Anolis carolinensis anole series

The Anolis carolinensis series is a clade or subgroup of closely related mid-sized trunk crown anoles within the genus Anolis. A total of thirteen species have been recorded, a few examples are listed below. This subgroup was recognized in 2012.

North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, and Georgia, and the Gulf Coast in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas. The species has been introduced into Hawaii and the Ogasawara Islands.

Cuba, Hispaniola, Dominican Republic and Isla de la Juventud. Introduced to parts of Florida.

Cuba, Honduras, Half Moon Caye and possibly Mexico.

Many species of the carolinensis subgroup are remarkably obscure and, with the exception of a few species such as A.carolinensis, very little is known about its members or its origin. However, it is believed that the clade originated on Cuba (Glor 2005), with repeated overwater dispersion leading to multiple speciation events. It is believed that at least four separate speciation events would have been necessary to explain the diversity found within the Carolinensis subgroup; however, the origin of several species such as A.longiceps, A.brunneus and A.maynardi has not been fully understood. It is believed that the last common ancestor of the Carolinensis subgroup evolved approximately six million years ago; molecular dating currently supports this theory.

The sister subgroup to the carolinensus subgroup is the isolepis group, with three species (Glor 2005).

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