We quantified reproductive phenology for three lizard species collected in northeastern Costa Rica over a 14-month sampling period from November 1973 to December 1974. Two species, a gecko (Lepidoblepharis xanthostigma) and a skink (Sphenomorphus cherriei), reproduced continuously at this site, whereas an anole (Norops limifrons) showed a slight decline in reproduction during the dry season. The decrease in reproduction of N. limifrons may reflect a response to moisture stress during the driest part of the year. When seasonal patterns of reproduction among 32 populations of Neotropical lizards with small clutch sizes were analyzed with the effect of phylogenetic relatedness removed, we found that seasonality of reproduction was strongly related to mean annual rainfall but not to number of dry season months.
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1 September 2005
Reproductive Phenology of Three Lizard Species in Costa Rica, with Comments on Seasonal Reproduction of Neotropical Lizards
James I. Watling,
J. Hardin Waddle,
David Kizirian,
Maureen A. Donnelly
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