Feeding habits, sexual dimorphism and size at maturity of the lizard Cnemidophorus ocellifer (Spix, 1825) (Teiidae) in a reforested restinga habitat in northeastern Brazil

Brazilian Journal of Biology

Gg. Santana²  A. Vasconcellos¹  Yea. Gadelha¹  Wls. Vieira²  Wo. Almeida¹  Rp. Nóbrega²  Rrn. Alves¹ 

[1] ,Universidade Federal da Paraíba Centro de Ciências Exatas e da Natureza Laboratório/Coleção de HerpetologiaJoão Pessoa PB ,Brazil

关键词: diet;    lizards;    sexual dimorphism in form;    clutch size;    Atlantic Forest;    dieta;    lagartos;    dimorfismo sexual na forma;    tamanho da desova;    Mata Atlântica;   

DOI  :  10.1590/S1519-69842010005000006

来源: SciELO

【 摘 要 】

The feeding habits, the sexual dimorphism in size and sexual maturity of the actively foraging lizard Cnemidophorusocellifer were analysed in an area of a reforested Restinga habitat located in the municipality of Mataraca, along the northern-most coast of Paraíba State, Brazil. Seventy-five specimens of C. ocellifer were examined (46 males and 29Â females). Of this total, only 23 specimens had prey in their stomachs. The most frequent prey consumed items were orthopterans (50%), coleopterans (23.9%) and arachnids (10.9%); termites and insect larvae were less consumed (both with 2.2%). There were no significant differences observed between the numbers of prey consumed by either males or females. There were significant differences in SVL (snout-vent length) between the sexes, with males attaining larger SVL values. When the influence of SVL was removed from the analyses, sexual dimorphism in the form was still reflected in the head size of these lizards. Sexual maturity in females and males was attained with SVL of 42.2 and 49.0 mm respectively. Although no significant difference was observed between the SVL of the females and the number of eggs produced, there was a clear tendency for larger females to produce more eggs. The low structural complexity of the vegetation and the poor soil quality in the reforested restinga area examined does not furnish favourable habitat for insect and termite larvae, contributing to the marked differences in the diet of the population of C. ocellifer observed in the present study in relation to the diet of their conspecifics in undisturbed areas of restinga, cerrado and caatinga.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
 All the contents of this journal, except where otherwise noted, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License