The highest kingdom of Anolis: Thermal biology of the Andean lizard Anolis heterodermus (Squamata: Dactyloidae) over an elevational gradient in the Eastern Cordillera of Colombia |
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| Institution: | 1. DIBIOVA (Diversidad y Biología de Vertebrados del Árido), Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de San Juan, Av. Ignacio de la Roza 590 (O), Rivadavia, San Juan CPA: J5402DCS, Argentina;2. CONICET (Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas), Argentina;3. CIGEOBIO-CONICET, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de San Juan, Av. Ignacio de la Roza 590 (O), Rivadavia, San Juan CPA: J5402DCS, Argentina;1. CNRS, Station d''Ecologie Théorique et Expérimentale, UMR 5321 CNRS – Université Paul Sabatier, 09200 Moulis, France;2. CNRS, Centre for Biodiversity Theory and Modelling, Station d''Ecologie Théorique et Expérimentale, UMR 5321 CNRS – Université Paul Sabatier, 09200 Moulis, France;3. Université de Perpignan, Via Domitia, 66100 Perpignan, France;4. Catalonia Reptile and Amphibian Rescue Center (CRARC), 08783 Masquefa, Barcelona, Spain;5. Université Pierre et Marie CURIE, 4 place Jussieu, 75252 Paris, France;6. Pirenalia, c/ de la rectoria, 2 Casa Cintet, AD200 Encamp, Andorra;7. Bomosa, Pl. Parc de la Mola, 10 Torre Caldea 7°, AD700 Les Escaldes, Andorra;1. Laboratorio de Herpetología, Departamento de Zoología, Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, A. P. 70515, C.P. 04510 México, D.F., Mexico;2. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Earth and Marine Sciences Building A316, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA;3. Instituto de Ecología, A. C., Miguel de Cervantes No. 120, Complejo Industrial Chihuahua, C.P. 31109 Chihuahua, Chihuahua, Mexico;4. School of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA |
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| Abstract: | Vertebrate ectotherms may deal with changes of environmental temperatures by behavioral and/or physiological mechanisms. Reptiles inhabiting tropical highlands face extreme fluctuating daily temperatures, and extreme values and intervals of fluctuations vary with altitude. Anolis heterodermus occurs between 1800 m to 3750 m elevation in the tropical Andes, and is the Anolis species found at the highest altitude known. We evaluated which strategies populations from elevations of 2200 m, 2650 m and 3400 m use to cope with environmental temperatures. We measured body, preferred, critical maximum and minimum temperatures, and sprint speed at different body temperatures of individuals, as well as operative temperatures. Anolis heterodermus exhibits behavioral adjustments in response to changes in environmental temperatures across altitudes. Likewise, physiological traits exhibit intrapopulation variations, but they are similar among populations, tended to the “static” side of the evolution of thermal traits spectrum. The thermoregulatory behavioral strategy in this species is extremely plastic, and lizards adjust even to fluctuating environmental conditions from day to day. Unlike other Anolis species, at low thermal quality of the habitat, lizards are thermoconformers, particularly at the highest altitudes, where cloudy days can intensify this strategy even more. Our study reveals that the pattern of strategies for dealing with thermal ambient variations and their relation to extinction risks in the tropics that are caused by global warming is perhaps more complex for lizards than previously thought. |
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| Keywords: | Temperature fluctuation Physiological traits Behavioral strategy Tropical highlands |
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