Presentation Type
Panel Discussion
Start Date
12-3-2022 1:00 PM
End Date
12-3-2022 2:30 PM
Abstract
Variation in energy acquisition, genetics, and environment determine life history traits among individuals, populations, and species. Therefore, influence of climate change may differ by population or even individual. Sceloporus lizards are used as model organisms for thermal biology, and climate modeling. However, it is often assumed that locally-measured thermal and bioenergetic responses apply among broadly similar species, and throughout intraspecific geographic range. The objective of this project was twofold: 1) to quantify the influence of temperature on passage rate in Sceloporus consobrinus from Arkansas, and 2) compare the influence of temperature on passage rate between S. consobrinus, and published data on S. undulatus. Sceloporus consobrinus were assigned to a temperature treatment (30°C, 33°C, or 36°C) and fed crickets ad libitum. Passage rate was assessed by feeding lizards a cricket with a fluorescent marker, and checking feces every 4-6 hours for the marker. Comparisons of S. consobrinus were made to S. undulatus populations from New Jersey and South Carolina, reported in Angilletta (2001), who used similar methods. Treatments span the range of body temperatures all three populations experience. Results suggest that passage rate is similar among populations, with S. consobrinus being slightly slower. While the three populations are comparable in gut retention time, digestive assimilation may vary. A future study objective is to determine metabolizable energy intake at each temperature for comparison among populations. Such data are important for understanding the role of environmental factors and organismal properties, as well as variation among species, when determining response to climate change.
Keywords
lizard, physiology, climate change, temperature, food, comparison, arkansas, model
Influence of temperature on passage rate in Sceloporus consobrinus, with comparison to congeners
Variation in energy acquisition, genetics, and environment determine life history traits among individuals, populations, and species. Therefore, influence of climate change may differ by population or even individual. Sceloporus lizards are used as model organisms for thermal biology, and climate modeling. However, it is often assumed that locally-measured thermal and bioenergetic responses apply among broadly similar species, and throughout intraspecific geographic range. The objective of this project was twofold: 1) to quantify the influence of temperature on passage rate in Sceloporus consobrinus from Arkansas, and 2) compare the influence of temperature on passage rate between S. consobrinus, and published data on S. undulatus. Sceloporus consobrinus were assigned to a temperature treatment (30°C, 33°C, or 36°C) and fed crickets ad libitum. Passage rate was assessed by feeding lizards a cricket with a fluorescent marker, and checking feces every 4-6 hours for the marker. Comparisons of S. consobrinus were made to S. undulatus populations from New Jersey and South Carolina, reported in Angilletta (2001), who used similar methods. Treatments span the range of body temperatures all three populations experience. Results suggest that passage rate is similar among populations, with S. consobrinus being slightly slower. While the three populations are comparable in gut retention time, digestive assimilation may vary. A future study objective is to determine metabolizable energy intake at each temperature for comparison among populations. Such data are important for understanding the role of environmental factors and organismal properties, as well as variation among species, when determining response to climate change.