Reproductive behavior of Spix’s Whiptails in the wild: understanding the costs and benefits of mate-guarding

Mating behaviour of the lizard Ameiva ameiva in Brazil

“…The female passivity seems to be important for a successful approach and may be caused by the circular movements performed by the male. By circling the female, a courting male may restrict her movements (thus allowing body contact to occur) and suppress biting behaviours during copulation that have been reported in other teiids (e.g., Carpenter, 1962;Anderson & Vitt, 1990;Zaldívar-Rae & Drummond, 2007;Ribeiro et al, 2011;Alfonso & Torres, 2012;Sales & Freire, 2021), but have not been observed in A. ameiva (Manata & Nascimento, 2005; this study) and other congeners (Quesnel, 1978). Moreover, cloacal rubbing against the ground, a behaviour already reported in male teiids (Carpenter, 1962;Sales & Freire, 2021), was not observed.…”

“…The duration of courtship is variable in teiid lizards. Male Pholidoscelis auberi spend about 32 minutes pursuing and courting females (Alfonso & Torres, 2012), while male Ameivula ocellifera court females for 0.8-121 minutes (Sales & Freire, 2021). Costa et al (2013) reported that a male Kentropyx calcarata stayed about 13 minutes close to a female before copulating.…”

“…Males grow larger than females (Rocha, 2008); this may relate to sexual selection (Anderson & Vitt, 1990). Despite advances in behavioural ecology, descriptions of the reproductive behaviour of teiid lizards remain scarce (Censky, 1995;Zaldívar-Rae & Drummond, 2007;Sales & Freire, 2021). Here we describe the courtship and mating behaviour of free-ranging A. ameiva.…”

“…Courtship and copulation in lizards involve a series of ritualised behaviours (Vitt, 1983;Costa et al, 2010;Gogliath et al, 2010;Ribeiro et al, 2011). Examples of these behaviours in teiid lizards include chase, cloacal rubbing and head bobbing (Carpenter, 1960(Carpenter, , 1962Quesnel, 1978;Costa et al, 2013;Sales & Freire, 2021). Sexual size dimorphism, sexual dichromatism, and behavioural displays are intricately linked to courtship and copulation and are fundamental to sexual selection (Noble & Bradley, 1933;Vitt, 1983;Censky, 1997).…”

“…Copulation in teiid lizards may involve some behaviours performed by the male, such as biting the female's flank or pelvic region and posture patterns during the intromission phase (Carpenter, 1960;Crews, 1987;Mahrdt, 1976;Ribeiro et al, 2011;Alfonso & Torres, 2012, Sales & Freire, 2021. Mate guarding after copulation seems to be common in teiid lizards, which reduces the opportunity for female to mate with other males.…”