Awwwwww - Just Born

Whilst working away in my greenhouse I noticed this baby anole hiding behind my cypress & snail vines. He can't be more than a few hours old because he still has bits of dried albumen stuck to him. I was honored many years ago to have a baby anole hatch out in my hand. I know anoles do not imprint, but she sat in my hand for at least 30 minutes until I put her on a bush. I always knew my special from others because she would not run away when I came outside. I have a whole colony of anoles that live in my greenhouse. They do a terrific job of keeping the insect population down and don't hibernate in winter but stay active all year round.

X

Awww, he's so cute! How nice to go out and see them year round!

I have one who lives in my kitchen.

Are they basically a chameleon?

No, anoles are mistakenly called chameleons. What most people are familiar with are Anolis carolinensis or Green Anole. Anolis is a genus of lizards belonging to the family Iguanidae.

Chameleon is of the family Chamaeleonidae.

They look quite different .. chameleons have those funny looking eyes.

X

We had a chameleon in 6th grade and I can barely remember what it looked like. Does it get enough to eat in the house, or do you feed it?

They don't live in my house, but in my greenhouse .. and unfortunately there is plenty to eat! If there was not enough food they can easily get out of the greenhouse. The greenhouse is a safe haven for them from predators like birds and snakes. In the past week I have seen about 12 newborns.

You can also tell he is a newborn because you can almost see right through him.

X


This message was edited Jul 21, 2006 10:16 PM

While visiting in South Carolina a few years ago I saw a few anoles, at least that is what the locals told me they were. I don't remember that much tail. Will the baby grow into his long tail?

Another silly question. Are they eggs or live birth?

His tail will not grow as fast as his body. Anoles are also able to regenerate their tails. If a predator grabs it by the tail it can literally leave part of its tail behind to get away. There are numerous fragile break points in an anoles tail. Regenerated tails grow slowly and usually are not as thick. It is not unusual to see anoles with shorter than usual tails which is an indication that it lost part of its tail and regenerated it.

X

They are eggs .. as I said earlier .. I had one actually hatch while I was holding it in my hand. I found a leathery squishy roundish thing in an old flower pot with dried out soil in it .. When I tipped it out into my hand it broke and fluid (albumen) came out of a tear in the egg and a baby anole's head popped out. It took it about 10 minutes to completely free itself from the egg and another 30 minutes to dry off.

X

Oops, Sorry, I've been on all day and am getting sleepy.

That's pretty neat to have one hatch in your hand. I would feel the same way if a turtle hatched in mine.

I'm thinking of getting some lizards to set loose in the yard to eat my plethora of spiders. I like lizards. They're cute.

Sorry...wrong thread.

This message was edited Jul 22, 2006 2:00 AM

A few winters ago I had a whole family live in my house..They can get in around my glass doors somewhere, as they come and go constantly.. The babies actually hatched in the house.. I had brought a huge plant in that had been out for most of the summer and next thing I knew there were six babies and 2 adults..They loved my african violets and especially the vined plants..They had plenty to eat, but I had to make sure there was plenty of water sprayed on the plants for them..When really thirsty they would come out of hiding as soon as I started spraying the leaves of the plants.. Even now , more times than not, in my den around the av's I have one or 2 adults..Watching those babies all winter was one of the most rewarding experiences ever, not just for me, but everyone that came thru my house that winter,,Family & friends would drop by just to sit and watch a spell. Had to keep a special eye on my cats, thye would do more than watch, lol..

Larkie

What a cutie! I watched a little (maybe just over an inch) gecko for a while the other day. Grateful to have them around.

Do any of them eat fire ants?