Northernmost record of the brown anole (anolis sagrei) in Georgia

Georgia Journal of Science, 2002 by Parmley, Dennis

ABSTRACT

The brown anole, Anolis sagrei, is endemic to Cuba and the Bahamas, but in the past ca. 115 years has spread throughout Florida and into southern Georgia. The recent discovery of brown anoles in Houston County, Georgia extends the species range north into central Georgia and represents a significant range extension of ca. 97-100 km.

Key Words: brown anole; distribution; Houston County; central Georgia.

INTRODUCTION

Anolis sagrei is endemic to Cuba and the Bahamas (1), but in the United States, the species has been known from the Florida Keys for about 115 years (2)_ It apparently invaded the south Florida mainland in the 1940s (3, 4), and by 1980 the species had spread north over much of peninsular Florida (5, 6). It has recently been reported from northern Florida to include the panhandle (7, 8), and the species has been found in Georgia (see discussion in Campbell, 7), Louisiana (9, 10), and in Texas (11, 12). In Georgia, a breeding populations) of brown anoles is well established in Lowndes County (7, 13) near the Georgia-- Florida border, and the species has been reported from as far north as Tift County in the interior of the state and Camden and Glynn counties along the southeast Atlantic coast of the state (7, 14). The purpose of the present note is to document the occurrence of the brown anole in central Georgia (Houston County), which represents a significant northern range extension for the species in Georgia.

METHODS AND MATERIALS

Voucher Specimen: Houston County: 4.2 km south of Perry, approximately 25 m east of 1-75, 16 May, 2002. Adult gravid female (Georgia College Herpetological Collections 4514) collected from brush in vacant lot. Measurement: snout to vent length, 52 mm; total length unknown as approximately one-half of tail missing. Two well developed eggs present: 10x5 and 9x5 mm.

Field Observations: Adult male, two adult females, and one juvenile (sex undetermined) were observed on downed logs and brush in the same lot, but were not collected.

DISCUSSION

The Houston County brown anoles significantly extend the Georgia range of the species ca. 97-100 km north into the central part of the state (Fig. 1; 7, 14). Campbell (7) suggested vehicular rafting (as hypothesized by Godley et al., 5) as the transport mode for northward dispersal of A. sagrei. He offers convincing evidence that Georgia brown anoles were transported along major interstates by northbound vehicles, probably "rafting" on recreational vehicles and boats, and/ or in vehicles transporting landscaping plants. He suggested that the most obvious routes would have been 1-75 for the Lowndes and Tift county populations and 1-95 for the Camden and Glynn county populations. This hypothesis is strongly supported by the Houston County specimens as they were located adjacent to the north-bound lanes of 1-75 (Fig. 1).

It is not known if the Houston County brown anoles represent an established breeding population. The number (n=5), sex ratio (1 male; 3 females), age class (4 adults, 1 juvenile of unknown sex), and season they were observed (late Spring) suggest the lizards may have overwintered in the area. On the other hand, temperature tolerances (especially Ctmin) in brown anoles are not yet established (pers. comm. A. Echternacht 2002, Knoxville, TN). While populations may be able to survive normal winter temperatures of the Houston County area (mean minimum winter temperature 36.7 deg F, mean maximum 59.5 deg F; Southeast Regional Climate Center, http://www.dnr.state.sc.us/climate/sercc/), they may not have the ability to survive even brief periods of freezing temperatures. The site and surrounding area where the Houston County brown anoles were found will be surveyed in succeeding years to try and determine if the species is overwintering and becoming established in the area.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I am indebted to the following individuals for sharing information concerning brown anole distribution in GA: A. Echternacht, T. Campbell, and J. Jensen.

LITERATURE CITED

1. Conant R and Collins JT: Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern/Central North America. MA: Houghton Mifflin Co, Boston. 450 pp, 1991.

2. Garman S: On West Indian Iguanidae and on West Indian Scincidae in the collection of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. Bull Essex Instit 19: 25-50, 1887.

3. Bell LN: Notes on three subspecies of the lizard Anolis sagrei in southern Florida. Copeia 1953: 63, 1953.

4. Olive JA: Anolis sagrei in Florida. Copeia 1950: 55-56, 1950.

5. Godley JS, Lohrer FE, Layne JN and Rossi J: Distributional status of an introduced lizard in Florida Anolis sagrei. Herpetol Rev 12: 84-86, 1981. 6. Lee JC: Anolis sagrei in Florida: Phenetics of a colonizing species I. Meristic characters. Copeia 1985: 182-194, 1985.

7. Campbell TS: Northern range expansion of the brown anole (Anolis sagrei) in Florida and Georgia. Herpetol Rev 27: 155-157, 1996.

8. Means DB: Geographic distribution: Anolis sagrei. Herpetol Rev 21: 96, 1990.

9. Platt SG and Fontenot LW: Geographic distribution: Anolis sagrei. Herpetol Rev 25: 33, 1994.