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Behavioral and physiological polymorphism in males of the austral lizard Liolaemus sarmientoi

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Abstract

Integrative behavioral studies show that the interplay between individual physiology and social behavior influences the ecology of the species, ultimately affecting individual fitness. Particularly in lizards, color polymorphism is associated with differential behaviors and reproductive strategies, which are evident in mature males during the mating season. Dominant males generally have greater endurance, higher body temperature, and larger bodies than submissive males, so they can acquire and defend larger territories and have greater access to females for mating. We studied whether the color morphs observed in males of one of the world’s southernmost reptiles, Liolaemus sarmientoi, are related to behavioral variation during agonistic interactions, thermal physiology, morphology, and/or locomotor stamina. Liolaemus sarmientoi males exhibit three color morphs: red (RR), red–yellow (RY), and yellow (YY). These lizards exhibit subtle behavioral displays and we did not observe stamina differences among morphs. However, we found that RR males are more aggressive than YY males during agonistic encounters. In addition, greater body temperature change during trials, higher field body temperatures, and greater head sizes of RR males compared to RY or YY indicate that RR is a dominant morph, which may influence their ability to acquire and defend territory and tactics for achieving reproductive success.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Mr. P. J. Rute, Director of Plantas Estables, Santa Cruz Province for providing a place to stay during captures and experiments. We also thank M. Cabral and L. Rodriguez for providing the access to the study site, and E. Kubisch for his helpful comments on statistical analyses. Research permits (N° 09/09 and 013/2012) were obtained from the Wildlife Delegation of Santa Cruz Province, Argentina. This research was supported by the Universidad Nacional del Comahue (CRUB) and the Argentinean Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET, PIP 100271 and RD2702-12), Fondo para la Investigación Científica y Tecnológica (FONCyT) PICT-20143100, and by funding to Sinervo by NSF (IOS-1022031, EF-1241848).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratorio de Ecofisiología e Historia de vida de Reptiles, Departamento de Zoología, Centro Regional Universitario Bariloche, Universidad Nacional del Comahue, INIBIOMA-CONICET, Quintral 1250, 8400, Bariloche, Río Negro, Argentina

    Jimena B. Fernández & Nora R. Ibargüengoytía

  2. Biology Department, State University of New York, College at Oneonta, Oneonta, NY, 13820, USA

    Elizabeth Bastiaans

  3. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia San Juan Bosco, CIEMEP-CONICET, 9200, Esquel, Chubut, Argentina

    Marlin Medina

  4. Laboratorio de Herpetología, Departamento de Zoología, Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 04510, Mexico DF, Mexico

    Fausto R. Méndez De la Cruz

  5. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064, USA

    Barry R. Sinervo

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  1. Jimena B. Fernández
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  2. Elizabeth Bastiaans
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Correspondence to Jimena B. Fernández.

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All applicable international, national and/or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed. All procedures performed in studies involving animals were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institution or practice at which the studies were conducted. This article does not contain any studies with human participants performed by any of the authors.

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Fernández, J.B., Bastiaans, E., Medina, M. et al. Behavioral and physiological polymorphism in males of the austral lizard Liolaemus sarmientoi . J Comp Physiol A 204, 219–230 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-017-1233-1

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