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Background  Caribbean anole lizards (Dactyloidae) have frequently been used as models to study questions regarding biogeography and adaptive radiations, but the evolutionary history of Central American anoles (particularly those of the genus  Norops)  has not been well studied. Previous work has hypothesized a north-to-south dispersal pattern of Central American  Norops , but no studies have examined dispersal within any  Norops  lineages. Here we test two major hypotheses for the dispersal of the  N. humilis/quaggulus  complex (defined herein, forming a subset within Savage and Guyer’s  N. humilis  group).    Results  Specimens of the  N. humilis  group were collected in Central America, from eastern Mexico to the Canal Zone of Panama. Major nodes were dated for comparison to the geologic history of Central America, and ancestral ranges were estimated for the  N. humilis/quaggulus  complex to test hypothesized dispersal patterns. These lineages displayed a northward dispersal pattern. We also demonstrate that the  N. humilis/quaggulus  complex consists of a series of highly differentiated mitochondrial lineages, with more conserved nuclear evolution. The paraphyly of the  N. humilis  species group is confirmed. A spatial analysis of molecular variance suggests that current populations are genetically distinct from one another, with limited mitochondrial gene flow occurring among sites.    Conclusions  The observed south-to-north colonization route within the  Norops humilis/quaggulus  complex represents the first evidence of a  Norops  lineage colonizing in a south-to-north pattern, (opposite to the previously held hypothesis for mainland  Norops ). One previously described taxon ( N. quaggulus ) was nested within  N. humilis , demonstrating the paraphyly of this species; while our analyses also reject the monophyly of the  Norops humilis  species group ( sensu  Savage and Guyer), with  N. tropidonotus, N. uniformis,  and  N. marsupialis  being distantly related to/highly divergent from the  N. humilis/quaggulus  complex. Our work sheds light on mainland anole biogeography and past dispersal events, providing a pattern to test against other groups of mainland anoles.    Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12862-015-0391-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Biogeography and evolution of a widespread Central American lizard species complex: Norops humilis, (Squamata: Dactyloidae)