| dietary constraints can preclude the expression of an honest chemical sexual signal. | identifying the factors that underlie signal divergences remains challenging in studies of animal communication. regarding the chemical signalling, different compounds can be found in some species but be absent in others. we hypothesized that if the costs that are associated with the expression of some compounds are too high, their presence in the signal may be restricted. however, these compounds may be expressed and be functional when those costs are relaxed. vitamin e (α-tocopherol), a dietar ... | 2017 | 28729717 |
| random sampling of squamate reptiles in spanish natural reserves reveals the presence of novel adenoviruses in lacertids (family lacertidae) and worm lizards (amphisbaenia). | here, we report the results of a large-scale pcr survey on the prevalence and diversity of adenoviruses (advs) in samples collected randomly from free-living reptiles. on the territories of the guadarrama mountains national park in central spain and of the chafarinas islands in north africa, cloacal swabs were taken from 318 specimens of eight native species representing five squamate reptilian families. the healthy-looking animals had been captured temporarily for physiological and ethological ... | 2016 | 27399970 |
| behavioral buffering of global warming in a cold-adapted lizard. | alpine lizards living in restricted areas might be particularly sensitive to climate change. we studied thermal biology of iberolacerta cyreni in high mountains of central spain. our results suggest that i. cyreni is a cold-adapted thermal specialist and an effective thermoregulator. among ectotherms, thermal specialists are more threatened by global warming than generalists. alpine lizards have no chance to disperse to new suitable habitats. in addition, physiological plasticity is unlikely to ... | 2016 | 27386098 |
| responses of female rock lizards to multiple scent marks of males: effects of male age, male density and scent over-marking. | scent-marked substrates may inform conspecifics on the characteristics of territorial males. scent-marks of male carpetan rock lizards (iberolacerta cyreni) affect space use of females, which by selecting an area may increase the probability of mating with the male that has scent-marked that area. however, males do not hold exclusive territories, and scent-marks of different individual males are often together. this may provide complex information from multiple sources on the social structure. h ... | 2013 | 23328623 |
| supplementation of male pheromone on rock substrates attracts female rock lizards to the territories of males: a field experiment. | many animals produce elaborated sexual signals to attract mates, among them are common chemical sexual signals (pheromones) with an attracting function. lizards produce chemical secretions for scent marking that may have a role in sexual selection. in the laboratory, female rock lizards (iberolacerta cyreni) prefer the scent of males with more ergosterol in their femoral secretions. however, it is not known whether the scent-marks of male rock lizards may actually attract females to male territo ... | 2012 | 22253895 |
| competition with wall lizards does not explain the alpine confinement of iberian rock lizards: an experimental approach. | interspecific competition can limit the distribution of species along altitudinal gradients. it has been suggested that western european rock lizards (genus iberolacerta) are restricted to mountains due to the expansion of wall lizards (podarcis), but there is no experimental evidence to corroborate this hypothesis. this study examines if interference competition with podarcis muralis is a plausible explanation for the alpine confinement of iberian rock lizards iberolacerta cyreni. in a first ex ... | 2010 | 20934315 |
| condition-dependent pheromone signaling by male rock lizards: more oily scents are more attractive. | pheromones of vertebrates are often a mixture of several chemicals with different properties and messages, and their production seems condition dependent. thus, pheromones are a good, but little studied, example of multiple sexual signals. femoral gland secretions of male rock lizards iberolacerta cyreni contain steroids that may act as pheromones, but there are also many other lipids, such as oleic acid, whose allocation to secretions may be costly because it has to be diverted from body fat re ... | 2010 | 20176683 |
| increased predation risk modifies lizard scent-mark chemicals. | variation in environmental factors plays a central role on organisms' physiological changes. however, the physiological response to predation risk has rarely been investigated in reptiles. chemical senses are important for intraspecific communication in squamate reptiles. in male lizards iberolacerta cyreni the maintenance of relative proportions of lipids in femoral gland secretions is costly, which may ensure honest signalling of quality. we hypothesized that increased predation risk should co ... | 2008 | 18512750 |
| pregnant female lizards iberolacerta cyreni adjust refuge use to decrease thermal costs for their body condition and cell-mediated immune response. | lizards often respond to increased predation risk by increasing refuge use, but this strategy may entail a loss of thermoregulatory opportunities, which may lead to a loss of body condition. this may be especially important for pregnant oviparous female lizards, because they need to maintain optimal body temperatures as long as possible to maximize developmental embryos rate until laying. however, little is known about how increased time spent at low temperatures in refuges affects body conditio ... | 2007 | 17152091 |
| refuge use: a conflict between avoiding predation and losing mass in lizards. | prey often respond to predation risk by increasing refuge use, but this strategy may entail a loss of body condition. factors responsible for this loss of body condition remain unclear. also how prey deal with refuge use to cope with predation risk without incurring costs of body condition, and how initial body condition affects refuge use remain barely known. we analyzed in the field whether adult iberolacerta cyreni lizards modify their escape strategies and refuge use in areas with different ... | 2007 | 17109901 |
| chemical compounds from femoral gland secretions of male iberian rock lizards, lacerta monticola cyreni. | in spite of the importance of chemoreception and chemical signals in the social organization of lizards, there are only a few studies examining the chemical composition of secretions of lizards used for scent marking. the secretion of the femoral glands of male iberian rock lizards (lacerta monticola cyreni) contains 44 lipophilic compounds, including several steroids (mainly cholesterol), and n-c6 to n-c22 carboxylic acids, and minor components such as esters of carboxylic acids, alcohols, squa ... | 2009 | 16163841 |
| relationship between oxidative stress and sexual coloration of lizards depends on thermal habitat. | sexual signals serve as an honest indicator of individual quality, reflecting either developmental and/or maintenance costs. a possible underlying physiological mechanism is oxidative stress, which could mediate energy trade-offs between sexual signals and other quality traits. in ectotherms, thermal performance acts as a key indicator of individual quality and influence signal intensity. we investigated how oxidative state is reflected in visual signals of lizards from different thermal habitat ... | 2019 | 31612286 |
| linking behavioral thermoregulation, boldness, and individual state in male carpetan rock lizards. | mechanisms affecting consistent interindividual behavioral variation (i.e., animal personality) are of wide scientific interest. in poikilotherms, ambient temperature is one of the most important environmental factors with a direct link to a variety of fitness-related traits. recent empirical evidence suggests that individual differences in boldness are linked to behavioral thermoregulation strategy in heliothermic species, as individuals are regularly exposed to predators during basking. here, ... | 2020 | 33005378 |
| plasticity of haemoglobin concentration and thermoregulation in a mountain lizard. | the plastic capability of species to cope with the new conditions created by climate change is poorly understood. this is particularly relevant for organisms restricted to high elevations because they are adapted to cold temperatures and low oxygen availability. therefore, evaluating trait plasticity of mountain specialists is fundamental to understand their vulnerability to environmental change. we transplanted mountain lizards, iberolacerta cyreni, 800 m downhill to evaluate the plastic respon ... | 2020 | 32888560 |
| maternal diet affects juvenile carpetan rock lizard performance and personality. | differences in both stable and labile state variables are known to affect the emergence and maintenance of consistent interindividual behavioral variation (animal personality or behavioral syndrome), especially when experienced early in life. variation in environmental conditions experienced by gestating mothers (viz. nongenetic maternal effects) is known to have significant impact on offspring condition and behavior; yet, their effect on behavioral consistency is not clear. here, by applying an ... | 2019 | 31938534 |