Functional basis for sexual differences in bite force in the lizard Anolis carolinensis

Herrel, Anthony; McBrayer, Lance D.; Larson, Peter M.

doi:10.1111/j.1095-8312.2007.00772.x

Cited by 110 publications

(148 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…We predicted that limiting the amount of resources available for acquisition would hamper the development and expression of bite force in male lizards raised to sexual maturity, given the putative developmental costs of producing the robust heads and jaw adductor muscles necessary for generating high male bite forces [44]. By contrast, we posit that dewlap development would not suffer a decrement given that the relative costs of dewlap development in terms of size are likely to be much less.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

A performance-based cost to honest signalling in male green anole lizards (Anolis carolinensis)

2012

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Sexual signals are considered costly to produce and maintain under the handicap paradigm, and the reliability of signals is in turn thought to be maintained by these costs. Although previous studies have investigated the costly nature of signal production, few have considered whether honesty might be maintained not by the costliness of the signal itself, but by the costs involved in producing the signalled trait. If such a trait is itself costly to produce, then the burden of energetic investment may fall disproportionately on that trait, in addition to any costs of signal maintenance that may also be operating. Under limited resource conditions, these costs may therefore be great enough to disrupt an otherwise reliable signal-to-trait relationship. We present experimental evidence showing that dietary restriction decouples the otherwise honest relationship between a signal (dewlap size) and a whole-organism performance trait (bite force) in young adult male Anolis carolinensis lizards. Specifically, while investment in dewlap size is sustained under low-resource condition relative to the high-resource treatment, investment in bite force is substantially lower. Disruption of the otherwise honest dewlap size to bite force relationship is therefore driven by costs associated with the expression of performance rather than the costs of signal production in A. carolinensis .

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

A performance-based cost to honest signalling in male green anole lizards (Anolis carolinensis)

2012

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“…Sexual differences in head size are associated with sexual differences in bite force (Herrel et al, 2006). Lizards that are larger and that have wider and longer heads bite harder (Herrel et al, 2006).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sexual dimorphism in Trachylepis vittata (Olivier, 1804) (Sauria: Scincidae) in the Zagros Mountains, western Iran

Rastegar–Pouyani¹,

Fattahi²

2015

Turk J Zool

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We describe sexual dimorphism in coloration, size, and shape in 48 specimens (19 males and 29 females) of the bridled skink, Trachylepis vittata (Olivier, 1804), collected from western regions of the Iranian Plateau. For the analyses, we used 29 metric and 9 meristic characters. Our study showed the existence of slight sexual size dimorphism in body and head size between the sexes. Males had significantly smaller heads and narrower bodies than females. Furthermore, males and females were different in the structure of the cloaca. The possible scenarios behind sexual dimorphism in this lizard are discussed.

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“…Males from the warmer tropical latitudes had significantly wider, stouter heads than males from the cooler subtropical latitudes that had little to no sex-specific variation with both sexes generally exhibiting narrower, longer heads. Head shape dimorphism in other lizard species has been associated with distinct differences in the skull shape between males and females in conjunction with an enlargement of the jaw adductor muscles in males (Herrel et al, 2007b). The presence of positive allometry when studying exaggerated traits in males is generally used as evidence that the trait is under sexual selection, and therefore demonstrates the importance of the trait as a weapon or ornament used during mate acquisition (Emlen and Oring, 1977;Lande, 1980;Berglund et al, 1996;Lappin and Husak, 2005;Bonduriansky, 2007;Irschick et al, 2007;Husak et al, 2011b;Painting and Holwell, 2013).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Even among males of similar body length, the successful individuals of male-male combat might have greater body robustness or improved whole-organism performance (Lappin et al, 2006;Herrel et al, 2007b;Cameron et al, 2013). Whole-organism performance can equally be targeted by sexual selection Huyghe et al, 2013), with morphological advantages developing secondarily to sex-specific optimum performance traits.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Bite force performance is best predicted by head shape and body size and is frequently associated with increased dominance in lizards (Lailvaux et al, 2004;Huyghe et al, 2005;Lappin and Husak, 2005;Husak et al, 2006b;Herrel et al, 2007b). We found that male H. frenatus had a consistently greater bite force capacity than females for all populations, however relative bite force (corrected for SVL) did not systematically co-vary with latitude as per head shape.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sex-specific variation in morphology and performance in the Asian house gecko

Cameron¹

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Ever since Darwin's theory of sexual selection was first published, understanding the evolutionary mechanisms that lead to sex-specific traits and quantifying patterns therein has been a large focus of evolutionary ecologists. Sexual variation in phenotypes in form and function is ubiquitous in nature, and its extent varies widely, within closely related groups and even species. Understanding patterns and the circumstances under which sexually divergent phenotypes evolve requires an understanding of both the proximate and evolutionary mechanisms involved. While studies have primarily focused on sex-specific morphological traits such as size and secondary trait dimorphism, less attention has been given to the functional differences between the sexes. From an evolutionary perspective, sexspecific traits result from many factors that act differentially on each sex, modifying phenotypic and behavioural components that influence the capacity of fulfilling reproductive roles. Therefore, sexual selection alone does not define the magnitude of phenotypic divergence between the sexes, but it is rather the interplay between sexual and natural selection and their interactions with the environment. Intraspecific studies investigating associations between form and function of sexspecific traits provide a useful tool to understand the fundamental mechanisms that lead to the evolution of complex traits in males and females. The overall aim of this thesis was to gain a better understanding of the evolutionary mechanisms that drive patterns in sex-specific phenotypes, using a territorial gecko species (Hemidactylus frenatus) distributed over a large latitudinal cline.The first aim of this thesis was to examine the potential trade-offs between performance functions associated with reproductive success and to test whether compensatory mechanisms may obscure the detection of such costs (Chapter 2). Fighting capacity and escape performance of male H. frenatus are likely to pose conflicting demands on the optimum phenotype for each task. Highly territorial and aggressive males may require greater investment in head size/strength but such an enhancement may reduce overall escape performance. To test this idea, the second aim (also in Chapter 2) was to determine the role of morphological and functional traits in determining the outcome of male-male combat (reproductive success) and prey-capture ability (survivorship).Among male geckos, I found that larger head size resulted in greater biting capacity, but at a cost of reduced spring performance. Females, however, showed no evidence of this trade-off. The sex specificity of this trade-off suggests that the sexes differ in their optimal strategies for dealing with the conflicting requirements of bite force and sprint speed. Unlike males, female H. frenatus had a positive association between hind-limb length and head size, suggesting that they have utilised a compensatory mechanism to alleviate the possible locomotor costs of larger head sizes. It appears that there is greater sel...

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Functional basis for sexual differences in bite force in the lizard Anolis carolinensis

Cited by 110 publications

References 52 publications

A performance-based cost to honest signalling in male green anole lizards (Anolis carolinensis)

A performance-based cost to honest signalling in male green anole lizards (Anolis carolinensis)

Sexual dimorphism in Trachylepis vittata (Olivier, 1804) (Sauria: Scincidae) in the Zagros Mountains, western Iran

Sex-specific variation in morphology and performance in the Asian house gecko

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