The "Discovery of Green Fruit Loop" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Reading in the local paper about a mother who was preparing lunch for her kindergartner in Princeton, New Jersey when she made a rather unusual discovery.  A green anole appeared from under a tatsoi leaf, looking around at the kitchen and the woman who had found it.  

The leaves of the Tatsoi plant

Tatsoi, in case you never heard of it, as I hadn't, is a vegetable much like spinach that forms in a rosette of petite leaves and is pale lime green in color.  The woman had purchased the tatsoi at a natural food store and luckily didn't freak out when the little critter appeared cold and lifeless from the center of the plant.  She realized that critters come with the territory when buying vegetables, especially organic vegetables.  The tatsoi came from a farm in Florida which is part of the anole lizard's region.  

This is "Green Fruit Loop" in his new kindergarten home. As
you notice he has changed color to blend in with his surroundings.

The lizard more than likely had been hibernating in the rosette due to recent cool weather in the southern states.  She shared her experience with her daughter who took the reptile to school the next day in a vented Tupperware container and gave it to her science teacher.  The lizard was named "Green Fruit Loop" by the kindergarten class and is now the class mascot.  The teacher told the students that even though it was green when it was found, it can change it's color to brown to blend in with its surroundings.  When Carol and I travel to the Caribbean, I enjoy taking photos of lizards of all sizes.  Some of the largest ones I have found in St. Martin while one of the most beautiful green lizards I found a few years ago during a trip to Hawaii.  Can't imagine what I would think had I found one in a head of lettuce found at the grocery store.  I know I would definitely take a photo of it.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.