Relative clutch mass of Basiliscus vittatus Wiegmann, 1828 (Squamata, Corytophanidae): female morphological constraints

By

Suárez-Varón, Gabriel
Suárez-Rodríguez, Orlando
Granados-González Gisela
Villagrán-Santa Cruz, Maricela
Gribbins, Kevin M.
Cortez-Quezada, Diego
Hernández-Gallegos Oswaldo

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2019-9-17

Original Publication

Subterranean Biology

Volume

32

Pages

211--219

Subjects

clutch size , Corytophanidae , female morphology , lizard , Reproduction , reproductive effort

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/herpetozoa.32.e35910

 

Abstract

Clutch size (CS) and relative clutch mass (RCM) are considered important features in life history descriptions of species within Squamata. Variations in these two characteristics are caused by both biotic and abiotic factors. The present study provides the first account related to CS and RCM ofBasiliscus vittatusin Mexico within a population that inhabits an open riverbed juxtapositioned to tropical rainforest habitat in Catemaco, Veracruz, Mexico (170 m a.s.l.). Twenty-nine gravid females were collected and kept in captivity under favorable conditions that promote oviposition. The CS within this population was 6.2 ± 0.2 and was correlated positively with snout vent-length (SVL); while the RCM was 0.17 ± 0.006 and was correlated positively with both CS and width of egg. Factors, such as female morphology and environmental conditions, should influence these reproductive traits inB. vittatus. The data collected in this study could provide a framework for comparisons of the life history traits across populations ofB. vittatusin Mexico and within other species of the family Corytophanidae and provide a model for testing how abiotic and biotic factors may influence the CS and RCM in basilisk lizards throughout their range.