Meeting Abstract

73.4  Wednesday, Jan. 6   Display Behavior and Habitat Use in Single and Mixed Populations of Anolis carolinensis and Anolis sagrei Lizards EDWARDS, J. R.*; LAILVAUX, S.P.; University of New Orleans; University of New Orleans wherzmysocs@gmail.com

The presence of introduced species can have important effects on the behavior of native species. We compared the display behavior and habitat use of introduced Anolis sagrei and native Anolis carolinensis lizards across three sites in Southern Louisiana. The chosen sites were similar in that they were all located in urban settings with clumped vegetation. The first site contained primarily A. sagrei, the second supported both A. sagrei and A. carolinensis populations, and only A. carolinensis were present at the third site. Thirty adult male anoles of each species (where present) were filmed from each of the sampled populations during the active summer reproductive period and compared for differences in display behavior and habitat use. Consistent with previous studies, our data indicate differences in perch height for both species in the single compared to the mixed populations, and preliminary analyses indicate potential differences in display behavior among sites as well.