DIET OF THE NONINDIGENOUS BLACK SPINY-TAILED IGUANA, CTENOSAURA SIMILIS (GRAY 1831) (SAURIA: IGUANIDAE), IN SOUTHERN FLORIDA

DIET OF THE NONINDIGENOUS BLACK SPINY-TAILED IGUANA, CTENOSAURA SIMILIS (GRAY 1831) (SAURIA: IGUANIDAE), IN SOUTHERN FLORIDA

The black spiny-tailed iguana or ctenosaur (Ctenosaura similis) is known to consume a variety of plants and animals in its native range from Mexico south to Panama, but little is known about its behavior and foraging ecology in its introduced range of southern Florida. The abundance of C. similis in...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Florida scientist Vol. 72; no. 1; pp. 48 - 58
Main Authors: Krysko, Kenneth L., Larson, Kurt W., Diep, David, Abellana, Ellen, McKercher, Elizabeth R.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Orlando The Florida Academy of Sciences, Inc 01-01-2009
Florida Academy of Sciences, Inc
Subjects:
Animals
Cordia globosa
Ctenosaura similis
Diet
Iguana
Iguanas
Iguanidae
Introduced species
Invertebrates
Keys
Lizards
Plants
Reptiles
Schinus terebinthifolius
Taxa
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Summary:The black spiny-tailed iguana or ctenosaur (Ctenosaura similis) is known to consume a variety of plants and animals in its native range from Mexico south to Panama, but little is known about its behavior and foraging ecology in its introduced range of southern Florida. The abundance of C. similis in certain areas in southern Florida makes it a good candidate to study the diet of this species in its introduced range. Additionally, it has been hypothesized that C. similis illustrates an ontogenetic diet shift, where neonates and juveniles consume mostly invertebrates and adults consume mostly vegetation. In this study, we 1) document the diet of C. similis from two allopatric southern Florida populations (Gasparilla Island and Key Biscayne) and 2) test this diet shift hypothesis. We documented 65 consumed items, including at least 24 native plants and 13 invertebrates, and 14 nonindigenous plants and 2 vertebrates. Ctenosaura similis consumed the Endangered Curaçao bush (Cordia globosa) and may act as a seed disperser for Brazilian pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius). We found a significant difference in the consumed item types between size classes, suggesting an ontogenetic diet shift and possible physiological importance of particular food types to particular size classes of C. similis.
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ISSN:0098-4590