There’s more than just anole biologists congregating at the SICB 2012 meeting.
To say it’s been cold here in Charleston, SC would be an understatement. Tuesday night, after the conference tipped off, it was 25 degrees Fahrenheit. But today, the temperature picked up a bit and moved into the 50s. Since we know they don’t hibernate in the winter months, I thought it might be possible that the local anoles may take advantage of the sunny afternoon to do a little basking. Just as the poster session was underway at about 3pm, I decided to give it a shot and took a look around what would be prime Anolis carolinensis habitat in the spring and summer: the bushes and a brick wall around the pool. Sure enough, I spotted one male and two females right away! I texted Bryan Falk immediately, and we set to flexing our off-season collecting muscles. Doing a quick tour around the conference center, we managed to observe 6 and catch 3. No anoles were injured during this collection – perhaps only mildly perturbed 🙂
We spotted a female on a sunny black lampost. Nice warm spot on an otherwise cool day.
Here's another sweet lady I snatched from a vine-laden verandah outside the conference center.
Bryan Falk with female green anole. Note the winter plumage on the human.
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