Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis): In Out Of The Cold

March 10^th, 2013. I’ve been cleaning out the greenhouse, re-potting water plants, and planting new seeds. I was working quietly and not making much noise when, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed some movement. I looked down and spotted a Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis) on a concrete base for a support column. It was fairly early in the morning and still cool. The anole was brown, similar to another I had photographed in 2009. I backed away and went back to the house to get my camera. Too late. As I suspected, it had disappeared by the time I returned. But, it was likely that it had taken up Winter residence in the greenhouse and I’d have an opportunity to see it again. Time to start carrying my camera every time I go to the greenhouse.

I was in a greenhouse a few days later and, again, noticed movement out of the corner of my eye. This time on the edge of a water container.

A big, healthy anole – green this time - was basking on the edge of a large water container. It didn’t really seem to want to leave but it decided to put a little more distance between itself and me.

It made its way across the floor and up a bench support and onto a frame where it…

Watched me for a minute or so before it moved away out of sight.

I don’t think it appreciated me intruding on ‘its space’ in this warm greenhouse when it was relatively cold outside in the windy March weather.

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Identification Resources:

University of Georgia Museum of Natural History: Green Anole(Anolis carolinensis)

Related posts:

- Green Anole: ‘Cept She’s Brown

- Green Anole: Anolis carolinensis

- And A Good Morning To You Too

- Turning Green While You Wait

Green Anole: ‘Cept She’s Brown

She was sitting on a dead Butterfly Bush (Buddleia davidii) flower. That’s why I didn’t see her. She must have moved and that movement caught my eye. She’s probably a Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis); she’s turned brown to adapt to her background.

She’s a female; she doesn’t have the pink dewlap that the male displays. She tried to threaten me anyway. I didn’t see the threat because of the sun’s glare on the camera viewer. I just took shots and hoped they’d come out. She gradually moved off along the stem to the cover of the bush.

She’s a beautiful creature.

Identification resource: Lizards of Georgia and South Carolina
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Green Anole: Anolis carolinensis

We have a lot of green anoles around the house. They hibernate during the winter so we normally don’t see them from late fall until spring. This year, however, one has over-wintered in the greenhouse. I saw him one afternoon and, although I had a camera with me, I was busy watering plants and wasn’t able to get the camera turned on an focused before he disappeared. He was much bigger than most of the anoles we normally see. Possibly the result of being able to hunt insects during the winter.


A week or so later, I was making my regular rounds to check on wildflowers – camera in hand – when I encountered him on the outside wall of the greenhouse. He didn’t attempt to run off so I was able to get some shots of him. I normally take a lot when I get the opportunity so I followed him as he mover relatively slowly along the wall of the greenhouse. When he got to the corner, he stopped. He apparently had had enough of being stalked.

He puffed up his body, bobbed his head, and extended his dewlap a couple of times. I was lucky enough to get a shot of the extended dewlap. He’d been a good sport so I let him go about his business with no further interruptions.

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