Lizzie meets caterpillar in the Agave patch
The following thread was started by Linda Denman Island, BC 8b on May 12, 2008 at 7:47 am PST
I was relieved to see that she (?) did NOT eat the caterpillar. The caterpillar actually climbed over the Alligator lizard at one point!
The above followup was added by Linda Denman Island, BC 8b on May 12, 2008 at 7:53 am PST.
Hi Liz: Did you introduce thr lizard to your garden, or did it show up on it's own. I would love to introduce some of the local lizards to my garden, but I don't know if I have enough areas for them to hide from preditors such as cats.
The above followup was added by Jeff, Victoria, BC, 8b on May 12, 2008 at 10:24 am PST.
I have seen many of them in my garden( Victoria ) for a few years now. The ones I have a more of a green/blue shade. They like a sunny dry location....ie rocks, driftwood and fences. I looked them up on the internet and discovered they are native to SW B.C and the P.N.W...I found 2 species ...The western Fence Lizard and the Alligator lizard. I have pictures but not sure how to upload them.
The above followup was added by Neil on May 12, 2008 at 1:20 pm PST.
Jeff, the lizard in the pic is native and there are quite a few of them at our place. I really like them. They are very shy most of the time. Like Neil said, they like dry, sunny locations where they can warm up and bask in the sun and also easily hide/escape from predators. There are quite a few snakes around here too, which apparently eat lizards. I have no idea if they get many or not. Several years ago I saw that my cat had a lizard in her mouth. I screamed at her and she dropped it. It did not appear to be injured and scurried away. Hopefully, it was okay. It is a concern, but that was the only time I ever saw her near one.
Neil, is the one at your place the Western Fence Lizard then? The European Wall Lizard, is an introduced species, and has green and blue colouring.
You can post pics by opening a www.photobucket.com account for free and uploading your pics there. Once your pics are in photobucket you just need to copy the link and paste it into the Optional Image URL: section of Northwest Palms before you submit your post.
The above followup was added by Linda Denman Island, BC 8b on May 12, 2008 at 2:40 pm PST.
I have my lizard picture in photobucket....still can't seem to get it on to this site.....and I thought I was computer literate ....lol...guess I need to be walked thru the process
The above followup was added by Neil on May 12, 2008 at 6:20 pm PST.
We have the same Alligator Lizrads here, but I haven't seen any yet this year. They must be waiting for more warmth. I have seen a ton of snakes though. The lizards love to bask on the warm sandstone.
The above followup was added by Joe , Salt Spring Island on May 12, 2008 at 7:57 pm PST.
its a gecko...we had them in phoenix...that is a much smaller gecko...i didnt even think that canada had such an animal up there...
John in Beaverton
The above followup was added by John in Beaverton on May 12, 2008 at 8:05 pm PST.
A northern Alligator Lizard ( Elgaria caerulea), we have tons of them here on our island as well. They are native to this area. I see Geckos in Hawaii all the time, I even have a tattoo of a gecko on my arm, that Lizard in Linda's pic. is no Gecko. Not only do we have native Lizards here, but we have native cactus too.
The above followup was added by Joe , Salt Spring Island on May 12, 2008 at 8:16 pm PST.
A Gecko is a lizard.
The above followup was added by Joe , Salt Spring Island on May 12, 2008 at 8:18 pm PST.
Yes, it's definitely an Alligator Lizard. I actually saw some mating last week. I should have taken a pic. They stay together for hours and it's the only time they seem to lose their shyness and pay no attention to anything else around them. Joe, you should see them at your place any day now since warm sunny weather is on the way. :-)
I can't remember if I posted this pic of lizards mating before, but here it is again anyway. I took this a few years ago. There are some plants in the pic, so this is not entirely off topic. ;-)
Neil, using your mouse, left click “Direct Link” , which should be on the left hand side of your pics in photobucket. After you do this, a little yellow box pops up that says Copied. Then you go to Northwest Palms and paste (right click with mouse) what you just copied into the Optional Image URL box. That should do it!
The above followup was added by Linda Denman Island, BC 8b on May 13, 2008 at 7:37 am PST.
Can lizards live in an area that isn't rocky? I ask becasue I have only seen them in rocky, sunny, areas.
There used to be garter snakes in my area. I haven't seen one in many years (cats got them?). I once killed one with the lawnmower, and felt terrible. Does anyone know if lizards are apt to travel onto the lawn and meet the same fate?
The above followup was added by Jeff, Victoria, BC, 8b on May 13, 2008 at 10:17 am PST.
Here goes !...
The above followup was added by Neil on May 13, 2008 at 11:27 am PST.
Neil, that's not a native lizard. It's the common wall lizard, Podarcis muralis. Like so many other freeloaders in British Columbia, it hails from the UK. I'm sure that Kev and the other English blokes will recognize it right away. Many of them are plain brown, but some are greenish, especially when young (there's also a related green lizard in England, Lacerta viridis, that looks like it's from the tropics). Interesting that you have them on Vancouver Island. They are essentially the English counterpart to alligator lizards, and apparently are able to exploit the same ecological niche as alligator lizards. I guess the question is whether or not they will outcompete the alligator lizards and eventually displace them.
The above followup was added by Steve in Brookings on May 13, 2008 at 12:02 am PST.
I catch them all the time here on my property, especially when I'm weed eating along my driveway. The cat often catches them too. They drop their tails to escape from predators. They are good in the garden for eating insects.
The above followup was added by Joe , Salt Spring Island on May 13, 2008 at 12:06 am PST.
I often see Lizards sitting on the road here on sunny days. Turtles too, I have picked up more turtles on the road and let them go back into the lake.
The above followup was added by Joe , Salt Spring Island on May 13, 2008 at 12:07 am PST.
Is there any reason why I shouldn't be able to transplant lizards into my garden and have them thrive?
Neil: I really like the look of the lizard in the photo. If you ever get a surplus, give me a call.
The above followup was added by Jeff, Victoria, 8b on May 13, 2008 at 12:41 am PST.
Jeff, if it was already on my property, I would really enjoy having it around. It's a wonderful looking lizard. But I would be concerned that this species may compete with native lizards, so I personally would not introduce it to an area. You can read about the history of this lizard on Vancouver Island (and concerns about it) at the Reptiles of BC website.
Neil, it's great that you can post pics now. :-)
The above followup was added by Linda Denman Island, BC 8b on May 13, 2008 at 2:45 pm PST.
In addition to the competition issue, it is nearly impossible to maintain reptiles as free-range subjects and keep them on your property. As much as you might enjoy the exotic surrounds that you create, reptiles will wander over a wide area in order to secure three very important needs:
1. Appropriate habitat: since reptiles are poikilothermic, they need to live in areas where they can manage their body temperatures. A habitat with lots of exposed rocks for both basking on and hiding under is likely to attract them.
2. Food: its difficult to view your backyard cafeteria from a reptile's preference, but you should have lots of spiders, millipedes, flies, beetles and other creepy crawlies. Baby mice would be an additional attraction.
3. Freedom from predation: reptiles generally prefer to avoid contact with potential predators. That includes all humans, dogs, cats and other furry frights. Lacertids tend to be particularly shy, though they can become accustomed to humans if raised in captivity.
There is another option, though, and that is the outdoor reptiliary. This could be a contained rock garden with lewisias, senecios and other interesting succulents, perhaps festooned with driftwood. You would need to supply the food and the water. This could be a very interesting feature, much as a water garden could, though the matter of creating an escape-proof enclosure would require some finesse. On someplace like Vancouver Island, you could no doubt keep wall lizards and other lacertids without any manner of artificial heating so long as there are areas of dry sand under the rocks for hibernation. One thing though, is that they tend to be somewhat territorial and belligerent toward their fellows, so you might be limited to a single pair, or perhaps a male and two females. The male green lacerta is particularly handsome and almost twice the size of a wall lizard. They almost look like small iguanas. Here's a picture of a colorful male in an outdoor saurarium.
The above followup was added by Steve in Brookings on May 13, 2008 at 6:00 pm PST.
I had Iguanas for pets years ago, I had mine for ten years. I built them a large cage outdoors where I would keep them in the Summer months and I had another large cage for them indoors as well. They are the easiest lizards to care for, I fed them Bananas, Lettuce and lots of other veggies. I also gave them cottage cheese so they would get some calcium. Other lizards I have had were Anoles, Jewel curly tails, and a Chameleon. My largest Iguana was over 4'ft in lenght, but most of that was taken up by tail.
The above followup was added by Joe , Salt Spring Island on May 13, 2008 at 9:52 pm PST.
Does the lacerta live year round outdoors in your climate?
I cover all my gardens with bark mulch, which seems to produce a lot of ants and other bugs that would make for lizard food. I also get a lot of sun. I only have a few rocks for them to hide under, but could provide more. BUT...if it is hard to keep them from wandering, and if cats may pose a problem (neighbours cats, I don't have any) then I suppose trying to cultivate them may be futile.
The above followup was added by Jeff, Victoria, BC, 8b on May 14, 2008 at 10:22 am PST.
Im not a pro at the animal kingdom...but if its a lizard..some of them look pretty cool up there on Vancouver Island..or the surrounding islands...I especially like the ones that Neil and Steve put up...yeah it gives to the "tropical effect" thats for sure with those colors...you dont see anything like that around here ..maybe they are here..but i have never seen one...cool animals for sure though..
John in Beaverton
The above followup was added by John in Beaverton on May 14, 2008 at 5:06 pm PST.
British Lizards are about as common as Schefflera Macrophylla is as common in the PNW. The nearest thing we have to lizards where i live are Slow Worms which actually are from the Lizard family. Damn cats keep killing them though.
The above followup was added by Andy Martin on May 17, 2008 at 12:09 am PST.
I've seen pictures of Slow Worms. It's a really interesting looking critter, basically a lizard without legs. Wouldn't mind having some around here.
The above followup was added by Linda Denman Island, BC 8b on May 18, 2008 at 9:13 am PST.
I Know this is pretty ordinary stuff around these parts..... but had to post it anyway !
The above followup was added by Neil on May 26, 2008 at 5:01 pm PST.