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The effect of body size on the thermoregulation of lizards on hot,dry Mediterranean islands
Authors:Kostas Sagonas  Shai Meiri  Efstratios D Valakos  Panayiotis Pafilis
Institution:1. Section of Human and Animal Physiology, Department of Biology, University of Athens, Athens 157-84, Greece;2. Department of Zoology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel;3. Section of Zoology and Marine Biology, Department of Biology, University of Athens, Panepistimioupolis, Ilissia, Athens 157-84, Greece
Abstract:Body size shapes the overall biology of organisms. We assessed the impact of size on temperature regulation in populations of normal-sized and large-bodied insular Mediterranean lizards (Podarcis gaigeae, Lacertidae). We hypothesized that large lizards would achieve higher body temperatures and thermoregulate more effectively than their smaller kin. Large- and small-bodied lizards share the same thermoregulation pattern, achieving similar body temperatures in the field. Large lizards, however, prefer higher set-point temperatures. Lizards in both populations thermoregulate effectively, but large lizards thermoregulated less effectively than normal-sized lizards. The particular conditions at the islet that harbors the large-bodied population (harsh intraspecific competition) seem to account for this pattern.
Keywords:Body size  Competition  Density  Insularity  Thermal biology
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