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These lizards turndarkwhenexcited.
The lightgreencolorationof thisKnightAnole indicates thathe is relatively relaxed.
Lexicon
KnightAnole
Anolis:derived fromanameused for
these lizardson theCaribbean is-
lands.
Deiroptyxmeans“neck fold”
equestrismeans“equestrian”,“of a
knight”;why isunknown,butMer-
rem, theoriginal describer,wrote that
itwas“LegrandAnolisàécharpe”(=
“the largeAnoliswitha sash”,proba-
blywith reference to thecoloration)
ofCuvier;perhapsMerrem regarded
the sashasanemblemof knight-
hood.
Literatur:
Meshaka,W.E.(2011):Arunawaytrain inthemaking:
theexoticamphibians,reptiles,turtles,andcrocodili-
ansofFlorida.Monograph1.Herpetologicalconserva-
tion&biology6:1-101
Nicholson,K.E.,Crother,B.I.,Guyer,C.&J.M.Savage
(2012):It istime foranewclassificationofanoles
(Squamata:Dactyloidae).Zootaxa3477:1-108
Tall terrarium required
Despite their size Knight Anoles don’t re-
quire a large terrarium at all, as compared
tomanysmallAnolisspecies theyare rather
inactive fellows.
But iftheterrarium istoosmall,andaboveall
sited too lowdown,theycansufferpanicat-
tacks.As tree-topdwellers they regardevery
shadow from above as a deadly threat, as
theirworst enemies arepredatorybirds.By
contrast, if the terrarium is set up correctly
the Knight Anole can become fairly tame,
and it isoftenevenpossible tokeep these li-
zards semi-free in thehome,with the terra-
rium thenservingonlyasa refuge.
Movingwater is important
Like many other arboreal lizards, Knight
Anoles have a problem recognizing still
water as such. In thewild theydrinkwhen
it rains, there are nowater bowls there. A
miniature waterfall in the terrarium will
help alleviate this problem. If these lizards
don’t drink enough then it is essential to
give themadrink fromapipette!
Adult Knight Anoles rarely present pro-
blemswith feeding.Theusual food insects
(always dustedwith calcium) andoccasio-
nal sweet fruitwill permit avarieddiet.UV
radiation is important for these tree-dwel-
lers. Freshly hatched youngsters are often
reluctant toaccept the foodandmust then
be force-fed.The reason for this remainsun-
known.
