Climate and the Presence of Generation Glands in Female Girdled Lizards: A Case Study of the cordylus-niger-oelofseni Complex
Geographic variation in the presence/absence of generation glands in female lizards of the cordylus-niger-oelofseni complex was described and correlations with climatic variables investigated. Preserved and live specimens from 95 localities in the area south of 32°30′S and west of 19°45′E in the Wes...
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| Published in: | Journal of herpetology Vol. 39; no. 3; pp. 384 - 388 |
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| Main Authors: | , , , |
| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles
01-09-2005
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | Get full text |
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| Summary: | Geographic variation in the presence/absence of generation glands in female lizards of the cordylus-niger-oelofseni complex was described and correlations with climatic variables investigated. Preserved and live specimens from 95 localities in the area south of 32°30′S and west of 19°45′E in the Western Cape, South Africa, were examined for the presence or absence of generation glands. A GIS analysis was performed to determine mean annual minimum temperature, mean annual maximum temperature, potential evaporation, mean annual precipitation, mean annual fog, and mean annual cloud cover for each locality. Discriminant function and canonical analyses showed highly significant correlations between presence and absence of generation glands and five of the six climatic variables. Females from western coastal localities and from the Cape Fold Mountains generally lacked generation glands, whereas females from inland lowland localities generally possessed glands. |
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| Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 |
| ISSN: | 0022-1511 1937-2418 |
| DOI: | 10.1670/218-04A.1 |