NATURAL HISTORY

NATURAL HISTORY OBSERVATIONS

Natural history knowledge has been fundamental to the development of many major ecological and evolutionary theories. My research attempts to follow this pattern by encouraging high familiarity with study organisms. This is especially true for prospective undergraduate research assistants, as inclusion of basic natural history skills are being increasingly (and rapidly) lost from most higher education curriculum’s.

Since beginning my doctoral work, my research colleagues and I have documented several novel predator-prey and other trophic interactions involving non-native lizards in Florida, nocturnal activity in diurnal lizards potentially highlighting incipient niche shifts, atypical phenotypes and morphologies, and photographic field guides for species identification (see articles below).

You can also see many other natural history observations of Anolis lizards through my blog posts on Anole Annals.

(Above) Female Puerto Rican crested anole (*A. cristatellus*) having caught a freshly-shed Cuban cockroach (*Panchlora nivea*) in Miami, FL

(**Above**). Chicago Field Museum of Natural History field identification guides for herpetofaunal communities in Amacayacu National Park (Colombian Amazon; Stroud 2015) and across a vast diversity of habitat types throughout Uzbekistan (Martin et al. 2015).

Relevant publications:

– Stroud, JT., Reeves, L. (2016) Rarest mosquito in the USA discovered at Fairchild Tropical Botanical Gardens. The Tropical Garden (in review)
– Martin, T.E., Guilleman, M., Nivet-Mazerolles, V., Landsmann, C., Dubos, J., Eudeline, R., Stroud, J.T. (2016) Ecology and distribution of the herpetofauna of central Uzbekistan. Amphibian & Reptile Conservation, in press
– Stroud, JT., Outerbridge, ST., Outerbridge, M. (2016) First specimen of the American green anole (Anolis carolinensis) on the oceanic island of Bermuda, with a review of the species’ current global distribution. IRCF Reptiles & Amphibians, 23(3): 188-190 PDF
– Ljustina O*, Stroud JT. (2016) Anolis equestris (Cuban Knight Anole): Novel predator-prey interaction. Herpetological Review, 47(3): 459-460 PDF
– Ljustina O*, Stroud JT. (2016) Anolis cristatellus (Puerto Rican Crested Anole): Absent tympanum. Herpetological Review, 47(3): 459 PDF
– Stroud JT, Giery, ST (2016) Nesting behavior of introduced brown basilisks (Basiliscus vittatus) in South Florida. IRCF Reptiles and Amphibians, Conservation & Natural History, 23(2): 104-107 PDF
– Martin T, Guillemin M, Eudeline R, Landsmann C, Nivet-Mazerolles V, Stroud JT. (2015) Reptiles and Amphibians of Semi deserts, Mountains, and other habitats of South Central Uzbekistan. Chicago Field Museum of Natural History PDF
– Stroud, J.T. (2015) Reptiles y amphibios de Amacayacu parque Nacional, Amazonas – Colombia (Reptiles and amphibians of Amacayacu National Park, Amazonas – Colombia). Chicago Field Museum of Natural History PDF
-Kolbe, J.J., Feeley, K.J., Battles, A., Stroud, J.T. (2014) Field identification guide for the Anole lizards of Miami. The Fairchild Challenge PDF
– Stroud, J.T. (2014) An introduction to the lizards of Fairchild Tropical Botanical Gardens. The Tropical Garden 69(1): 28-29 PDF
– Stroud, J.T., and Beckles, W. (2014) Anolis cristatellus (Puerto Rican Crested Anole): Abnormal dewlap color. Herpetological Review, 45(4): 693-694 PDF
- Stroud, J.T. (2013) Anolis equestris (Cuban Knight Anole): Exotic intra-guild predation. Herpetological Review 44(4): 660-661 PDF
- Stroud, J.T., and Giery, S. (2013) Anolis equestris (Cuban Knight Anole): Nocturnal activity. Herpetological Review 44(4): 661 PDF
– Stroud, J.T., and Krysko, K.L. (2013) Ctenosaura similis (Gray’s Spiny-tailed Iguana): Non-native diet. Herpetological Review 44(2):322 PDF