Cannibalism in the Andean lizard <i>Liolaemus orientalis</i>

Jiménez-Robles, Octavio; Riva, Ignacio De la

doi:10.1080/01650521.2017.1356051

Cited by 3 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…In our case, even when considering the thermal requirements of pregnant females, restriction hours did not show significant negative effect on the distribution and abundance of any of the studied Liolaemus species, although they had a non‐significant negative effect on L. orientalis . This finding is not surprising for these populations of L. orientalis as they are within the lowest latitudes of the species distribution range (Jiménez‐Robles & De la Riva, ). At the same time, the exposure to Föhn effect has a positive effect on the abundances of L. orientalis , suggesting a preference for areas with high air humidity.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 68%

“…Competition with more thermophilous species has also been hypothesized as a threat for some mountain lizards (Sinervo et al, ). This is unlikely to impair L. orientalis , as their adults are the largest lizards in the area, and they are known to predate on smaller lizards (Jiménez‐Robles & De la Riva, ). Certainly, only a few specimens of L. puna and L. ornatus were found in syntopy with L. orientalis , suggesting that they might avoid these areas where L. orientalis could predate on them or their juveniles.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The known lizard fauna in the Tajzara Basin consists of: Liolaemus ornatus (Muñoz, ; Tarifa, Aparicio, & Yensen, ), Liolaemus puna (Aguayo, Valdivia, & Rivera, ), Liolaemus orientalis (Jiménez‐Robles & De la Riva, ) and an undescribed species of the Liolaemus montanus series (I. De la Riva, unpublished).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Lizards in the mist: Thermal niches constrained by habitat and microclimates in the Andes of southern Bolivia

Jiménez-Robles

Riva

2019

Journal of Biogeography

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Aim To understand how the activity budgets of ectotherms vary in mountain areas with high microclimatic and habitat heterogeneity, and how these factors together with habitat modulate the assemblage of ectotherm communities. Location Tajzara Basin, Cordillera de Sama (3,600–4,300 m a.s.l.), Department of Tarija, Bolivia. Taxon Four lizard species of the genus Liolaemus. Methods After parameterizing the thermal physiology of each species and recording operative temperature time series with dataloggers, we calculated activity budgets for every species across 30 sampling sites. By multimodel inference we evaluated how activity budgets varied across the topography. We also assessed how abundances of each species were predicted by activity budgets, restriction time, temperature deviation, habitat covers and exposure to cold microclimate. Results Activity budgets were not only influenced by elevation but also by the exposure to cold air that comes through saddles from the eastern side of the mountain divide. Although thermal physiological parameters were relatively similar among the species, their abundances were conditioned to different extents by activity budgets, habitat and microclimates. Main conclusions The abundance and distribution of each species across these lizard communities reflect the microclimatic heterogeneity originated by complex topography, which uncouples activity budgets from elevation. Only one species was confined to cold microclimate refugia with higher exposure to Föhn effect. Despite having a relatively similar thermal aspect of fundamental niches, lizards may differ in their realized niches by habitat selection. Habitat specialization could compromise the persistence of some species under global warming by reducing the dispersal possibilities to certain areas where population sustainability might be impaired in the long term. Understanding the heterogeneity of microclimates and habitats and the physiology of the species partially explains their distribution at local scale, and provides insights on how to best confront upcoming climate change effects.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 68%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Lizards in the mist: Thermal niches constrained by habitat and microclimates in the Andes of southern Bolivia

Jiménez-Robles

Riva

2019

Journal of Biogeography

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“…These lizards have rapidly diversified across a range of climates that mirror the climatic range occupied by all living lizards combined [ 37 , 38 ]. As a result, liolaemids have evolved a wide range of dietary adaptations from strictly herbivores and carnivore specialists, to broadly generalists that even include cannibalism [ 39 , 40 ]. Espinoza et al [ 25 ] analyzed the recurrence and faster rate of herbivory in liolaemid lizards, revealing that these species break the ecophysiological rules of reptilian herbivory because they are small bodied and live in cool climates.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolutionary transitions in diet influence the exceptional diversification of a lizard adaptive radiation

et al. 2022

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Background Diet is a key component of a species ecological niche and plays critical roles in guiding the trajectories of evolutionary change. Previous studies suggest that dietary evolution can influence the rates and patterns of species diversification, with omnivorous (animal and plant, ‘generalist’) diets slowing down diversification compared to more restricted (‘specialist’) herbivorous and carnivorous diets. This hypothesis, here termed the “dietary macroevolutionary sink” hypothesis (DMS), predicts that transitions to omnivorous diets occur at higher rates than into any specialist diet, and omnivores are expected to have the lowest diversification rates, causing an evolutionary sink into a single type of diet. However, evidence for the DMS hypothesis remains conflicting. Here, we present the first test of the DMS hypothesis in a lineage of ectothermic tetrapods—the prolific Liolaemidae lizard radiation from South America. Results Ancestral reconstructions suggest that the stem ancestor was probably insectivorous. The best supported trait model is a diet-dependent speciation rate, with independent extinction rates. Herbivory has the highest net diversification rate, omnivory ranks second, and insectivory has the lowest. The extinction rate is the same for all three diet types and is much lower than the speciation rates. The highest transition rate was from omnivory to insectivory, and the lowest transition rates were between insectivory and herbivory. Conclusions Our findings challenge the core prediction of the DMS hypothesis that generalist diets represent an ‘evolutionary sink’. Interestingly, liolaemid lizards have rapidly and successfully proliferated across some of the world’s coldest climates (at high elevations and latitudes), where species have evolved mixed arthropod-plant (omnivore) or predominantly herbivore diets. This longstanding observation is consistent with the higher net diversification rates found in both herbivory and omnivory. Collectively, just like the evolution of viviparity has been regarded as a ‘key adaptation’ during the liolaemid radiation across cold climates, our findings suggest that transitions from insectivory to herbivory (bridged by omnivory) are likely to have played a role as an additional key adaptation underlying the exceptional diversification of these reptiles across extreme climates.

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