A little friend and I had a photo shoot the other day! At first he was quite shy. He thought he was hidden and carefully peeked over the leaf at me. He didn't realize I could see his shadow through the leaf. I giggled.
I can't believe I actually like lizards. I am not a reptile type of person.
The artist in me did fall in love with the bright colored gold dust geckos with their big blue eyes. They are curious and visit my kitchen every day. They are sugar addicts. One day, I heard a strange clinking in my kitchen. I went in and found that one of the geckos had figured out how to stand on the lid of the sugar bowl, and do a little jump and it lifted the top of the lid. This created sprinkles of sugar around the rim which it quickly licked up.
But the anoles were a different story. They stay outside and are more shy. When we first moved into our house, there was one that lived on the lanai. He had a very long tail and his slanted eyes kind of scared me. But slowly, over time, he got used to me and every day when I went to sit on the lanai, he would come out and sit near me... even venturing across the floor to climb near me.
But, it was the day that I watched him eating a giant cockroach that we really became friends! That's the day he got his name, Harry. Sometimes, I'd go onto the lanai and say his name, and sure enough, he'd come out! I got kinda attached. Then, one day, Harry disappeared. I don't know if a gold dust gecko got him (they are notorious for decimating our native gecko and anole populations) or if he wandered off.
One day I saw an anole in the carport that looked like him. I said, "Harry?" and it came right towards me. So I prefer to think that he was just expanding his horizons.
As a visitor, it can be a bit disconcerting to see lizards on the walls of your rental. Just remember, they are basically harmless. And they eat the bugs that you really DON'T want to see on your walls! Wipe your counters well before preparing food (they can carry salmonella) but otherwise, view it as a part of the tropical experience! And if you really want to have some fun, set aside a pinch of banana or papaya and watch them enjoy the sweet treat. I've even fed them jam right off my finger!!
