Reptile & Amphibian Forums

About a week ago, my parents and I went to Del Rio to vistit relitives.We arrived at our destination on Wednsday( the same day that we left), and we went to my cousin's house on Thursay. To cut it short, I saw two legs and a tail under something, and when I lifted the box, I identified the lizard as an anole(I'd never seen anoles in the wild)! I stared at it for a second, and then grabbed it.I put a stick, a rock, and some sand in a Rubbermaid tote I brought along(just in case I saw a snail that I wanted to take home).Then my aunt saw another anole on the windowsill,and after I while, I caught it too.My parents made me name the anoles Barthon(*Bart*,the first anole) and Esquivel(*Squivle*, the second one).I fed 'Bart' a small yellow butterfly on Friday. We drove home Friday evening, and the lizards survived the trip( I fed Bat. Upon arriving home, my father and I purchased a ten gallon tank(I insisted that it should be a 20 gallon, but my dad said that a ten gallon was big enough), a UVA/UVB lamp(bulb& fixture), a heat lamp, a humidity gauge,a thermometer,a water dish(though I insisted that it wasn't nessecary), a fake plant,substrate, and crickets.We set up the tank(by the way, my mother fitted paper Kroger sack on the bottom of the tank and sprinkled substrate on it), put in a thick stick,the crickets,and the anoles;lastly, we sprayed the tank.
As of 12/2/05, the lizards have survived a week in captivity.Squivle puffs out his dewlap and bobbs his head often;I saw Bart do the same thing when I put Squivle in the tote for the first time.I'm postitive that they've been fighting(I saw marks that appear to be bite marks),and I can't find a reptle vet.Please help! Oh yeah, I learned very early on than the anoles don't like to be handled.

Please answer one or more of the following questions as soon as possible:
>How can you tell if an anole is male or female?
>Should i keep both of the anoles in the current enclosure,or get another tank-my parents probably won't let me.
>Should I use the mulch-like substrate or a new paper bag?
***>WHERE CAN I FIND A REPTILE VET?
>Should I realease the anoles?If so, do i have to drive 441 miles back to del rio?
>Are butterflies and/or pill-bugs harmful to anoles if eaten?

With my anoles the females are generaly smaller and have a diamond patern on the back that the males do not have. If they are both male you should not keep them in the same tank together. I use a type of bark for substrait in my anole enclosure. I dont remember the name off hand but your local pet shop should have it in there reptile section. Go around to you rlocal vets and ask them if they see reptiles. If you do reliese them yes you will have to make the long drive back to where they were found however check the local and sta te laws as it may be illegal to reliese them in your state. Here in California it is illegal to reliese a herp once you have put it in captivity. Not sure if butterflyes or pillbugs are harmfull but your best bet would be viayamin dusted crickets available at your local pet store. I have had a lot of luck with small freshly molted mealworms witch I actualy prefer but considering the anoles generaly small size and complications with digesting the mealworms a lot of people will not recomend you feed them. Good luck

Please answer one or more of the following questions as soon as possible:
>How can you tell if an anole is male or female?
>Should i keep both of the anoles in the current enclosure,or get another tank-my parents probably won't let me.
>Should I use the mulch-like substrate or a new paper bag?
***>WHERE CAN I FIND A REPTILE VET?
>Should I realease the anoles?If so, do i have to drive 441 miles back to del rio?
>Are butterflies and/or pill-bugs harmful to anoles if eaten?
My Research and Collection