I've loved anoles as long as I can remember. I can (and do) watch them for long stretches of time. I noticed this guy (again, assuming the anoles currently out langorously attracting attention to themselves are male) was shifting color. I took a series of digital shots of him with time stamps to see how long it took him to make the transition. And, we're off!: 11:09:19 AM
Midpoint(ish): 11:14:23
The big finish: 11:17:36
Not bad, putting together an entirely new look in a little over eight minutes.
Anoles can live for years, hunting spiders and other small insects. Like a T-Rex, their prey must move to be detected. (OK - I know I know- dinosaurs were related to birds, not lizards, but anoles sure look like teeny tiny dinosaurs to me.) Supposedly their major threats are house cats and "collecting for the food trade." (insert scritch of needle on record noise here.)
Anoles can live for years, hunting spiders and other small insects. Like a T-Rex, their prey must move to be detected. (OK - I know I know- dinosaurs were related to birds, not lizards, but anoles sure look like teeny tiny dinosaurs to me.) Supposedly their major threats are house cats and "collecting for the food trade." (insert scritch of needle on record noise here.)
Say what now?
I couldn't find a lot about anoles and the "food trade" (and didn't much want to, truth be told). There are a few folk in Florida, where a Cuban brown anole (slightly different species) has become invasive to the detriment of the native green anoles. These people advocate catching the Cuban browns and deep frying them for lunch. Supposedly they "taste like bacon".
Reading that blew what's left of my mind. I was left wordless and you regulars know that doesn't happen ever, much less often. Phew. I thought I'd seen it all. But. Deep fried anoles. Deep. Fried. Anoles. We sure do live (and eat) in interesting times.
17 comments:
I always wondered and now I know--how long to change from green to brown. I enjoy watching anole lizards as well. My cats do catch them occasionally, mostly they seem to walk around while holding the anole in their mouths. I usually rescue successfully, though sometimes, not. Great set of photos!
Thanks Tina! I knew they swapped colors pretty quickly but I'd never timed it before. It was just one of those days where doing that trumped whatever work was needing to be done.
We seem to have a fairly stable community of anoles, some in front and some in back - typically seen in certain hangouts they enjoy. I'm always happy to use watching them as an excuse to take a break.
Pass on the lizard on a stick appetizer. yech
I love the idea of these little guys as dinosaurs. Rar. The picture of him displaying his throat was AMAZING.
Debra: I can't help but think of anoles as tiny dinosaurs but then I react to most lizards that way. No matter their size I imagine them as big as a minivan. (because, that's why!)
I love watching the anoles and miss them in my "new" garden. I had oodles of them in my old central Austin garden, but here in NW Austin all I have are the shy and much larger Texas spiny lizards. Not as cute.
Pam: Agreed the spiny lizards aren't so much on the cuddly end of the spectrum but they are eye-catching in their own way I think. Do you suppose your ongoing owl presence has anything to do with the scarcity of anoles? I've read little owls prey on them so perhaps your anoles are wisely keeping a very low profile.
We have lots of anole lizards in our garden. Their favorite spot to sun bath is right outside our living room window. I had no idea what their courtship entailed. Now I know what that is about:) They are great to have in the yard to balance out the ecosystem.
Steph: Thanks for dropping in. Anoles are a good sign of a garden in balance. They eat insects and in my garden that is typically a good thing. Since we have so many native plants in play here I've got plenty of insects to go around!
Deb, your fabulous photography has rendered a reptile a thing of beauty! And that's saying something because I am not a reptile (or amphibian) fan!
Jean: High praise indeed! Thank you very much, I'm glad you dropped in.
It's possible, although we have plenty of Texas spiny lizards, and I think they make tasty owl snacks as well. I've actually wondered if the spiny lizards outcompete the anoles.
Pam: That's interesting - I hadn't thought of them as being in competition but it is true they do fill very similar niches in the food chain although I almost always see anoles up on something and spiny lizards only on the ground.
The spiny lizards are arboreal, although they do come down to bask in my garden. Anoles seem to hunt among garden foliage, so I'm not entirely sure they compete. Still wondering...
Pam: I did some checking around (in a non-scientific way) and found anecdotal evidence that spiny lizard populations can supplant anoles as the spinys are larger and may eat small anoles or even baby mice.
Interesting - your area currently supports larger more predatory species (owls, spiny lizards) while mine is filled with their prey (anoles, squirrels, white winged dove). We could be our own Nature special!
Baby mice? Jeepers!
I was wondering why we haven't had so many this year. Then I read your information about their predators here. For the past 3 years we have had owl families in a partially dead tree. But I thought owls only hunted at night and I don't recall seeing of the little green guys at night. Any thoughts there? We are in NW Austin.
Cj Sides: You are out of my league, information wise. I don't recall seeing anoles out at night either, but I have noticed more of them up, way up, in trees recently. Not sure if that is me paying better attention or a change in their behavior. Probably that first one.
I do know I've consistently read that owls eat lizards among other prey listed, so apparently they've worked that day/night thing out on their own. What a great situation to have an owl family roosting nearby. I think that's a great sign of a robust wildlife situation, congratulations!
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