Notes on the pattern of head size in the Philippine Spotted Flying Lizard, Draco spilopterus (Weigmann, 1834), within Luzon Biogeographic Region, Philippines

By

Tabug, Michael A.
Necesito, Levy V.
Diesmos, Arvin C

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2023-10-20

Original Publication

Herpetozoa

Volume

36

Pages

289--296

Subjects

flying lizard , head size , Luzon Island , Luzon Island , morphological variation , Reptile

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/herpetozoa.36.e90412

 

Abstract

Sexual head dimorphism is a condition where head morphology of male and female of the same species differ, which provides an additional way to recognise sex for species identification. Fifty four adult Philippine Spotted Flying Lizards, Draco spilopterus, were examined from four populations in the Luzon Island, Philippines to assess whether head morphometry can drive sexual dimorphism. We identified the sex and measured five morphometric measurements of the head (jaw length, jaw width, head height, head length, head width) and snout-vent length. A univariate analysis of the five morphometric measurements showed clear sexual dimorphism. Considering all individuals, female heads are significantly larger than those of males (all p-values < 0.05). We also revealed major differences in head size amongst the four populations due to their geographical location and habitat differences.