Reptile & Amphibian Forums

We (my 8 yr old and I) acquired two green anoles (a male and female)about 2 weeks ago. They are in a 5 gallon 1/2 hex tank with live plants and orchid bark/soil substrate. It is lighted by a Sun Glo 25 Watt daylamp. The daytime temp remains at 80 degrees in the center of tank.

The female has started something peculiar. As dusk nears, she buries herself in substrate and then comes out the next morning. I have to say that the first couple of times she did it - I was dumbfounded as to where she was. I assumed she had escaped - only to find her live and well sitting on a branch in the tank the next morning (houdini). She has done it now for 3 nights in a row. So what is up???? Their tank is next to a window (for additional lighting). Is she beginning to hibernate??? If so, what should I do since the male seems to have no intentioon of doing the same??

Thanks!

A 5 gallon tank is not very big, anoles like their space and tend to bully each other over territory, and if your male is intimidating her she will need somewhere to hide, in order to feel safe.

Anoles stress very easily, and will lose condition quickly if bullied by another, from this point it is usually a one way street unfortunately. Bear in mind the male is likely also to try repeatedly to mate with the female, which can be stressful also, he will chase her relentlessly, and bite the back of her neck when he catches up with her. If she has nowhere to go to escape him she will also be very unhappy. They like big spaces with lots of foliage, not only to climb on but also to hide in, and they need to climb, you dont often see an anole that lives on the ground.

I would really suggest you buy a bigger tank, make sure its tall as opposed to long, and not in direct sunlight as the heat through the glass may overheat the tank. Have a look through the forum and look at some of the other tanks people use to give you an idea, this one is mine, its the one at the bottom of the picture....you wouldnt need one anywhere near as big as this, I have quite a few..........

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Kelly

There is a thin person inside of me trying to get out. I keep her quiet with chocolate

www.collaredlizards.co.uk

Thanks KellieBee.

I agree that the tank is too small - I have another home waiting for them but unfortunately won't be until Jan. I am in Temp housing right now and all my tanks are in storage... The funny thing is, he doesn't seem to bother her. They have not attempted mating, he doesn't chase her, the only thing they tend to do is climb on top of each other for the choice basking spot. They seem to be together a lot. And I have observed no aggression. She has not buried herself for the last two nights. I have three plants in there.

You also need to make sure they have adequate UVB exposure, a minimum 5% tropical UVB bulb is needed, they absorb a lot of essential energy from the light, and will not survive without it, as the the UVB rays from the window will not penetrate the glass.
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Kelly

There is a thin person inside of me trying to get out. I keep her quiet with chocolate

www.collaredlizards.co.uk

Hi New Anole Owners!

We're fairly new ourselves (one year September). We have a 5 gallon with one male anole and a 10 gallon with a mating pair and that seems to keep them all happy.

One note that we noticed for the first time ever: about a month ago our female of the mating pair started digging under the water dish. We had no clue why, until 3 days later when we found an egg next to the heat rock.

We are now quite close to being grandparents to our first anole baby! They egg looks great! Born Sept 13 (2 days after our 9 year old newt died - giveth and taketh), we noticed the egg was solid white and dented, and its been filling in and pinkish since then.

The egg was the size of a jelly belly gourmet jelly bean (the small ones). We have kept it moist and under a heat lamp and it seems to move slightly on occasion and just today it looks like I can see the baby inside. It has been 29 days... Its sooooo exciting!

We have wooden substrate. If you have sand, you could have an egg under the sand. Be careful if you check for it. According to other posts you should take care and try not to turn the egg after one day old. If you find an egg, post here. Lots of other herp surg-moms and surg-dads can help you with what to do next.

Best wishes!
-Greendaydaddy

Wow, I have 3 females that lay eggs but they seem to drop them from great heights so they break as they hit the branches on the way down, our substrate has proved difficult to keep moist so its been hard to keep the ones we've caught quickly damp enough, though I think they will be put in a tub to keep them moist in future. we tend to get one a week, or three a fortnight.

Never occurred to me that this one might have intent to hatch healthy babies, good luck to you both, please let me know when your egg hatches, all the best
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Kelly

There is a thin person inside of me trying to get out. I keep her quiet with chocolate

www.collaredlizards.co.uk