Anole lizard facts

Anoles are very small and active lizards that are diurnal, which means they are very active during the day and rest at night. They are very popular because of their color that is a contrast of bright green to brown.

There are two kinds of anoles, the green and the brown ones. These lizards originated in the United States and they are also called the American anoles.

These lizards like to climb trees and can run very quick which makes catching them difficult. 

Since they need the proper care, they are not that easy to maintain. In order to live longer, it's necessary to offer them the right UV light (ultraviolet light), humidity, vitamins, and minerals that their bodies need.

The green anole can be found in semi-tropical areas, living and climbing on trees. You can even find them in urban or suburban areas, but they cannot be usually found in desert or mountains.

Interesting facts about anoles:

Another Name for anole: Anolis carolinensis, Green anole, Brown Anole Carolina anole, American anole, American chameleon, Red-throated anole

Size: Males can grow up to 8 inches long but can even grow more in captivity but are larger in the wild. Females are smaller than males.

Life Span: the anoles can live up to 8 years and more if taken care of properly.

The anoles are easy to handle if you want to have them as pets.

Anoles love to be on their own. They don't usually join the crowd since they can really be aggressive and very territorial.

If you put two male anoles together you might see them fighting each other, that is why when you are planning to get anoles as pets it is recommended to have separate tanks.

The male anole doesn't mind to have a female anole in a group and they are very dominant on to their female anoles.

You can usually see them hiding in their trunks or branches, they are gentle, shy, but also very active. They can be fast runners which means catching them can really be difficult or challenging.

These type of lizards can drop their tails in case of any threat, and like other lizards, the tails can grow back.

The anoles are usually called by people "the American chameleon" because they can change colors whenever the temperature changes or if something is threatening them.

These types of lizards can easily adapt to their surrounding. They are colorful and very attractive with their contrast of bright colors. 

The male anoles have a slender body and short limbs, the dewlap under their necks can expand whenever they feel stressed, threatened or when is mating time. They also have pink or red dewlaps under their necks and they are bigger compared to the female anoles.

Anoles can independently move the eyes to different directions and they are covered by eyelids and their sticky pads make climbing easy in any give surfaces. 

Female anoles have a dewlap as well but they don't usually expand it and it is much smaller compared to the male anoles.

If you are planning to have an anole as a pet as mentioned above, you need to separate male anoles from another male anole since they can be territorial and fight one another you can put a female together with a male anole. 

You can prepare a 10-gallon tank if you decide to have one anole and have a bigger one in case you are planning to have a group of lizards. 

Make sure to put a secure screen at the top to avoid them from escaping. Use soil or moss as a substrate since the anoles love a semi-tropical environment you can prepare similar decorations for them inside the tank.

Use things like branches, leaves, trunks where they can hide and rest on. The temperature of your tanks needs to be in a range of 80 degrees Fahrenheit and your humidity around 70 to 80 percent. 

Anoles love humid places, so you can spray their glass tank with water. It helps to keep a comfortable temperature, and they can also drink from those droplets. 

Unlike other lizards, you don’t need to put a bowl of water since they get their water source flow the droplets of the leaves. 

Anoles should be fed with fruits, insects, or vegetables that are half the size of their head to make sure that they have proper digestion. When preparing their meals you can mash, shred, or finely chopped it because anoles don't chew off their food but swallow it as a whole so you need to make sure that the size would be appropriate for their throats.

When giving them insects or leafy greens you need to make sure that it washes completely or it is organic since it might bring harmful chemicals that can be very toxic to them.

They like to eat insects and worms and you can also dust their tanks with vitamins and calcium that you can buy from pet stores.

You would know if a male anole is trying to get a female anoles attention because they expand their throats and makes a sound to catch the females attention.

The female anole doesn’t give birth to live lizards but to eggs that they simply bury to moist soil, trunks, logs, stumps, or a litter box, usually all throughout summer and spring.

If your anoles are experiencing this issue or diseases it is important to seek help from professional vets since they would know what to do and how to treat your lizards.

Lizards need to be taken care of properly because they can cause a lot of diseases that can really be harmful. 

Here are some common anoles helath problems

• Mouth rot -  or most popularly known as stomatitis. You you can see a red color around the anole's mouth and they would have a lot of substance in their teeth. You can also see that their mouth looks puffy like it is sore.
• Salmonella – this happens when you are not hygienic when it comes to your lizard's salmonella is a cause of bacteria build up makes sure to scoop out your lizards dropping regularly, change their water, and clean their tanks to avoid bacteria build up.
• Metabolic bone disease – this happens when you get an Anole that wasn't taken care of properly, they would lack the light that they need and also vitamins and some minerals. You would know that they would have this kind of disease if you can see them weak, lose weight, and has a puffy face.

• Respiratory infections – this is very common to all lizards species and to the anoles you would often see their mouths wide open and you can hear a wheezing sound that would indicate they have infections the possible cause of this infection is if your anoles doesn’t get the right amount of heat, temperature, or humidity that they need in a day.
• Stress or anxiety - you would know if your anole is feeling this condition since you can see it in his body a dull color and your anoles don't change to bright color or to bright green contrast and if that they lack the energy to do things. In case that they are experiencing this, it is recommended still to seek to advise since small issue may cause it to be bigger or might result in other underlying sickness or health issues to our lizards.

They like to eat insects and worms and you can also dust their tanks with vitamins and calcium that you can buy from pet stores.

Like every lizard's species, it is important not to get them directly from the wild since they might bring diseases or sickness that can be harmful to you and your family. 

It is important that you buy from an authorized and certified pet store in where they really breed lizards you can also check online for great lizards sellers with good review and feedback from their customers. 

When choosing anoles by checking their skin you will know if they are not healthy because it should not look weak and dehydrated. 

And that's all I have to write about them...

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