SENSITIVITY TO HIGH-TEMPERATURES IN 3 WEST-INDIAN GRASS ANOLES (SAURIA, IGUANIDAE), WITH A REVIEW OF HEAT SENSITIVITY IN THE GENUS ANOLIS

1. 1. Sensitivity to high temperatures was surveyed in three species of West Indian grass anoles: Anolis pulchellus and A. krugi on Puerto Rico and A. semilineatus on Hispaniola. 2. 2. In all three species heat resistance declined with increasing elevation: the variation within A. semilineatus was much greater than that in either of the Puerto Rican species. 3. 3. A. krugi was significantly more heat resistant than sympatric A. pulchellus. a surprising result because the former species is restricted to montane localities and the latter species to relatively low elevations. 4. 4. A review of data for 22 Anolis species suggests that heat resistance is better predicted by ecological distributions than by ancestry within the genus. Anoles exhibit a diversity of thermal biologies, but are extremely heat sensitive relative to other lizard genera. © 1979.