#DidYouAnole – Anolis lososi

By Chelsea Connor

On October 8, 2020

In All Posts

Hey! Hope everyone has been having a good month so far!

As we all know it is October, my favourite time of year, and I am trying to bring you anoles that can fit the season. For now, here’s an anole whose female has an orange and black dewlap, the official unofficial colours of Halloween.

Anolis lososi is an Ecuadorean anole that tends to be found in open areas of forest.

The anoles are usually about 55-60 mm (SVL) and have bands on their tails and limbs. Their colouring is grey to green, sometimes brown, and resembles lichen. The females have yellow-orange dewlaps with black spots, while males have white, unpatterned dewlaps.

The limbs of this anole are short and it has been found sleeping on twigs and ferns from 2 to 8m off the ground.

Because this anole was recently found and described, there’s not a lot of information about it. Yet!

Journal of Natural History, 2017. doi:10.1080/00222933.2017.1391343

#DidYouAnole – Anolis gracilipes

By Chelsea Connor

On September 24, 2020

In All Posts

Lizard, Norops or Anolis gracilipes? | Andreas Kay | Flickr

Photo by Andreas Kay, Flickr

Hey all!

Here’s a bit of lizard joy for you today!
HUGE shoutout and credit to The Amphibians and Reptiles of Mindo by Arteaga et al. because I can’t find any natural history info about this anole anywhere but in this book. If you can get it, you should! Because of current events they can’t do their normal herping tours (Tropical Herping) and could use the support. Their photography is amazing and you can get calendars, posters and pocket field guides!

NOW ON TO THE ANOLE.

Charm Anole (Anolis gracilipes) · iNaturalist

Photo by Andreas Kay, iNaturalist

Anolis gracilipes, the Charm Anole, certainly is a charming little anole.
It’s been classified as a twig ecomorph, a group of small anoles whose bodies are adapted for narrow surfaces like, you guessed it, twigs. This little lizard can get up to 172-181 mm for males and 169-191 mm for females.

This anole has a brown colouring on its back, with triangular markings and green on its throat, down to its chest.

Photo by Jorge Britos, iNaturalist

Charm anoles can be found in Ecuador and Colombia, where they are common, but may depend on (unfortunately declining) forest canopies.

Photo by Edison Ocaña

Charm anoles are ambush predators and sometimes can be found at ground level.

#DidYouAnole – Anolis gemmosus

By Chelsea Connor

On September 17, 2020

In All Posts

Hello and welcome back!

Sorry I missed last week but I’m here to make it up to you with another impressively coloured anole.

This week is Anolis gemmosus, the Gem Anole.

The Gem anole is another Ecuadorean anole where they are common in the cloud forests.
Female gem anoles have no dewlap, are mainly green in colour and typically have a tan stripe or chevron pattern down their back.

Gem Anole (Anolis gemmosus) · iNaturalist

Photo by Andreas Kay

Males typically have spotting all over or in the form of stripes down their tails and bodies and their dewlaps are large starting with blue closer to their necks, shifting to green then yellow-green. They also have white stripes across the dewlap. The largest recorded Gem anole was 66mm (SVL) and they may be quite long-lived.

Anolis gemmosus | O'Shaughnessy's Anole (Anolis gemmosus), m… | Flickr

Photo courtesy of James A. Christensen

Their pattern makes them very cryptic and difficult to spot, and since they prefer to perch in foliage, it helps them as ambush predators.

STUDIES ON THE ECOLOGY AND POPULATION BIOLOGY OF LITTLE KNOWN ECUADORIAN ANOLES

Gem anoles don’t bask intentionally (Arteaga et al, 2013). How does that work?? Well they just happen to get filtered sunlight where they choose to hangout and wait for their prey. They don’t look for perches in direct sunlight to bask. They do appear to pick perches to sleep in however, that get exposed to sunlight when the sun rises so they can quickly reach activity temperatures.

Photo by Diana Troya

#DidYouAnole? – Anolis fraseri

By Chelsea Connor

On September 3, 2020

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Image by Jonathan Newman, iNaturalist

Hey guys!
Hope you have all been OK. I’ve been working on some things, thinking of new anole sticker designs, WRITING. Been pretty productive I feel, and now I’m back, #DidYouAnole is back, the anoles… Have never left this anole website. But thank you for coming back for my posts!

Today’s anole is Anolis fraseri, the Hippie Anole.

This anole is a crown-giant that is native to low montane forests, riparian habitats and orchards in Ecuador and Colombia. The males get up to 109 mm (SVL) and the females, 116 mm.

As you can tell from the pictures, this anole’s colouring is mainly shades of green and olive with striping, and it may have blotches on its head and/or sides that are red or orange, even pink. Like many other anoles, it can change its colour to a dark brown. These colours kind of make the anole look tie-dyed to me, which I think is where its common name comes from (let me know if that’s not the case).
Some individuals may be mistaken for other anoles that occupy the same habitat with similar patterning, but can be told apart by the dewlap colour.

Anolis fraseri | Fraser's Anole, Anolis fraseri, a strikingl… | Flickr

Photo courtesy of James A. Christensen

The Hippie Anole is a sit-and-wait predator, relying on crypsis.

According to The Amphibians and Reptiles of Mindo, this anole is widely distributed in the part of the forest with the vegetation cover that it prefers, but is only found in these areas, making it uncommon and possibly endangered.

A note on honourific names (like the name of this anole):

This anole is also referred to as Fraser’s Anole, however regarding recent discussion about scientific racism and honourific names, I will refer to it by its other name Hippie Anole. When I just started out as a scientist, the history of naming organisms after important figures in science seemed liked a good practice, something I desperately wanted myself, until I learnt more. While we cannot deny their valid contributions to our respective fields, we also cannot overlook their ideas regarding race. As a Black scientist, it is an uncomfortable environment where the people who did not think I was equal to them or even capable of being regarded as a human being are constantly lauded, and I am to study animals that are named after them. A constant reminder. I cannot pick and choose their legacy, I don’t have that privilege as a Black woman, it all stays with me. Our study subjects are magnificent animals, and I would like them to be just that, free from marred legacies.

#DidYouAnole? – Anolis porcatus

By Chelsea Connor

On August 20, 2020

In All Posts

Hey!
I’m taking a break for two weeks, but instead of leaving you without a post for two weeks in a row, here’s Anolis porcatus which I mentioned I had tweeted about the week before my first post!

Anolis porcatus is the Cuban Green anole. A trunk-crown anole with a dewlap ranging in colour from reddish to pink. Like it’s name says, it’s from Cuba but it has now been introduced to Florida, Brazil and Hispanola. And one was found in the… Canary Islands?? I’m jealous. That sounds like a great vacation.

As you’ve seen from pictures, Anolis carolinensis and A. porcatus look extremely similar (for obvious reasons now haha).

Well that’s because, they’re the same species. As discussed in the Anolis carolinensis post, the American Green anole is not a distinct species.

I’ve mentioned that I’ve been going though the proposed series of anoles called the carolinensis series. They’re all trunk-crown anoles and look very similar, even identical like the American Green and Cuban Green. Some of the members are found in Cuba & that’s where their common ancestor is thought to originate.

The idea was that Anolis porcatus made its way to America a very long time ago and then, due to speciation, along came A. carolinenis. But because the two can interbreed, that means there’s no reproductive isolation, doesn’t it? That’s not all, but you can read about it from Dr. Losos’ post and the paper itself!

I hope you all have a great week!! I’ll see you on September 3rd. Thank you so much for reading!

Photo by Jesús Reina Carvajal

#DidYouAnole – Anolis longiceps

By Chelsea Connor

On August 13, 2020

In All Posts

File:Anolis longiceps lizard.jpg - Wikimedia Commons

Photo by USFWS R. Colon

Hope you are all having a great week!

I have searched high and low for this anole and now I’m here to present to you, Anolis longiceps.

This anole is found only on Navassa Island. Navassa is 76 km west of Haiti, has an area of 5.4 km² and is uninhabited (by humans). The introduction of cats and dogs, as well as goats that contribute to the destruction of vegetation, have led to the Navassa Anole being listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN. The island also had faced habitat degradation from mining.

Navassa Anole males can get up to 83 mm (SVL), while the females are at about 76 mm. Some have light spotting which is yellow-ish in their green phase and white in their dark phase.

The name longiceps means “longhead” and refers to the anole’s snout which is described as long and tapering to a point, much like A. maynardi. Its dewlap is orange with white scales.

These pictures appear to be of the holotype (a specimen used to describe and name a new species) from the Smithsonian Institution’s Division of Amphibians and Reptiles at the NMNH.
There don’t seem to be any other pictures I can find of this anole, but if you are aware of any, please let me know!

#DidYouAnole – Anolis maynardi

By Chelsea Connor

On August 6, 2020

In All Posts

Photo by Mike Vallee

Hello there. I’m here to bring a bright spot to your day with a little weird lizard, as you do.

Anolis maynardi, is endemic to Little Cayman in the Cayman Islands and introduced to Cayman Brac, and while it looks like a few of the other anoles in the carolinensis series, this one has a really long nose. It also can have striping (marbling?) along its body.

This one even has checkering!

Like the other anoles, it is capable of a dark phase. I think this is one of the better ones I’ve seen.

Photo by Pat Shipman

Its been noted that they feed on nectar like a few other anoles too. The Little Cayman Green anole has a yellow dewlap and was (hilariously) described as “…apparently stupid…” in The Herpetology of Cayman Islands (1940) by Chapman Grant.

Its elongated snout is described as pincer- or tweezer-like, and possibly aids in catching flying prey.
Like with the other anoles in this group, female Little Cayman Green anoles have smaller, more proportional heads to their bodies.

A study looking at the population of these anoles on Little Cayman and the introduced population on Cayman Brac, found that the Cayman Brac population had a higher bite force. The morphological differences between the two populations may have occurred for a few reasons. Check it out!

#DidYouAnole – Anolis brunneus

By Chelsea Connor

On July 30, 2020

In All Posts

Photo by Thomas Sanger

Hey there! Look at you! Back for more anoles.
You love to see it.

This week we are talking about Anolis brunneus, the Crooked Island anole!

Update from Crooked Island - Anole Annals

Like its name suggests, this anole is from Crooked Island in the Bahamas and can also be found on Acklins Islands.

Photo by S. Blair Hedges

This member of the A. carolinensis series isn’t bright green like the others, and can’t shift to it either. It’s brown and its colour change abilities consist of shifting to a darker brown or grey, some can shift to an olive tone, or they can enhance the prominence of blue on the heads of males.
They do have really nice marbling on their sides as well and the females are less conspicuous than the males.

It does have that pink dewlap consistent with its relatives though.

Photo by S. Blair Hedges

These anoles can get up to 76 mm (SVL) and, like the other members of the carolinensis Series, is a trunk-crown anole.
Like many other anoles, the males also have nuchal crest that they can erect.

Battle of Anolis Brunneus - Anole Annals
This last picture is one taken by Michele Johnson of a fight between two males. She got to see this fight on Crooked Island with Thomas Sanger (and two students) on a trip to research these guys!