Looking for Love in All the Wrong Places- Viewer Discretion Advised

Not to alarm you with the “viewer discretion” thing, but we will be talking about the mating habits of the Green Anole here; having found a good picture of an anole family in the making, I thought you should be warned!

I believe I have written about the Green Anoles (Anolis carolinensis) that frequent my deck here in Texas.  When we first arrived, missing my entertaining chipmunks, they had to stand in as “amusing deck animals”.  The males show up posturing on the railings, leaping onto bird feeders and “pumping up” their bright crimson dewlap, the flap of skin under their neck that is a “come hither” sign to the lady anole.  It’s pretty entertaining to watch.

Several weeks ago, prior to my accident, my daughter was visiting and we were sitting on the front deck enjoying a glass of wine, when a male anole came trotting along the railing; stopping every few feet, pumping up it’s dewlap, looking expectantly, then travelling a few more feet and repeating the process.  He was completely oblivious to us, at one point he was no more than a foot away, hanging upside down on a pillar displaying away.  

 Now, we saw no movement in the shrub beneath him or in the Sotol that he displayed at so fervently.  No lady came out of hiding to take him up on his advances, nor did any other male anole seem to be present.

Since it was the end of May, we were at the beginning of the anole courtship season, which continues through October.  Perhaps then, he was looking for a mate.  If he was, she was not impressed.  Or it could have been a territorial display, claiming every inch of our front porch as his own.  Either way, it piqued my interest to do a little research on this fairly common lizard. 

Anolis carolinensis  is the only anole species native to the US. There are some 391 different species worldwide.  They make up one of the most successful lizard groups.   Some islands in the Caribbean claim as many as 10,000 anoles per acre!  I can’t even begin to imagine the dewlap shaking that must go on there as they defend their territory.

In our country, this lizard alone can change color.  Do you think they do that as a form of camouflage?   Nope, it is a mood and temperature thing; think mood rings.  When they are cool or, STRESSED, they are brown. 

  I just saw that happen yesterday.  An anole, nice and green, was hanging out by the bird bath when, not one but two birds came, one after the other, to take a bath.  They were so intent on their business they didn’t see him, and almost landed on him while he stood stock-still.  The third bird must have been the “giddy limit” for in less than 10 seconds; he went from bright green to brown. There was no change in temperature; he must have been stressed by almost being stepped on three times!

When anoles are relaxed and just chilling, they are pale green.  When they are zippy and warmed by the sun they are bright green.  When they are angry, they get, (I love this), ANGRY eyes!  A black line appears behind their eyes making them look ever so fierce as they “dewlap dual” with an opposing male.  They will even fiercely attack their own reflection, just like male cardinals and mockingbirds that peck away at your car’s mirrors until they exhaust themselves.

When all that “come hither” shaking appeals to the female, rather than running away, she will “allow” herself to be caught.  The ensuing mating will result in her laying 2 eggs at a time over a period of days until she has laid about 10.  If the season isn’t right, say it is too cool in the fall, she can hold that thought and lay them the next spring; planned parenthood in a way.

Well, that day with my daughter, the male seemed to gesture in vain, but just a few days ago, my husband came in saying there was a shocking display of anole love going on right on our fence for all the world to see.  My crutches took me awhile to get out there; they were gone. But now I can watch the calendar and know that in 5-7 weeks some young anoles might grace my deck.  They have wider heads and shorter tails than the adults. 

As promised, here is the educational but graphic, picture of the next generation getting its start. Avert your eyes if you have delicate sensibilities.  He WAS looking for love in the right place after all.   Now, if you have anoles where you live, YOU can expound on them to anyone willing to listen.  As I just did!