The specific name of this species, grahami, was assigned to it in honor of James Duncan Graham, who founded the Corps of Topographical Engineers in the United States Army.

[3][2] The upper body of Anolis grahami is usually a rich emerald or aquamarine while its trunk and legs are a bright deep blue.

Fully grown males can be exceptionally colorful; occasionally a pure turquoise blue lizard may be observed.

Due to the wide variety of habitats and conditions that they live in, other lizard species in this order display significantly different adaptations and traits from the Anolis grahami.

Members of this order have developed a specific jaw structure that gives them more flexibility that helps them with biting.

The order, Squamata, has been divided into different subcategories, and the Anolis grahami is part of the suborder Iguania.

[5] Iguania is a suborder or infraorder of reptiles that includes 13,000 species of iguanas, chameleons, and New World lizards such as the Anolis grahami.

The earliest records of this suborder are prehistoric fossils of the Bharatagama, which lived in the Early Jurassic period around 190 million years ago in the area that is modern day India.

[6] Members of this suborder also tend to fleshy, non-prehensile tongues, meaning they cannot use them to grasp or manipulate objects.

Other typical traits of the Dactyloidae that can be seen in the Anolis grahami are the ability to break off their tail when they are trapped, and the presence of a brightly colored dewlap, or flap of skin extending under their necks, that is used for display.

For example, Anolis grahami tend to have relatively longer limbs than terrestrial species because it is necessary to be able to climb and walk on branches of trees.

Seventy-one A. grahami were introduced to the island in 1905 by a former agricultural director into a botanical garden with the intention of controlling the fruit fly population.

It is also common to see it on the trunks of tall trees, as well in shrubbery, on fence posts, the walls of houses, and other man made objects.

Due to its arboreal habits, this lizard can be quite difficult to observe in its natural habitat but is actually usually quite common across its range.

It has been determined that the tail of this species grows isometrically, meaning that the muscular contraction reacts to the increasing resistance while staying at the same length, and that each of the segments develops at different speeds.

This information has the potential to be further studied in order to determine patterns in anatomy and usage amongst different species of anole lizards.

The jaws of the Anolis grahami have developed muscles relative to other species of lizards, and this serves them well when they have to hunt or fight others.

This is an important distinction and trait to determine how well a male Anolis grahami will be able to survive and reproduce throughout its life.

[11] Anolis grahami tend to have longer legs relative to other species of lizards, because they are arboreal and need them to be able to grab onto the tree branches.

The species' leg length is likely a development resulting from adaptation to the faster predators that they experience in their habitats, and so that they can travel more quickly on trees either away from enemies, or towards organisms they are preying on.

Like most anoles these lizards are ambush predators which prefer to sit and wait for prey and then capture it in quick bursts of speed.

There are also no significant relationships found amongst the types of anoles that can vocalize, so the ability is thought to have polyphyletic origins.

If the lizard is captured or confronted, its first reaction will be to change its color from bright green to brown or black, indicating stress.