Mating behavior and female accompaniment in the whiptail lizard Cnemidophorus ocellifer (Squamata, Teiidae) in the Caatinga region of northeastern Brazil

Ribeiro, Leonardo Barros; Gogliath, Melissa; Sales, Raul Fernandes Dantas; Freire, Eliza María Xavier

doi:10.1590/s1676-06032011000400031

Cited by 12 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 27 publications

(60 reference statements)

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“…), formerly treated as A. ocellifera in several studies (e.g. Vitt 1995, Ribeiro et al 2011, Sales et al 2012. These results agree with the data obtained by Kolodiuk (2005) for the ESEC Seridó, except for A. cf.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Ecology and diversity of a lizard community in the semiarid region of Brazil

2013

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Ecology and diversity of a lizard community in the semiarid region of Brazil. Biota Neotrop. 13(3): http://www.biotaneotropica.org.br/v13n3/en/ abstract?article+bn04013032013Abstract: Composition, species diversity and resource usage in terms of space and time were evaluated for the lizard community of the Ecological Station of the Seridó (ESEC Seridó), Rio Grande do Norte. An observation area of 150 m × 150 m (2.25 ha) was delimited and surveyed monthly in alternate turns (morning, afternoon and night) for three consecutive days from April to October 2011, covering dry and rainy seasons. Fourteen species belonging to eight families were recorded, being Tropidurus semitaeniatus the most abundant. Seasonality influenced species richness and abundance. Regarding habitat usage, Lygodactylus klugei was the most generalist species, while Phyllopezus periosus, P. pollicaris and T. semitaeniatus were specialists, showing affinity for rocky formations. About microhabitat usage, the most generalist species was T. hispidus and the most specialized was L. klugei . Ten of the recorded species have diurnal habits and four are nocturnal. The space and time usage profiles of the dominant species corroborated data obtained in previous autoecological studies conducted in the same area and suggest a pattern of resource usage by these species in the ESEC Seridó. Resumo: Neste trabalho foram avaliadas a composição, diversidade de espécies e a utilização dos recursos espaço e tempo na comunidade de lagartos da Estação Ecológica do Seridó (ESEC Seridó), Rio Grande do Norte. Para isso, uma área de observação de 150m × 150m (2,25 ha) foi delimitada e percorrida mensalmente em turnos alternados (manhã, tarde e noite) por três dias consecutivos nos meses de abril a outubro de 2011, cobrindo as estações seca e chuvosa. Foram registradas 14 espécies pertencentes a oito famílias, dentre as quais a mais abundante foi Tropidurus semitaeniatus. A sazonalidade influenciou a riqueza e abundância das espécies. Quanto ao uso do hábitat, Lygodactylus klugei foi a espécie mais generalista, enquanto Phylopezus periosus, P. pollicaris e T. semitaeniatus demonstraram especialidade às áreas de formações rochosas. Quanto ao uso de microhábitats, a espécie mais generalista foi T. hispidus e a mais especialista foi L. klugei. Dez das espécies registradas possuem hábito diurno e quatro são noturnas. Os perfis de uso do espaço e do tempo pelas espécies dominantes corroboram dados obtidos em estudos anteriores nesta mesma área e sugerem a existência de padrões na utilização desses recursos por estas espécies na ESEC Seridó. Palavras-chave: caatinga, período de atividade, uso do habitat, uso do micro-habitat, riqueza, sazonalidade. 200 Andrade, M.J.M. et al.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Ecology and diversity of a lizard community in the semiarid region of Brazil

2013

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“… Pelvic rubbing is suggested as a way of depositing chemical signals of lizards with ventral secretion pores (e.g., femoral/pre‐cloacal) but was observed in lizards without these structures. Superscripts indicate references of behaviour reports and refer to Tollestrup (1981) (a); this study (b); Ribeiro, Gogliath, Sales, and Freire (2011) (c); Jenssen (1970) (d); Labra and Niemeyer (2004) (e); Rhen, Ross, and Crews (1999) (f); Hirth (1963) (g); Greenberg (1977) (h); Vasconcelos et al (2019) (i); in Den Bosch (2001) (j); Martín and López (2000) (k); Simon, Gravelle, Bissinger, Eiss, and Ruibal (1981) (l); Rismiller, McKelvey, and Green (2010) (m); Labra et al (2002) (n); Carpenter (1962) (o). …”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemical signalling behaviour in intrasexual communication of lizards lacking femoral pores

et al. 2020

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Signals that are used in animal communication may have multiple sensorial channels and functions. Animal communication integrates very distinct mechanisms such as behaviour, morphology and physiological secretions. Chemical signals occur in several contexts and are known to have a role in sexual selection. In many lizards, pheromones secreted through femoral pores are used to attract females and demark territory dominance. In lizard species without femoral pores, however, study of chemical signalling is negligible. Lizards of the genus Tropidurus have no ventral pores, but express melanic patches in their ventral thighs and cloacae (body regions linked to chemical communication in other lizards), which may play a role in both visual signalling and chemical signalling. Here, we describe the occurrence of pelvic rubbing—a chemical signalling behaviour—in two Tropidurus species, displayed in intraspecific agonistic intrasexual staged encounters. In addition, we compile a list of currently reported species that display this behaviour, checking for its social contexts and presence/absence of secretion pores. We analysed behaviours in conspecific trials between males of Tropidurus semitaeniatus and of T. hispidus during their breeding season. In T. semitaeniatus, displays of pelvic rubbing elicited aggressive responses from the opponents. Tropidurus hispidus, however, did not react to these conspecific displays. Pelvic rubbings were also partially linked to defecation in both species, which is likely due to secretions from internal urodeal glands expelled during defecation. Also, high rates of tongue flick behaviours during the encounters support the hypothesis that these lizards make use of chemical communication. Our observations corroborate previous suggestions that glandular scales—scales covered by generation glands produced at the epidermis across the lizards’ shedding cycles—are present in their melanic ventral patches. Our work also highlights the potential of characterizing such ventral patches as multimodal signalling badges. Further, we investigated the contexts in which pelvic rubbing is displayed adding to our understanding of the role played by chemical signalling in lizards without femoral pores.

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“…Males of many lizard species are known to be territorial and to actively defend their territories by biting (Husak et al 2006a,b;Lailvaux & Irschick 2007). Most teiids are considered non-territorial (Censky 1997), although males have been recorded following females and actively guarding them during the mating season (Ribeiro et al 2011). We have observed P. atratus individuals fighting on numerous occasions during our surveys and so the increasing number of individuals on the island will likely result in more frequent and violent interactions between males, thus imposing selective pressures on head size (Husak et al 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Population increase and changes in behavior and morphology in the Critically Endangered Redonda ground lizard (Pholidoscelis atratus) following the successful removal of alien rats and goats

et al. 2020

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Redonda is a small volcanic Caribbean island that is home to at least 4 endemic lizard species, including the Critically Endangered ground lizard (Pholidoscelis atratus). Black rats (Rattus rattus) and domestic goats (Capra hircus) were introduced to the island at some time after its discovery by Europeans in the late 1500s. They had a devastating effect on the island, resulting in the loss of nearly all trees and most of the ground vegetation. Point count surveys of P. atratus in 2012 indicated low densities, and the invasive rats were observed hunting and preying on the lizards. Both populations of rats and goats were successfully removed in 2017 as part of an ecological restoration program, and native vegetation and invertebrate populations have increased rapidly since. Population surveys in 2017, 2018, and 2019 show the lizard population has increased by more than sixfold. In 2017, as rats and goats were being removed, we evaluated the morphology and escape behavior of this species and repeated these measurements 1 year later. We observed that P. atratus had become bolder, with a reduced flight distance. We also detected changes in limb morphology related to locomotion and suggest possible explanations that will need to be further investigated in the future. These results show how the removal of invasive species can rapidly affect lizard population recovery and behavior, potentially restoring island ecosystems to their pre-human interference dynamics.

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Mating behavior and female accompaniment in the whiptail lizard Cnemidophorus ocellifer (Squamata, Teiidae) in the Caatinga region of northeastern Brazil

Cited by 12 publications

References 27 publications

Ecology and diversity of a lizard community in the semiarid region of Brazil

Ecology and diversity of a lizard community in the semiarid region of Brazil

Chemical signalling behaviour in intrasexual communication of lizards lacking femoral pores

Population increase and changes in behavior and morphology in the Critically Endangered Redonda ground lizard (Pholidoscelis atratus) following the successful removal of alien rats and goats

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