11. Life-History Variations

Ballinger, Royce Ε.

doi:10.4159/harvard.9780674183384.c14

Cited by 80 publications

(68 citation statements)

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“…In fact, diverting a large enough, rather than an extraordinarily high, fraction of the available energy to individual eggs in single reproductive episodes is a strategy adopted by females of T. septentrionalis to maximize their lifetime reproductive success (Ji and Diong, 2006;Ji et al, 2007). Female bodily condition can influence clutch size and, thus, reproductive output in lizards including T. septentrionalis (Ballinger, 1983;Olsson and Shine, 1997;Ji et al, 2007). Presumably, the thermal independency of clutch size in single reproductive bouts could be explained by the lack of differences in body mass among the three treatments.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, if fecundity or mating success is highly dependent on body size, then the individual might achieve higher lifetime reproductive success by reducing current reproductive investment in favor of body growth. In the field, it is often difficult to measure how energy is allocated to different functions of an animal, because temporal and spatial variations in environmental attributes such as food supply and temperature can have profound repercussions on energy allocation (Ballinger, 1983;van Noordwijk and de Jong, 1986;Stearns, 1992;Gregory and Skebo, 1998;Lourdais et al, 2002). However, with suitable animals, it is possible to do so in the laboratory where carefully controlled measurements are possible (Seigel and Ford, 1991;Ford and Seigel, 1994;Du, 2006;Lourdais et al, 2003;Kubicka and Kratochvíl, 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Income breeding and temperature-induced plasticity in reproductive traits in lizards

Liu

Ding

2010

Journal of Experimental Biology

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SUMMARYWe used the northern grass lizard Takydromus septentrionalis as a model animal to examine the energy allocation strategy and whether body temperature can affect maternal reproductive traits in lizards. We maintained adult females collected from the field soon after winter dormancy under three thermal conditions (24.0±1.0°C, 28.0±1.0°C and 32.0±1.0°C) throughout the subsequent reproductive season, and then recorded their energy intake, digestive efficiency, body size and mass changes, and reproductive parameters. Manipulation of body temperature in reproducing females affected energy intake and several maternal reproductive characteristics. Females allocated energy to reproduction following the fulfillment of energetic requirements for metabolism and growth. The reduced energy availability for reproduction constrained females at low or high body temperatures to produce fewer and smaller eggs per season but had no role in influencing the number of eggs produced in single reproductive bouts. Females used currently acquired energy to fuel reproduction, and this strategy did not shift seasonally from the first to subsequent clutches. Our study supports the idea that the use of currently acquired energy for reproduction may be more widespread in ectotherms than thought before, and shows for the first time that egg size is thermally plastic in T. septentrionalis, where eggs produced in single reproductive bouts are believed to be well optimized for size.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Income breeding and temperature-induced plasticity in reproductive traits in lizards

Liu

Ding

2010

Journal of Experimental Biology

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“…Cole, 1954;Brockelman, 1975;Stearns, 1976;Ballinger, 1983;Heppell, 1998;Goodwin et al, 2002). Lizards have been one of the more prominent model organisms used to develop and test life history theory (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of portable ultrasonography as a nondestructive method for estimating reproductive effort in lizards

Gilman

Wolf

2007

Journal of Experimental Biology

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SUMMARY Obtaining population-level life history data such as egg and clutch size in reptiles has most often required that individuals be sacrificed. This prevents a reexamination of individuals over intra-annual and inter-annual time scales,limiting insight into the effects of varying environmental conditions on reproductive output. Here, we test the use of a laptop-sized portable ultrasound imaging system as a nondestructive means for quantifying reproductive investment in five species of lizards with a range of body sizes,forms and life histories. Ultrasound scans produced egg counts that were accurate for clutch sizes of two to seven eggs, and provided good estimates(within 5.5±1.69 eggs, mean ± s.e.m., relative error 21%) for clutch sizes of between 18 and 41 eggs. Egg measurements using virtual calipers produced average egg volumes that deviated from actual volumes by 0.09±0.01 cm3 (relative error 25.9%), and estimated clutch volumes that differed from actual volumes by 1.03±0.26 cm3(relative error 29.5%). We also monitored development in five lizard species and found that changes in follicle and egg size and degree of embryonic development can be measured over periods of just a few days.

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“…On the other hand, some lizard species have interpopulational variation in some life history characteristics that can be attributed to genetic differentiation or to local environmental variation along their geographic distribution (e.g. Ballinger 1983, Niewiarowski 1994. Environmental characteristics (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Variation in the diet of the lizard Tropidurus torquatus along its coastal range in Brazil

et al. 2013

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The diet composition of lizards of a given species may vary among different populations. The feeding ecology of the tropidurid lizard Tropidurus torquatus was studied in 10 coastal areas in Brazil in order to detect to what extent the diet varies along its geographic range. A non-metric multidimensional scaling technique revealed three groups of localities according to the diet composition: one characterized by a relatively high consumption of Isoptera, one characterized by a relatively high proportion of plant matter, and one in which there was a great importance of Formicidae. We found a weak pattern of latitudinal differences in restingas regarding the general consumption of items by T. torquatus, probably because this is a generalist and opportunistic lizard, which consumes most of the available types of potential food items in the habitat. However, lizards from northern populations consumed a larger quantity of smaller items (e.g., Isoptera) than those from southern populations. In the southern populations, on the other hand, larger items such as Coleoptera, Lepidoptera larvae and fruits were more frequently consumed. It is likely that the observed interpopulational variation in some aspects of the feeding ecology of coastal T. torquatus is mainly given by food availability. Resumo: A composição da dieta de lagartos de uma determinada espécie pode variar entre diferentes populações. A ecologia alimentar do lagarto tropidurídeo Tropidurus torquatus foi estudada em 10 áreas da costa do Brasil a fim de detectar em que extensão a dieta varia ao longo de sua distribuição geográfica. Uma técnica de escalonamento multidimensional não-métrico revelou três grupos de localidades de acordo com a composição da dieta: um caracterizado por um relativamente alto consumo de Isoptera, um caracterizado pela relativamente alta proporção de material vegetal, e um em que houve uma grande importância de Formicidae. Nós encontramos um fraco padrão de diferença latitudinal nas restingas em relação ao consumo geral de itens por T. torquatus, provavelmente porque este é um lagarto generalista e oportunista, que consome a maioria dos tipos disponíveis de potenciais itens alimentares no habitat. No entanto, os lagartos das populações mais ao norte consumiram uma maior quantidade de menores itens (e.g., Isoptera) do que aqueles das populações mais ao sul. Nas populações mais ao sul, por outro lado, items maiores como Coleoptera, Lepdoptera, larvas e frutos foram mais frequentemente consumidos. É provável que a variação interpopulacional observada em alguns aspectos da ecologia alimentar de T. torquatus costeiros seja ocasionada principalmente pela disponibilidade de alimento. Palavras-chave: variação geográfica, ecologia alimentar, restinga, lagarto tropical, Tropiduridae.94 Siqueira, C.C. et al.

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11. Life-History Variations

Cited by 80 publications

References 0 publications

Income breeding and temperature-induced plasticity in reproductive traits in lizards

Income breeding and temperature-induced plasticity in reproductive traits in lizards

Use of portable ultrasonography as a nondestructive method for estimating reproductive effort in lizards

Variation in the diet of the lizard Tropidurus torquatus along its coastal range in Brazil

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