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Is the Evolution of Viviparity Accompanied by a Relative Increase in Maternal Abdomen Size in Lizards?

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Abstract

Female reptiles with viviparous reproduction should leave space for their eggs that reach the maximum mass and volume in the oviducts. Is the evolution of viviparity accompanied by a relative increase in maternal abdomen size, thus allowing viviparous females to increase the amount of space for eggs? To answer this question, we compared morphology and reproductive output between oviparous and viviparous species using three pairs of lizards, which included two Eremias, two Eutropis and two Phrynocephalus species with different reproductive modes. The two lizards in each pair differed morphologically, but were similar in the patterns of sexual dimorphism in abdomen and head sizes and the rates at which reproductive output increased with maternal body and abdomen sizes. Postpartum females were heavier in viviparous species, suggesting that the strategy adopted by females to allocate energy towards competing demands differs between oviparous and viviparous species. Reproductive output was increased in one viviparous species, but decreased in the other two, as compared with congeneric oviparous species. The space requirement for eggs did not differ between oviparous and viviparous females in one species pair, but was greater in viviparous females in the other two pairs greater in relative clutch mass and relative litter mass. In the two Phrynocephalus species, viviparous females produced heavier clutches than did oviparous females not by increasing the relative size of the abdomen, but by being more full of eggs. In none of the three species pairs was the maternal abdomen size greater in the viviparous species after accounting for body size. Our data show that the evolution of viviparity is not accompanied by a relative increase in maternal abdomen size in lizards. Future work could usefully investigate other lineages of lizards to determine whether our results are generalisable to all lizards.

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Acknowledgements

The work was carried out in compliance with the current laws on animal welfare and research in China, and was supported by grants from the Natural Science Foundation of China (30670281, 31060064 and 31071910), Innovative Team Project of Nanjing Normal University (0319PM0902) and Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions (CXLX11_0885 and 2010BS0040) to Ji’s group. We thank Hong Li, Zheng-Cheng Li, Hong-Liang Lu, Li Ma, Qing-Bo Qiu, Zheng Wang, Yan-Qing Wu, Hui-Qin Yin and Zong-Shi Zhou for help during the research.

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  1. Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Biodiversity and Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, 210046, Jiangsu, China

    Yan-Yan Sun, Jing Yang, Tian-Bao Fu & Xiang Ji

  2. Hainan Key Laboratory for Herpetological Research, School of Life Sciences, Qiongzhou University, Wuzhishan, 572200, Hainan, China

    Yu Du & Chi-Xian Lin

  3. Hangzhou Key Laboratory for Animal Adaptation and Evolution, School of Life Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, 310036, Hangzhou, China

    Yan-Yan Sun

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  1. Yan-Yan Sun
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Sun, YY., Du, Y., Yang, J. et al. Is the Evolution of Viviparity Accompanied by a Relative Increase in Maternal Abdomen Size in Lizards?. Evol Biol 39, 388–399 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11692-012-9166-7

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