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opencc-by-4.0Jan 2003View details →

Figure 7 in A multivariate analysis of the fringe-toed lizards of the Acanthodactylus scutellatus group (Squamata: Lacertidae): systematic and biogeographical implications

Figure 7. Number of longitudinal rows of ventral scales for different geographical samples of Acanthodactylus dumerili.

opencc-by-4.0Jan 2003View details →

Figure 11 in A multivariate analysis of the fringe-toed lizards of the Acanthodactylus scutellatus group (Squamata: Lacertidae): systematic and biogeographical implications

Figure 11. (a) Acanthodactylus scutellatus audouini, male, lectotype, BMNH 1923.1.20.3006, Wadi El Kreil (Tunisia), dorsal view of specimen. (b) A. s. audouini, female, paralectotype of Acanthodactylus scutellatus var. audouini, BMNH 97.10.28.319, Wadi Halfa (Sudan).

Figure 5 in Phylogenetic relationships of a new genus and species of microteiid lizard from the Atlantic forest of north-eastern Brazil (Squamata, Gymnophthalmidae)

Figure 5. Single most parsimonious tree recovered from analyses of: (A) morphology (L = 86, CI = 0.60, RI = 0.72) and (B) combined morphology and molecular partitions (L = 2413, CI = 0.54, RI = 0.44). Numbers above and below branches represent bootstrap (> 50%) and total Bremer indexes, respectively. The internal nodes are numbered (circles) and support indexes are listed in detail for each node (Table 2). The inset includes Dryadosaura nordestina and its sister taxon.

Figure 4 in Phylogenetic relationships of a new genus and species of microteiid lizard from the Atlantic forest of north-eastern Brazil (Squamata, Gymnophthalmidae)

Figure 4. Right hand (A), right foot (B), shoulder girdle (C), hyoid (D), and pelvic girdle (E) of Dryadosaura nordestina (MZUSP 93422). Scale bars = 1 mm.

Figure 2 in Phylogenetic relationships of a new genus and species of microteiid lizard from the Atlantic forest of north-eastern Brazil (Squamata, Gymnophthalmidae)

Figure 2. Sulcate (A) and asulcate (B) face of the right hemipenis of Dryadosaura nordestina (MZUSP 65983). Scale bars = 1 mm.

Figure 1 in Phylogenetic relationships of a new genus and species of microteiid lizard from the Atlantic forest of north-eastern Brazil (Squamata, Gymnophthalmidae)

Figure 1. Dorsal (A), ventral (B), and lateral (C) view of the head of the holotype of Dryadosaura nordestina (MZUSP 60635). Scale bars = 1 mm.

Figure 3 in Phylogenetic relationships of a new genus and species of microteiid lizard from the Atlantic forest of north-eastern Brazil (Squamata, Gymnophthalmidae)

Figure 3. Dorsal (A) and ventral (B) view of the skull of Dryadosaura nordestina (MZUSP 93422). Scale bars = 1 mm.

opencc-zeroNov 2022View details →

Data for: Wild microbiomes of striped plateau lizards vary with sex, body size, and reproductive season

Long-term natural studies are valuable for examining the effects of host demographics and environmental factors on animal microbiomes, and how those effects interact and shift over time. We examined how the cloacal microbiome of Sceloporus virgatus (the striped plateau lizard) varies under natural conditions in southeastern Arizona, USA, in a multi-year study. Cloacal swabs were collected from wild-caught lizards across their entire active season over three years. Analyses of 16S rRNA data generated on the Illumina platform revealed cloacal microbiomes of S. virgatus vary as a function of sex, season, size, and reproductive state, and do so independently of one another. Briefly, microbial diversity was higher in females than in males, increased with body size, was lowest in both sexes during the reproductive season, and was lowest in females when they were vitellogenic. It was not significantly affected by hibernation. This study highlights the importance of long term, wide scale microbiome studies for capturing accurate perspectives on microbiome diversity and composition in a given species. It also serves as a warning for comparisons of microbiomes across species, as each may be under a different suite of selective pressures from external or innate factors, which may differ in a species-specific manner.

opencc-zeroNov 2022View details →

Initiation of speciation across multiple dimensions in a rock-restricted, tropical lizard

Population isolation and concomitant genetic divergence, resulting in strong phylogeographic structure, is a core aspect of speciation initiation. If and how speciation then proceeds and ultimately completes depends on multiple factors that mediate reproductive isolation, including divergence in genomes, ecology, and mating traits. Here we explored these multiple dimensions in two young (Plio-Pleistocene) species complexes of gekkonid lizards (Heteronotia) from the Kimberley–Victoria River regions of tropical Australia. Using mtDNA screening and exon capture phylogenomics, we show that the rock-restricted H. planiceps exhibits exceptional fine-scale phylogeographic structure compared to the co-distributed habitat generalist H. binoei. This indicates pervasive population isolation and persistence in the rock-specialist, and thus a high rate of speciation initiation across this geographically complex region, with levels of genomic divergence spanning the "grey zone" of speciation. Proximal lineages of H. planiceps were often separated by different rock substrates suggesting a potential role for ecological isolation; however, phylogenetic incongruence and historical introgression were inferred between one such pair. Eco-morphological divergence among lineages within both H. planiceps and H. binoei was limited, except that limestone-restricted lineages of H. planiceps tended to be larger than rock-generalists. By contrast, among-lineage divergence in the chemical composition of epidermal pore secretions (putative mating trait) exceeded eco-morphology in both complexes, but with less trait overlap among lineages in H. planiceps. This system — particularly the rock-specialist H. planiceps — highlights the role of multidimensional divergence during incipient speciation, with divergence in genomes, eco-morphology, and chemical signals all at play at very fine spatial scales.

opencc-by-4.0Dec 2022View details →

Analyses for: Genome-wide parallelism underlies contemporary adaptation in urban lizards

R scripts and data files for all analyses and visualizations in "Genome-wide parallelism underlies contemporary adaptation in urban lizards" (Winchell et al., 2023, PNAS) R scripts as R-markdown code files in 3 parts are executable with files in datafiles compressed folder. R markdown files also exported as PDF's in 3 parts with code output.

opencc-zeroJan 2023View details →

Cloacal microbiomes of sympatric and allopatric Sceloporus lizards vary with environment and host relatedness

Animals and their microbiomes exert reciprocal influence; the host's environment, physiology, and phylogeny can impact the composition of the microbiome, while the microbes present can affect host behavior, health, and fitness. While some microbiomes are highly malleable, specialized microbiomes that provide important functions can be more robust to environmental perturbations. Recent evidence suggests Sceloporus virgatus has one such specialized microbiome, which functions to protect eggs from fungal pathogens during incubation. Here, we examine the cloacal microbiome of three different Sceloporus species (spiny lizards; Family Phrynosomatidae) – Sceloporus virgatus, Sceloporus jarrovii, and Sceloporus occidentalis. We compare two species with different reproductive modes (oviparous vs. viviparous) living in sympatry: S. virgatus and S. jarrovii. We compare sister species living in similar habitats (riparian oak-pine woodlands) but different latitudes: S. virgatus and S. occidentalis. And, we compare three populations of one species (S. occidentalis) living in different habitat types: beach, low-elevation forest, and the riparian woodland. We found differences in beta diversity metrics between all three comparisons, although those differences were more extreme between animals in different environments, even though those populations were more closely related. Similarly, alpha diversity varied among the S. occidentalis populations and between S. occidentalis and S. virgatus, but not between sympatric S. virgatus and S. jarrovii. Despite these differences, all three species and all three populations of S. occcidentalis had the same dominant taxon, Enterobacteriaceae. The majority of the variation between groups was in low abundance taxa and at the ASV level, and responded to habitat differences, geographic distance, and host relatedness. Understanding wild microbiomes and factors that influence their composition is important to understanding the ecology and evolution of the host animals.

Fig. 4. Predicted suitable habitats for S in Discovery of a new crocodile lizard population in Vietnam: Population trends, future prognoses and identification of key habitats for conservation

Fig. 4. Predicted suitable habitats for S. crocodilurus in the period between 2020 to 2080, based on bioclimatic data and elevation. Habitat suitability increases from yellow to dark brown.

Fig. 5 in Discovery of a new crocodile lizard population in Vietnam: Population trends, future prognoses and identification of key habitats for conservation

Fig. 5. Predicted suitable habitats throughout the distribution range of S. crocodilurus in northern Vietnam, using combined vegetation, bioclimatic and elevation data. Red squares indicate recommended priority areas for habitat conservation (bottom left: proposed corridor to link two existing reserves; top right: proposed reserve to be established in the future).

Fig. 3 in Discovery of a new crocodile lizard population in Vietnam: Population trends, future prognoses and identification of key habitats for conservation

Fig. 3. Observed population structure of Vietnamese S. crocodilurus from 2010 to 2015. Photos M. van Schingen.

Fig. 2 in Discovery of a new crocodile lizard population in Vietnam: Population trends, future prognoses and identification of key habitats for conservation

Fig. 2. Population trends of S. crocodilurus in Vietnam from 2010 to 2015. (A) Estimated total population sizes in Vietnam. (B) Observed total subpopulation sizes. (C) Observed effective subpopulation sizes. Arrows indicate trend lines.

opencc-zeroDec 2021View details →

Desert lizard diversity worldwide: Effects of environment, time, and evolutionary rate

Aim: Biodiversity is not uniformly distributed across the Earth's surface, even among physiographically comparable biomes in different biogeographic regions. For lizards, the world's large desert regions are characterized by extreme heterogeneity in species richness, spanning some of the most species-rich (arid Australia) and species-poor (central Asia) biomes overall. Regional differences in species diversity may arise as a consequence of the interplay of several factors (e.g., evolutionary time, diversification rate, environment), but their relative importance for biogeographic patterns remains poorly known. Here we use distributional and phylogenetic data to assess the evolutionary and ecological drivers of large-scale variation in desert lizard diversity. Location: Deserts worldwide. Major taxa studied: Lizards (non-snake squamates). Methods: We specifically test whether diversity patterns are best explained by differences in the ages of arid-adapted lineages (evolutionary time hypothesis), by regional variation in speciation rate, by geographic area of the arid systems, and by spatial variation related to the environment (climate, topography, and productivity). Results: We found no effect of recent speciation rate and geographic area on differences in desert lizard diversity. We demonstrate that the extreme species richness of the Australian deserts cannot be explained by greater evolutionary time, because species began accumulating more recently there than in more species-poor arid regions. We found limited support for relationships between regional lizard richness and environmental variables, but these effects were inconsistent across deserts, showing a differential role of the environment in shaping the lizard diversity in different arid regions. Main conclusions: Our results provide evidence against several classic hypotheses for interregional variation in species richness, but also highlight the complexity of processes underlying vertebrate community richness in the world's great arid systems.

opencc-zeroDec 2022View details →

Sand lizards (Lacerta agilis) decrease nymphal infection prevalence for tick-borne pathogens Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato and Anaplasma phagocytophilum in a coastal dune ecosystem

1. Understanding which factors determine tick-borne disease hazard can contribute to effective disease control. In Europe, the hazard of the pathogens Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. and Anaplasma phagocytophilum is determined by local tick densities (mainly Ixodes ricinus) and the reservoir competence of the host species community. Sand lizards (Lacerta agilis) are common hosts for larvae and nymphs of I. ricinus and non-competent reservoirs for both pathogens. Consequently, high relative abundance of L. agilis is hypothesized to be associated with lower infection prevalence in nymphs. Here, we aimed to test whether this effectively occurs in natural settings. 2. We sampled different habitat types within a heterogenous dune landscape at the Dutch coast and estimated 1) L. agilis densities, 2) host community competence, 3) the density and infection prevalence of questing I. ricinus ticks, and 4) the number and infection prevalence of ticks feeding on L. agilis. 3. Captured L. agilis had high tick burdens and contributed substantially to feeding I. ricinus larvae in their natural habitat. B. burgdorferi s.l. and A. phagocytophilum were virtually absent from feeding larvae and nymphs. 4. The nymphal infection prevalence of both pathogens in questing ticks was lower in habitat types where L. agilis was more abundant. Hence, L. agilis strongly reduced community competence. 5. The density of questing nymphs was higher in habitat types with denser vegetation and also varied more between habitat types than infection prevalence. As a result, nymphal density had a stronger effect on the density of infected ticks than did nymphal infection prevalence. 6. Synthesis and applications. Coastal dune habitats favourable for L. agilis have lower densities of questing nymphs, and a lower human infection hazard. These results might be applicable to similar ecosystems where L. agilis is present. From a public health perspective, this underlines the importance of preserving early successional habitat, as encroaching shrubs are associated with higher tick-borne disease hazard, and vegetation removal might be a solution to reduce hazard in coastal dunes. The high degree of spatial heterogeneity in the abundance of tick-borne pathogens also poses opportunities to manage recreational activities to limit human exposure to tick-borne diseases.

opencc-zeroMar 2023View details →

Complex patterns of diversification in the gray zone of speciation: Model-based approaches applied to Patagonian liolaemid lizards (Squamata: Liolaemus kingii clade)

In this study, we detangled the evolutionary history of the Patagonian lizard clade Liolaemus kingii, coupling dense geographic sampling and novel computational analytical approaches. We analyzed nuclear and mitochondrial data (restriction DNA sequencing and cytochrome b) to hypothesize and evaluate species limits, phylogenetic relationships, and demographic histories. We also conducted posterior predictive simulations to assess the fit of the genomic data to the multispecies coalescent model. Our results show several instances of mito-nuclear discordance and consistent support for a reticulated history, supporting the view that the complex evolutionary history of the kingii clade is characterized by extensive gene flow and rapid diversification events. We discuss our findings in the contexts of the "gray zone" of speciation, phylogeographic patterns in the Patagonian region, and taxonomic outcomes.

opencc-zeroApr 2023View details →

Data for: Body size and substrate use affect ventral, but not dorsal, brightness evolution in lizards

Substrate properties can affect the thermal balance of organisms, and the colored integument, alongside other factors, may influence heat transfer via differential absorption and reflection. Dark coloration may lead to higher heat absorption and could be advantageous when substrates are cool (and vice versa for bright coloration), but these effects are rarely investigated. Here, we examined the effect of substrate reflectance, specific heat capacity (cp), and body size on the dorso-ventral brightness using 276 samples from 12 species of cordylid lizards distributed across 26 sites in South Africa. We predicted, and found, that bright ventral colors occur more frequently in low cp (i.e. drier, with little energy needed for temperature change) substrates, especially in larger body-sized individuals, possibly to better modulate heat transfer with the surrounding environment. By contrast, dorsal brightness was not associated with body size nor any substrate thermal property, suggesting selection pressures other than thermoregulation. Ancestral estimation and evolutionary rate analyses suggest that ventral brightness rapidly differentiated within the Cordylinae starting 25 Mya, coinciding with an aridification period, further hinting at a thermoregulatory role for ventral colors. Our study indicates that substrate properties can have a direct role in shaping the evolution of ventral brightness in ectotherms.