Wikipedia
The Dactyloidae are a family of lizards commonly known as anoles . The NCBI places the anole in subfamily Polychrotinae of the family Iguanidae. The family is generally considered to be monotypic, containing only the genus Anolis; however, recent genetic research has identified several clades within Anolis that may sometimes be elevated to generic status. These clades are: Dactyloa, Deiroptyx, Ctenonotus, Xiphosurus, Norops, Chamaelinorops, Anolis (exclusive of the other recognized monophyletic clades) and Audantia.
The genus Polychrus was previously also placed in the family under the family name Polychrotidae; however recent genetic studies confirm that Polychrus is not closely related to Anolis and is in fact closer to Hoplocercidae. Therefore, Polychrotidae as a family has been invalidated, which classifies Polychrus under subfamily Polychrotinae and family Iguanidae.
Due to their ability to change color, anolis (anole) lizards are frequently referred to as American chameleons. Anolis lizards also share many characteristics with geckos. However anoles are not closely related to either of those groups, they are most closely related to iguanas. Anoles share many anotomical features with arboreal iguanas. These similarities include skeletal structure and nearly identical foot structure.