I have written a couple of other posts about some very special little Florida friends, the green anoles. They are really cool little reptiles that live around here. People tend to like them because they are pretty friendly, they are beautiful to look at, and they are capable of changing color. Some people do keep them as pets, and in captivity, they’ve been known to get to be 10-14 years old. It’s not an uncommon kids prank around Florida to even “wear” them as earrings. You can get them to bite down on the ear lobe and hang on. They have small teeth that help them hold on, but are not big enough to be uncomfortable (or so I am told. Never tried it, myself!).

In my other post about anoles, all of the photos were of these guys in their green phase, so today I thought I’d share some shots of them in the brown phase. These guys mainly change color to help them to blend into their environment and be less obvious to predators, but they can also change for several other reasons. If the temperature is below about 70 degrees Fahrenheit they tend to stay in the brown coloration. Emotions can also influence their color. When rival males fight over territory or females, the winner usually turns a very bright green, while the loser will turn brown. Similarly, I once found a small juvenile on a glue trap. It was alive, and only the feet were stuck, but it was very stressed and a very sickly shade of brown. We were able to get it off and clean the glue off it’s feet. When we released it back out onto our back porch, it almost immediately turned bright green. What a thank you!

The anole in these photos was in the brown phase in order to blend into his environment. He was in a shady little grove of oak trees crawling around on the tree bark and some vines looking for insects that live on and just under the bark. I try not to bother my subjects, but I think I did bother this fellow a little bit. At one point he looked directly at me and flashed his bright pink dew lap at me. That is generally a territorial behavior, so I’m pretty sure it was meant to tell me I was an invader (which I was). I had some decent shots of him, so I decided to go on about my way and let him go on about his. I actually found him while walking in the woods looking for caterpillars. But I have learned long ago when I take these walks that I may or may not find what I’m looking for, but if I keep my eyes open, I will always find something! Be prepared. It’s a great motto for Boy Scouts and nature photographers!