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IntroductionGreen anoles, anolis sp., have for years been one of the mostly kept reptiles and is often a first reptile for many reptile keepers. They are small usually growing no bigger than 8 inches, inexpensive, colorful, and easy to care for. Although they are not related to chameleons at all they are often called the “American Chameleon”, because of there ability to change colour from a dark brown to a bright emerald green. They are found all over the southern U.S. from N. Carolina to key West and west to south east Oklahoma and central Texas. They have short life spans, usually about 4 years, but can live up to 8 years if cared for properly. Males can easily be distinguished from females by there large heads and larger dewlaps(the colorful flap of skin under their chin). If you are still in doubt you can easily see the hemipenile bulges on older males at the base of their tails.
HousingHousing anoles is fairly straight forward. A standard 10+ gallon aquarium with a tight fitting lid, Astroturf substrate, and a few plants(real or plastic) is all you need to house anoles. A good rule for housing anoles is for every three animals there should be at least 10 gallons. You will often see anoles housed in small plastic containers with colorful lids. These are not suitable for housing any number of anoles and should not be used under any circumstances.The ideal anole enclosure would be large, in both height and base, a substrate of either orchid bark or peatmoss based potting soil(if you decide to use potting soil for you anole enclosure make sure it contains no perlite), and have many plants and pieces of wood for the anoles to climb and bask on. Anoles need heat and because they are cold-blooded you will need to supply heat for them. The best way to do this is to use a heat lamp above the enclosure. Make sure the lamp is not too hot or you will bake you anoles. The temperature should be around 80-90 F during the day and 65-75 at night(except at winter time where it will be slightly cooler). Rot Rocks are often available for use with reptiles but are not suitable for anoles or any other reptile because they are often too hot and the animals will burn their delicate belly skin. Although I have had good success without them it is strongly recommended by some to supply UV lighting via a UV bulb specially mad for reptiles. This will, along with a good vitamin supplement, help them produce much needed calcium. Humidity is also a factor for keeping healthy anoles in captivity. An anole enclosure should have an average humidity level of 50% or more(the best humidity level for anoles is about 80%). The best way to supply the enclosure with a good supply of humidity is to install an automatic mister that sprays the enclosure with a fine mist whenever it needs it. Unfortunately, because of the cost involved, this method is not always realistic for the average reptile keeper. A more realistic way of supplying humidity to your anoles enclosure is to mist it with a hand sprayer once or twice a day. Plants serve many purposes in an anole enclosure. They can help keep the humidity up, help the animals hide from other animals and people, and make the enclosure a lot more appealing to the human eye. Some plants suitable for an anole enclosure are: snake plants, pothos, bromeliads, vines of all sorts and orchids. It is also important to have good ventilation in your anole enclosure because if the air becomes stagnant it will promote the growth of fungus that can eventually lead to respiratory infections and other harmful diseases. The best way to supply your anole enclosure with fresh air is to construct or purchase a tight fitting screen for the top of the enclosure.
FeedingFeeding anoles is probably the easiest thing to keeping them. The best food choice for anoles are commercially-breed, gutloaded crickets usually available at you local pet store or through mail order. To gutload your crickets just place some fish food flakes or fruit in the container with them. The crickets will eat the food and therefore become more nutritious to you anole. Adult anoles will eat about 2 crickets every second day and juveniles will eat about 1 every second day. It is also highly recommended that you dust your crickets with a high quality vitamin and mineral supplement made specially for reptiles.
BreedingBecause of their low price anoles are rarely ever breed on a commercial scale. This doesn’t mean it cant be done, in fact if you provide the right conditions it should happen without even trying.First to get the anoles to think its winter you have to shorten the photoperiod (length of the day), and lower the temperature. The photoperiod in winter should be about 10 hours of sunlight a day, and the temperature should be 70-80F during the day and no less than 60(Although anoles have been known to survive temperatures as low as 45F it is not recommended because it is very stressful on your anole and could kill it) during the night. In the spring raise the temperature to the normal level(80-90F) and lengthen the photoperiod to about 12 hours of sunlight a day. Breeding will take place in the spring but will sometimes drag out until midsummer. Female anoles usually lay 1-2 eggs every 2 weeks. They will bury the 1/2 inch eggs in a depression in the ground or under a log. After the eggs have been laid it is highly recommended that you remove the eggs from the enclosure to prevent the adults from eating the small hatchlings when they emerge from their shells. An easy and inexpensive way of incubating anole eggs is to bury them in a vermiculite/water mixture in side a small deli cup. The eggs should be buried just beneath the vermiculite. The container should be covered and a few holes punched in the lid for ventilation. Then the container can be placed back in the enclosure or in a place where the temperature will stay at a constant temperature of 84-86F. Under these conditions the eggs should hatch in 30-40 days. © Copyright 1997, 1998 Dustin Hirschfeld |
Anoles Green/Brown
