Green anoles are among the few reptile species that can live in groups. They aren’t particularly sociable, but they can tolerate other members of their own species in the same habitat. We’re talking about specific group layouts, though, since they’re not all equally as viable.
For instance, you can’t have more than one green anole male per group. If you want to avoid bloodshed, that is. One male and several females or female-only groups work decently well, though. In the former case, you should also expect anole pregnancy.
If this is something that interests you, you’re fortunate because that’s what we will be discussing today.
Signs of Pregnancy in Green Anoles
Green anoles showcase several signs of pregnancy that can be easily confused for something else. These include:
- Enlarged abdomen – You should learn your anole’s physical profile so that you can distinguish any visible changes in the body’s contouring. Pregnant anole females gain abdominal width as the pregnancy evolves, causing the belly to expand sideways. It’s easy to mistake this for weight gain if you’ve never seen a pregnant lizard before. Fortunately, you can rule out obesity quite easily. Reptiles, including green anoles, collect fat deposits in the tail region, abdominal area, neck, and legs when eating too much. An otherwise fit anole with a growing belly is a clear sign of pregnancy.
- Accelerated weight gain – If your anole’s belly grows at an accelerated pace, despite the animal eating the same as before, that’s a sign of pregnancy. Animals can’t gain weight without additional nutrient intake than what they used to have to that point. This also applies to green anoles.
- Behavioral changes – The green anole female may begin to dig around the substrate, which indicates that it’s preparing for delivery. As time approaches, the anole will stop eating and may even become aggressive towards its tankmates. So, you should keep an eye on that as well.
Depending on your goals and setup, you can remove the anole from the tank before it lays the eggs, or you can leave it there.
Pregnant Green Anole Care
The pregnant green anole female itself doesn’t require any special care, aside from a handful of optional tweaks, depending on your situation. Here are some recommendations you can use:
- Separate the female from the group – If your pregnant anole is part of a larger group, consider housing the female in a different environment. Granted, this can be tricky because changing homes can amount to a stressful experience for an anole. But you might have to do it if your reptile’s group interactions aren’t ideal. If you observe no signs of aggression or tension between your anoles, leave the pregnant specimen there. Just keep an eye on the group moving forward.
- Ensure a nutritious diet – Check the pregnant anole’s diet to make sure it doesn’t experience calcium or D3 deficiencies. The reptile needs the additional nutrients to aid in egg formation, which stresses the animal’s body by leaching the necessary minerals.
- Monitor environmental parameters – You should watch for the environmental parameters to remain stable and within the ideal ranges. Wild swings in temperature, humidity, and lighting can cause your anole problems in terms of physical and mental health.
- Avoid stress – Make sure your green anole female isn’t stressed for whatever reason. The most common reasons of stress among anoles include frequent and improper handling, a lacking diet, unstable or improper environmental parameters, tankmate aggression, etc. The anole female should be happy, peaceful, and comfy during the entire egg-formation period.
There isn’t much you can do beside that. Your primary care efforts should go toward protecting the eggs and the resulting anole babies instead.
Green Anole Egg Laying and Hatching
The green anole female will dig into the substrate and lay the eggs in a hidden and safe area. At that point, you can collect the eggs and move them into a custom nursery where you can adjust environmental parameters properly.
The ideal parameters for anole eggs include a temperature range of 80-85 F and a humidity level of 60-70%. Your substrate of choice should be vermiculite or sphagnum moss, which retain moisture and keep the eggs warm and cozy. Your green anole eggs should hatch 30-50 days later, depending on the environmental conditions.
Raising Baby Green Anole
With the anole babies now born, you need to set up a good care routine to boost their growth rate. There are 3 principles to abide by when caring for green anole babies:
- Food quality and frequency – You should feed your anole babies small insects that they can consume with little effort. Small fruit flies and even small crickets make for nutritious meals, but they’re only part of the reptile’s more diverse diet. Baby anoles are prone to nutritional deficiencies, so you need to counter those by relying on food diversity and supplementation. Your baby anoles are prone to calcium deficiency which can hinder their growth and even kill them.
- A constant water supply – Providing baby anoles with sufficient water tends to be a puzzle for novice anole keepers for some reason. In reality, the solution is in your face. Baby anoles drink water similarly to adults; from the plants around them. So, spray the reptiles’ habitat several times per day to make sure there’s enough water and humidity for them to stay healthy and happy.
- UVB lighting – UVB lighting is important to green anoles, especially babies and juveniles. The UVB light promotes calcium and D3 synthesis, reducing the risk of nutritional deficiency. Make sure there’s a good UVB light source in your anoles’ enclosure, and keep a good day/night cycle in place to regulate your reptiles’ biorhythm.
This approach will speed up your baby anole’s growth, prevent nutritional deficiencies, and allow them to grow bigger and healthier.
Conclusion
Green anoles aren’t difficult to breed, but their offspring require specialized care to remain healthy in the long run. Their most critical period is during their first 2-4 weeks of life when they are the most prone to nutritional deficiencies and infections.
Keep their habitat clean and feed them properly, and they will soon become self-sufficient.
