Spatial, Ontogenetic, and Sexual Effects on the Diet of a Teiid Lizard in Arid South America

Leeuwen, J. P. van; Catenazzi, Alessandro; Holmgren, Milena

doi:10.1670/10-154.1

Cited by 12 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…For example, if these animals preferentially consume soft portions of plants, such as flowers and fruits, their teeth may not require the additional dental complexity (i.e., cusps) that other lizards employ for breaking down tough vegetation. These three lizards have been documented to consume a variety of plant material, including leaves, fruits, flowers, and fungi (Brown, ; Foley et al, ), but their diets do not appear to constitute specific plant materials (e.g., flowers or fruits) that are softer or different from the material that other herbivorous lizards eat (Nagy, ; Iverson, ; Videla, ; Van Marken Lichtenbelt, ; Durtsche, ; Cooper and Vitt, ; Van Leeuwen et al, ). Additionally, previous research on the closely related species T .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The relationship between diet and tooth complexity in living dentigerous saurians

Melstrom

2017

Journal of Morphology

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Living saurian reptiles exhibit a wide range of diets, from carnivores to strict herbivores. Previous research suggests that the tooth shape in some lizard clades correlates with diet, but this has not been tested using quantitative methods. I investigated the relationship between phenotypic tooth complexity and diet in living reptiles by examining the entire dentary tooth row in over 80 specimens comprising all major dentigerous saurian clades. I quantified dental complexity using orientation patch count rotated (OPCR), which discriminates diet in living and extinct mammals, where OPCR-values increase with the proportion of dietary plant matter. OPCR was calculated from high-resolution CT-scans, and I standardized OPCR-values by the total number of teeth to account for differences in tooth count across taxa. In contrast with extant mammals, there appears to be greater overlap in tooth complexity values across dietary groups because multicusped teeth characterize herbivores, omnivores, and insectivores, and because herbivorous skinks have relatively simple teeth. In particular, insectivorous lizards have dental complexities that are very similar to omnivores. Regardless, OPCR-values for animals that consume significant amounts of plant material are higher than those of carnivores, with herbivores having the highest average dental complexity. These results suggest reptilian tooth complexity is related to diet, similar to extinct and extant mammals, although phylogenetic history also plays a measurable role in dental complexity. This has implications for extinct amniotes that display a dramatic range of tooth morphologies, many with no modern analogs, which inhibits detailed dietary reconstructions. These data demonstrate that OPCR, when combined with additional morphological data, has the potential to be used to reconstruct the diet of extinct amniotes. J. Morphol. 278:500-522, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The relationship between diet and tooth complexity in living dentigerous saurians

Melstrom

2017

Journal of Morphology

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“…and fruits from Scutia spicata and Capparis sp. In a study carried out by Leeuwen et al [5] about the diet of the same lizard species in an environment with P. pallida, it was detected mainly this plant species in stomach contents and rarely other plants, even if they were available in the environment.…”

Section: Food Preference In Herbivorous and Omnivorous Lizardsmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Such adaptations may be: specialized dentition, elongated intestines, colic valves, intestinal flora, and thermoregulation to maintain high body temperature [5], inasmuch as gut fermentation, which is necessary for plant digestion, requires prolonged periods of high body temperature [6]. Every part that makes up a plant requires different adaptations for digestion because the parts vary significantly in their structure and composition.…”

Section: Vegetables In Composition Of the Lizard's Dietmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Herbivory by Lizards

Pietczak¹,

Vieira²

2017

Herbivores

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The extent of herbivory in lizards is influenced by several factors. Plant tissues are more difficult to digest than invertebrates due to the presence of cellulose. Thus, so many lizards exhibit carnivorous diet. Nevertheless, some species consume vegetables. Essentially herbivorous diet occurs in about 3% of lizards, while most omnivores add plants in their diets. Omnivorous species tend to eat more fruits, flower, and nectar, because they are easier to digest and provide more nutrients than leaves, which are rich in cellulose. The main factors influencing the consumption of plant material are related to the habitat of the species. Insular and arid environments favor the consumption of plants because such locations have low amount of arthropods available and present water scarcity. It is also possible to observe ontogenetic changes in the lizard's diet, in such a way that young individuals consume only invertebrates, whereas the adults supplement their diet with plant material. When consuming fruits and nectar, lizards become potential dispersers and pollinators. In this sense, some studies have already corroborated seed dispersal and pollination events by lizards. In islands where other species are absent, these interactions are essential for the maintenance of communities.

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“…La mayoría de las especies de saurios presentes en el Desierto Costero peruano presentan una dieta principalmente insectívora (Dixon & Wright 1975, Pefaur & López-Tejeda 1983, Pérez & Jahncke 1998, Pérez 2005, Pérez & Balta 2007, Pérez & Balta 2011, Pérez et al 2012, sin embargo, también ha sido reportado el consumo de material vegetal en especies como los gecónidos Phyllodactylus angustidigitus y P. gerrhopygus (Pérez & Balta 2011), tropiduridos Microlophus peruvianus (Pérez & Balta 2007), M. thoracicus (Dixon & Wright 1975;Pérez & Balta 2007) y M. tigris (Pérez 2005), y teidos como Dicrodon guttulatum (Pollack et al 2007, Van Leeuwen et al 2011). …”

Section: Introductionunclassified

Dieta de la lagartija de los gramadales Microlophus thoracicus icae en el valle del río Ica, Perú

Pérez

Fuentes²,

Jordán³

2015

Rev peru biol

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Dieta de la lagartija de los gramadales Microlophus thoracicus icaeRev. peru. biol. 22 (2) ResumenSe evaluó la dieta de la lagartija de los gramadales Microlophus thoracicus icae en tres localidades del Valle del río Ica, Perú. La dieta de este saurio se caracterizó por un importante consumo de material vegetal, principalmente foliolos del árbol Prosopis spp., e invertebrados, especialmente insectos como hormigas y larvas de insectos. No se registraron relaciones significativas entre el tamaño corporal de los individuos y el número total de presas consumidos, ni el volumen total consumido. Los juveniles, hembras y machos de M. t. icae no presentaron diferencias significativas en el número de hormigas o larvas de insectos consumidos. Tampoco se registraron diferencias significativas en la proporción de material vegetal consumido por juveniles, hembras y machos. Sin embargo, el volumen de material vegetal consumido fue mayor para machos y hembras, comparado con juveniles. No se observan diferencias evidentes entre las dietas de juveniles, hembras y machos en el análisis multivariado. La amplitud del nicho trófico para M. t. icae fue de B ij = 6.97. El consumo de material vegetal e invertebrados es importante para juveniles y adultos de M. t. icae, por lo tanto, no se observa una marcada variación etaria en la dieta de los individuos evaluados. Esta especie de saurio presentaría una gran plasticidad en su dieta (omnívora) influenciada principalmente por la variación local de la oferta de los recursos alimenticios. Las posibles consecuencias del consumo de una dieta tan variada podrían incluir características particulares en sus endoparásitos, estrategias y eficiencia de forrajeo, termorregulación, morfología, entre otros.Palabras Clave: Dieta; Saurio; Desierto Costero Peruano; omnivoría; Lagartija de gramadales. AbstractThe diet of grass lizard, Microlophus thoracicus icae, was evaluated in three localities of the Ica River Valley, Peru. The dietary pattern was characterized by high consumption of vegetable material, mainly Prosopis spp. leaves, and invertebrates as ants and insect larvae. No significant relationships were found between body size, number of prey eaten or volume consumed. The juvenile, male and female M. t. icae not showed significant differences regarding number of ants or insect larvae consumed, neither on the proportion consumed of plant material. However, total volume of plant material was different between males and females, compared to juveniles. Multivariate analysis showed no evident difference in the diets of juveniles, males and females. Trophic niche amplitude for M. t. icae was B ij = 6.97. The consumption of plant material and invertebrates is important for both juvenile and adult iguanas, therefore; no clear age difference in diet was observed in the individuals studied. This species would present great diet plasticity (omnivory) influenced by the local variation of food resources. Possible consequences of a varied diet may include particular characteristics of its parasites, foraging...

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Spatial, Ontogenetic, and Sexual Effects on the Diet of a Teiid Lizard in Arid South America

Cited by 12 publications

References 47 publications

The relationship between diet and tooth complexity in living dentigerous saurians

The relationship between diet and tooth complexity in living dentigerous saurians

Herbivory by Lizards

Dieta de la lagartija de los gramadales Microlophus thoracicus icae en el valle del río Ica, Perú

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