Actually, Anolis cybotes is tannish brown, rather like a brown anole - never green.



A keep a knight anole, and I bought it as a juvenile, and I'm certain that that's what is in the photos - a juvenile A. equestris. He appears to be stressed, that is why he is brownish in several of the pics.



Juvenile knights, most usually males, have light whitish or yellowish bars or bands running from the dorsal crest down to the belly. Often there are whitish or yellowish spots behind the head, on the side of the neck. All knight anoles have muscles along their back that they can contract when perturbed that lifts the dorsal crest into a distinct ridge running from the back of the head all the way down the body.



When stressed enough to change brown, often the labial (lip) stripe, and shoulder stripe change to a rusty brown color as well. Also when stressed the entire eye area, from the actual eye, out to the orbital ridges turns a dark velvety black. Maybe this is what you saw, and assumed (quite reasonably) that it had a very large black eye.



I hope this info helps out. Again, almost definitely an Anolis equestris juvenile, probably a male - although there is a slight possibility that it may not be the subspecies of knight most commonly seen in Florida.



Lisa

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