Too cool to fight: Is ambient temperature associated with male aggressive behavior in the mesquite lizard?

Abstract

Aggressive behavior is performed in the context of intraspecific competition for gaining access to mates, food, or suitable territories. However, aggressive confrontations may divert time and energy from other important activities and increase the likelihood of suffering physical injury or predation. Aggressive behavior is particularly costly for ectotherms because it may reduce the time available for thermoregulation, which is a time‐consuming activity but indispensable for adequate maintenance of metabolic processes. In this study, we analyzed the long‐term effect of the thermal quality (i.e. the degree of discrepancy between the temperatures available in a given environment and temperatures that animals prefer) on the aggressive behavior of the mesquite lizard Sceloporus grammicus. Our hypothesis was that time allocated to aggressive behavior in low thermal quality environments is diverted from time spent on the acquisition and maintenance of an adequate body temperature. Accordingly, we found that lizards from the low thermal quality location (i.e. low environmental temperature) exhibited less aggressive behavior than those captured in middle and high thermal quality locations. Our results show that in the low thermal quality location aggressive behavior was almost absent, suggesting that this behavior may interfere with the acquisition and maintenance of an adequate body temperature. Therefore, it is likely that the benefits of thermoregulation outweigh those of aggressive behavior at low thermal quality locations.

Environmental and anthropogenic factors mediating the functional connectivity of the mesquite lizard along the eastern Trans‐Mexican Volcanic Belt

“…The mesquite lizard experiences different environmental conditions across its wide geographic distribution, which have promoted morphological, behavioural and physiological changes at the population level (Domínguez‐Godoy et al., 2022; González‐Morales, Rivera‐Rea, Moreno‐Rueda, Bastiaans, Díaz‐Albiter, et al., 2021; Plasman et al., 2020). These changes allow it to survive in diverse landscapes, including thermally unfavourable ones, such as mountain highlands (Domínguez‐Godoy, Gómez‐Campos, et al., 2020; Plasman et al., 2020).…”

“…Sceloporus grammicus is capable of inhabiting agricultural zones, where it can exhibit high abundances (Pérez‐Mendoza et al., 2013, 2014). Likewise, some studies have shown that the thermal quality of the habitat and the thermoregulatory efficiency of this lizard are higher in agricultural areas in comparison with forest or high‐altitude grassland zones (Díaz de la Vega‐Pérez, Barrios‐Montiel, et al., 2019; Domínguez‐Godoy et al., 2022). Additionally, various studies about physiological aspects of S. grammicus have been done in mountains located in the Trans‐Mexican Volcanic Belt system (TMVB; González‐Morales, Rivera‐Rea, Moreno‐Rueda, Bastiaans, Castro‐López, & Fajardo, 2021; González‐Morales, Rivera‐Rea, Moreno‐Rueda, Bastiaans, Díaz‐Albiter, et al., 2021; González‐Morales et al., 2023; Plasman et al., 2020; Rivera‐Rea et al., 2023).…”

Maternal transmission of bacterial microbiota during embryonic development in a viviparous lizard

“…The viviparous lizard S. grammicus has developed adaptations to harsh environmental conditions in the high mountains of central Mexico. These adaptations include changes in morphology, physiology, behavior, intestinal microbiome, and life history ( 80 , 94 – 97 ). Evidence from other Sceloporus species indicates that adaptations in the placenta may allow for the exchange of nutrients to keep embryos developing under restrictive environmental conditions ( 98 ).…”