MALARIAL PARASITES (PLASMODIUM) OF ANOLIS LIZARDS - BIOGEOGRAPHY IN THE LESSER ANTILLES

Anolis lizards (Iguanidae) were surveyed for malarial parasites on 14 islands in the eastern Lesser Antilles, St. John in the Virgin Islands , and Curacao and Aruba in the southern Caribbean. Two species of mala ria were identified in 4859 lizards sampled from the 17 islands, Plasm odium floridense and P. azurophilum. There was no relationship between island size, elevation, or rainfall and the presence or absence of ma laria. Some of the largest islands had no malaria, some large and smal l islands had one species, and some, including tiny Saba, had both spe cies of Plasmodium. P. azurophilum was found throughout the Lesser Ant illes from Se. Martin to Grenada; P. floridense was restricted to the northern islands, not further south than Montserrat. Our results, comb ined with surveys from other areas of the Caribbean basin, show both s pecies of malaria infect anoles from distantly related taxonomic group s, suggesting that the parasites have had an ancient association with their lizard hosts.