Incubation temperature fluctuation does not affect incubation length and hatchling phenotype in the Chinese skink Plestiodon chinensis |
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Affiliation: | 1. Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Biodiversity and Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China;2. Hangzhou Key Laboratory for Animal Adaptation and Evolution, School of Life Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 310036, Zhejiang, China;1. National Institute of Abiotic Stress Management (NIASM), Malegaon, Baramati, Pune 413115, India;2. Central Institute of Brackishwater Aquaculture (CIBA), Chennai 600028, India;3. Central Institute of Fisheires Education (CIFE), Mumbai 400061, India;1. Human Performance Science, 1/109 Park St, South Yarra, 3141 Victoria, Australia;2. Centre for Physical Activity & Nutrition Research, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood, Victoria 3125, Australia;3. Country Fire Authority, 8 Lakeside Dr, Burwood East, 3151 Victoria, Australia;1. Department of Biology, University of Arkansas at Little Rock, 2801 S. University Ave., Little Rock, AR 72204, USA;2. Department of Biology, University of Central Arkansas, 201 Donaghey Ave, Conway, AR 72035, USA |
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Abstract: | Studies examining the effects of incubation temperature fluctuation on the phenotype of hatchling reptiles have shown species variation. To examine whether incubation temperature fluctuation has a key role in influencing the phenotype of hatchling Chinese skinks (Plestiodon chinensis), we incubated eggs produced by 20 females under five thermal regimes (treatments). Eggs in three treatments were incubated in three incubators, one set constant at 27 °C and two ramp-programmed at 27±3 °C and 27±5 °C on a cycle of 12 h (+) and 12 h (−). The remaining eggs were incubated in two chambers: one inside a room where temperatures varied from 23.0 to 31.1 °C, with a mean of 27.0 °C; the other outside the room where temperatures varied from 20.2 to 35.3 °C, with a mean of 26.1 °C. We found that: (1) for eggs at a given embryonic stage at ovipositon, the mean rather than the variance of incubation temperatures determined the length of incubation; (2) most (egg mass, embryonic stage at oviposition, incubation length and all examined hatchling traits except tail length and locomotor performance) of the examined variables were affected by clutch; and (3) body mass was the only hatchling trait that differed among the five treatments, but the differences were tiny. These findings suggest that incubation temperature fluctuation has no direct role in influencing incubation length and hatchling phenotype in P. chinensis. |
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Keywords: | Scincidae Incubation temperature Thermal variance Incubation length Hatchling phenotype |
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