The effect of body armature on escape behaviour in cordylid lizards

Losos, Jonathan B.; Mouton, P. le Fras N.; Bickel, Ryan D.; Cornelius, Ian; Ruddock, Lanral

doi:10.1006/anbe.2002.3051

Cited by 74 publications

(85 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…5). Previous studies have found correlations between long limbs and rock-dwelling or saxicolous macrohabitats in lizards (Vitt et al 1997;Losos et al 2002). We therefore hypothesize that the morphometric features shared by A.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 72%

Phylogenetic Analysis of Ecological and Morphological Diversification in Hispaniolan Trunk-Ground Anoles (Anolis Cybotes Group)

et al. 2003

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Abstract. Anolis lizards in the Greater Antilles partition the structural microhabitats available at a given site into four to six distinct categories. Most microhabitat specialists, or ecomorphs, have evolved only once on each island, yet closely related species of the same ecomorph occur in different geographic macrohabitats across the island. The extent to which closely related species of the same ecomorph have diverged to adapt to different geographic macrohabitats is largely undocumented. On the island of Hispaniola, members of the Anolis cybotes species group belong to the trunk-ground ecomorph category. Despite evolutionary stability of their trunk-ground microhabitat, populations of the A. cybotes group have undergone an evolutionary radiation associated with geographically distinct macrohabitats. A combined phylogeographic and morphometric study of this group reveals a strong association between macrohabitat type and morphology independent of phylogeny. This association results from long-term morphological evolutionary stasis in populations associated with mesic-forest environments (A. c. cybotes and A. marcanoi) and predictable morphometric changes associated with entry into new macrohabitat types (i.e., xeric forests, high-altitude pine forest, rock outcrops). Phylogeographic analysis of 73 new mitochondrial DNA sequences (1921 aligned sites) sampled from 68 geographic populations representing 12 recognized species and subspecies diagnoses 16 allopatric or parapatric groupings of populations differing from each other by 5-18% sequence divergence. At least some of these groupings appear to have attained species-level divergence from others. Evolutionary specialization to different macrohabitat types may be a major factor in the evolutionary diversification of Greater Antillean anoles.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 72%

Phylogenetic Analysis of Ecological and Morphological Diversification in Hispaniolan Trunk-Ground Anoles (Anolis Cybotes Group)

et al. 2003

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“…Phylogenetic aspects of antipredator behaviour in accordance with quality of protective armour were explored in lizards and fishes (Mc Lean and Godin 1989;Losos et al 2002). On the other hand, this is the first study of an ontogenetic effect on threat response in armoured animals.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The development of the protective shell affects not only morphological change but also entails changes in habitat use and behaviour (Mc Lean and Godin 1989;Losos et al 2002). Phylogenetic aspects of antipredator behaviour in accordance with quality of protective armour were explored in lizards and fishes (Mc Lean and Godin 1989;Losos et al 2002).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The antipredator behavioural repertoire is determined by various factors. These include morphological characteristics (Mc Lean and Godin 1989;Losos et al 2002;Mima et al 2003) and size and age of the prey individual (Krause et al 1998;Irschick 2000;Shine et al 2000;Roth and Johnson 2004;Creer 2005;Husak 2006;Wohlfahrt et al 2007;Landová et al 2013). Also, many environmental features affect antipredator behaviour such as the intensity of threatening stimuli (Puttlitz et al 1999;Polo-Cavia et al 2008;Ibáñez et al 2014) and availability and distance of refuges (Mc Lean and Godin 1989;Krause et al 1998;.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Ontogenetic shift of antipredator behaviour in Hermann’s tortoises

Golubović

2015

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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Armoured animals generally exhibit two main antipredator responses: They either flee or stay motionless, withdrawn in their protective armour. The transition between these two threat reactions can be affected by the degree of armour sturdiness. Tortoise shell stiffness gradually increases through ontogeny due to ossification. Additionally, neonates do not benefit from parental protection. Thus, juvenile survival could rely strongly on behavioural adaptations. This experimental approach addresses the effects of age (size), morphology, sex and population of origin on the transition between the two strategies. Predator attack was simulated by overturning individuals on their backs. Juveniles displayed bolder threat response comparing to adults. They also spent shorter periods of time withdrawn in shells and inspecting surroundings. Immature tortoises from all localities had high self-righting success, contrary to adults. The deterioration of righting success coincides with age of sexual maturation. Prompt switch from hiding to fleeing strategy in threatened juvenile tortoises implies that natural selection acts strongly on their swiftness and agility. Sexes did not diverge in antipredator displays. Self-righting speed correlated with shell shape in both juveniles and adults. Morphological measurements used in this study affected self-righting speed only in adults. These effects were accompanied with a general negative effect of increase in body size. Further studies should explore how frequency of predator encounters (i.e. experience) shape antipredator behaviour of tortoises. This could have conservation implications, especially for efficient releasing of animals from captive breeding programs.

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“…Consequently, it may not be surprising that in many respects A. eugenegrahami is the most divergent of the aquatic anoles. Moreover, some of A. eugenegrahami's features-long limbs, particularly the forelimb, and a flattened body-are characteristic of lizard species in other families that utilize boulders and rock walls (Losos et al 2002). Thus, A. eugenegrahami seems to use a different structural habitat than the other aquatic anoles and may have evolved different morphological features as adaptations to this different environment.…”

Section: Hypotheses For Lack Of Convergencementioning

confidence: 99%

Lack of Convergence in Aquatic Anolis Lizards

Leal¹,

Knox

Losos

2002

Evolution

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Abstract. Why convergent evolution occurs among some species occupying similar habitats but not among others is a question that has received surprisingly little attention. Caribbean Anolis lizards, known for their extensive convergent evolution among islands in the Greater Antilles, are an appropriate group with which to address this question. Despite the well-documented pattern of between-island convergence, some Greater Antillean anoles are not obviously part of the convergence syndrome. One example involves aquatic anoles-species that are found near to and readily enter streams-which have evolved independently twice in the Caribbean and also twice on mainland Central America. Despite being found in similar habitats, no previous study has investigated whether aquatic anoles represent yet another case of morphological convergence. We tested this hypothesis by collecting morphological data for seven aquatic anole species and 29 species from the six convergent types of Greater Antillean habitat specialists. We failed to find evidence for morphological convergence: the two Caribbean aquatic species are greatly dissimilar to each other and to the Central American species, which, however, may be convergent upon each other. We suggest two possible reasons for this lack of convergence in an otherwise highly convergent system: either there is more than one habitat type occupied by anoles in the proximity of water, or there is more than one way to adapt to a single aquatic habitat. We estimate that almost all of the 113 species of Greater Antillean anoles occupy habitats that are also used by distantly related species, but only 15% of these species are not morphologically similar to their distantly related ecological counterparts. Comparative data from other taxa would help enlighten the question of why the extent of convergence is so great in some lineages and not in others.

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The effect of body armature on escape behaviour in cordylid lizards

Cited by 74 publications

References 29 publications

Phylogenetic Analysis of Ecological and Morphological Diversification in Hispaniolan Trunk-Ground Anoles (Anolis Cybotes Group)

Phylogenetic Analysis of Ecological and Morphological Diversification in Hispaniolan Trunk-Ground Anoles (Anolis Cybotes Group)

Ontogenetic shift of antipredator behaviour in Hermann’s tortoises

Lack of Convergence in Aquatic Anolis Lizards

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