Green Anole color change project and terrarium.

[peterluber]

I had to do a science fair experiment, so i picked up two 10 gallon tanks. i got screen covers, heat lamps, a brown water bowl, a green water bowl, wood chips, and moss. i bought six green anoles, (anolis carolinensis). i kept them all in bags with no light coming in for 15 minutes. I took them out and placed #'s 1, 2, and 3 in terrarium B for Brown, and #'s 4. 5, and 6 in terrarium G for green. i will post tomorrow a data sheet showing the specific results of this test, but basically, the lizards in the brown terrarium were different colors. they all started off as bright green, but then, fairly quickly reverted to colors of, what seemed like the largest, probably the only male stayed mostly green, and the smaller (females?) stayed mostly brown. every 4 minutes i marked if they were B, G, or B/G, for 30 minutes. i did the same with the other lizards and got the same results. then i switched them around after keeping them in bags for another 15 minutes, and repeated the experiment. that is a total of four tests. when graded, my teacher told me i had "insufficient number of tests" w t f? anyways, i concluded that green anoles do not change color in response to the color of their environment, and, like chameleons, it could be linked to mood, but not camouflage. my other theories, after the experiment was finished were that maybe they changed color in response to mood, humidity, sex, temperature, or amount of light. the ground is brown, and shaded, so they would be brown with this theory, then the leaves are green and sunny, so maybe they would turn green in response to the light there. anyways, i would just like to share this experiment with you guys, and my terrariums.

one terrarium went to my sisters room, and after about 4 months, one of her lizards dided about a week ago. she had tried to keep it alive by hand feeding it even, but for some reason it didnt make it. my screen top used to not fit perfectly, and one of my lizards dissappeared, so im guessing that she got out. right now, though, my terrarium has 2 lizards, a really cool stick i got in my backyard for climbing, a heat lamp, their water bowl, a spray bottle next to it for mmisting and watering the plant. i just got a cool small bamboo plant. i saw at the nursery big ones, but the good thing about this is that it can be pruned... unlike fish. damn, i cant prune that yellow tang for my ten gallon... :'(

anyways, pics and data sheets tomorrow. was that interesting? or boring.

~~peter~~

 

[brandon4291]

I think it sounds interesting Peter. I don't exactly recall how big a sample size has to be in order to yield statistically-significant results (with more samples always being preferable) but if I recall correctly it should be linked in some manner to the number of variables that alter the outcome of the matter. In your case, you have several lizards and similar aquariums that only differ with the color of the bowls. I interpret this to mean the bowls are rather large in the environment, and would be the most outstanding item to bring a certain color into the mix?... I'll have to stew on this further, but just randomly spouting off brainstorms this is what I get:
-the wood chips are also brown, intermixing your control among both tests
-addressing some sort of consistency in the lizard's environment to get a real feel for the color preferences, rather than just a short introduction into the test tank (I don't know what the right approach would be, just brainstorming)
-assessing night and day alternatives of the color preference
-if I'm not mistaken, lizards have a very narrow band of phototic receptors in their eyes...they may not actually see colors other than red,black or white or some pattern thereof. This also limits the effectiveness of the brown/green control system.

Anyway, not finished yet on the analysis but at least this is a start.

B

 

[Anonymous]

from my experience, anoles change color both as a response to their environmental surroundings, as well as to their behavioral 'mood'

hth

 

[peterluber]

brandon, you might have misinterpreted what i said. one terrarium had a green background and green substrate and a green water bowl. the other had a brown background, brown woodchip substrate, and a brown water bowl. i know this isnt up to all of the standards but i thought it was just a little interesting piece of knowledge in case anybody was interested.

 

[brandon4291]

Oh I see, yes that's good control of your variables. Be sure and let us know what you progress becomes, that's a good learning experience. I'd really investigate that photoreception thing however. Now that I've thought more about it I think I recall a recent discovery channel episode where they were tesing the color perceptions of lizards...they weren't anoles, but that may be a character similar among lizard families. Good luck!
B