Discovering an Antillean Anolis (Squamata: Polychrotidae) with contrasting sexual dichromatism in otherwise sexually monomorphic "chamaeleolis" group.

Autor: Holáňová, Veronika, 1984-
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Jazyk: angličtina
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Druh dokumentu: Non-fiction
ISSN: 1211-376X
Abstrakt: Abstract: The anole (genus Anolis Daudin, 1802) dewlap is a rapidly evolving trait. Sexually dichromatic anole species usually occur in the mainland, while the island species display only little dichromatism in particular. The so-called "chamaeleolis" group of anoles endemic to Cuba Island, traditionally classified as the "twig giant" ecomorph, consists of large, slow and very cryptic species with very similar sexes. Our study describes a new population of "chamaeleolis" anoles which, unlike other related species, display a surprising sexual dichromatis in dewlaps. Males have conspicuously red dewlaps, while the dewlaps of females are whitish. We compared the specimens from the newly discovered populations with related Anolis barbatus Garrido, 1982, A. chamaeleonides Duméril et Bibron, 1837, A. guamuhaya Garrido, Pérez-Beato et Moreno, 1991 and A. porcus Cope, 1864 through the means of spectrophotometry, visual modelling, morphology and mtDNA analysis. The results show that the red coloration substantially increases both chromatic and achromatic contrasts, while the dichromatism in the remaining species is only in the achromatic channel, if any. Both genetic and morphometric comparisons suggest distinctness of the dichromatic populations which may represent a separate species. The reason for the unusual dewlap coloration remains unclear, though an ecological explanation is discussed.
Databáze: Katalog Knihovny AV ČR