Yes!! I have seen this on several occasions, and yes, it freaked me out when I saw it the first few times. So cool to have an independent observation verified like this. I too thought there was infection or other illness involved, but then I saw the eyes return to normal.
I have no idea why they do it, but in my observations, it really only occurred when they were sitting quietly, almost contentedly. It reminded me very much of "stretching", like a cat will stretch out their legs before curling up to go to sleep, so I wonder if they stretch out their eyeball muscles every so often, while in a calm, relaxed state. Since each eye can move independently, there's complex muscles involved, and maybe they need a good stretch.
The reason they look so big when they do this is because the eyes are actually quite large, it's just that the eyelids cover most of it, but not as much as the "turret" eyes of true chameleons. So that's emphasized when they push them out.
That's been my take on it, an as long as they aren't doing it all the time, aren't stressed, and have no signs of illness, it's probably nothing to worry about. I'd be interested in what other experienced anole owners have to say about it.
Nice observation!
Lisa
>>However, he recently started doing something with his eyes which I have not read about. On occasion, I see him with his eyes bulged out. They'll be almost the size of peas, and very noticeably extended from his skull. The first time I saw it, I got real nervous, I thought maybe he had some kind of fluid build up, and I was afraid of them bursting. However, as soon as I looked in closely to get a better look, and he noticed me; they immediately shrunk back down, and he was looking at me like normal.
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>>Is this eye thing significant? Is it just another stunt to look bigger?
