The aim of the present study was to determine the levels of monoamines, GABA and adenosine in the brain, heart and haemolymph of the land snail Helix lucorum and in the brain, heart and blood of lizard Agama stellio stellio during long-term hibernation. We measured levels of the monoamines serotonin (5-HT) and its main metabolite 5-hydroxyindole-3-acetic acid (5-HIAA), dopamine (DA) and its met...

The prevalence of Hepatozoon parasites in 460 lizards from North Africa was studied by amplification and sequencing of the 18S rRNA gene. The phylogenetic analysis of the 18S rRNA gene provides new insights into the phylogeny of these parasites with multiple genetically distinct lineages recovered. Parasite prevalence differed significantly between lacertid lizards and geckos. Our results show ...

Aim Many ectotherms are at risk from climate change as temperatures increasingly exceeding their thermal limits. evaluations of the vulnerability to have relied on statistical metrics derived coarse-scale climatic data, which may result in misleading predictions. By applying an integrative approach, we investigated geographical correlates lizards change. Location Globally. Taxon Lizards. Method...

Because the force required to rotate a body about an axis is directly proportional to its rotational inertia about the axis, it is likely that animals with high rotational inertia would be constrained in their turning abilities. Given that rotational inertia scales with mass(1.67) in geometrically similar animals, whereas the ability to apply torque scales with mass(1.00), larger animals would ...

Dietary studies are important for understanding predator–prey relationships and species interactions because they provide information on the trophic resources available to predators and their potential impact on prey populations. We relied on stomach contents of museum specimens and literature records to examine ontogenetic (size-related), sexual, seasonal, and geographic variation in the feedi...

Lizards provide a rich opportunity for investigating the mechanisms associated with arousal and the display of motivated behaviors. They exhibit diverse mating strategies and modes of conspecific communication. This review focuses on anole lizards, of which green anoles (Anolis carolinensis) have been most extensively studied. Research from other species is discussed in that context. By conside...

Few data are available on the morphology of the hemipenis of teiid lizards, especially those of the recently-defined genus Tupinambis, a widely-distributed group of large-bodied lizards. This study provides an illustrated description of the hemipenis of Tupinambis quadrilineatus, which is similar to that of other representatives of the Tupinambinae subfamily. New records of the species from the...

Taxonomic studies and classification of Leishmania species have developed rapidly in recent years, but controversy still surrounds the relationships between those species infecting lizards and those infecting mammals. Some authorities maintain that the leishmanias o f lizards form a sufficiently distinct group to be ranked as a separate genus - Sauroleishmania(1,2) - while Wallbanks et al. have...

Nocturnal geckos are active with body temperatures (Tb) that are low and variable relative to those of diurnal lizards. Ifthe physiology ofgeckos is evolutionarily adapted to these low and variable Tb 's, then thephysiology ofgeckos shouldfunction best at relatively low and variable temperatures. We tested a specific prediction of this hypothesis by comparing the thermal dependence ofsprint spe...

Two species of horned lizards, Phrynosoma braconnieri and P. taurus, are endemic to México and inhabit medium and high-elevation sites in the states of Oaxaca, Guerrero, and Puebla. We compiled information on distribution and reproductive cycle for these two species from the literature and from an examination of specimens in systematic collections. Our study confirms a viviparous mode of reprod...