Graduation Semester and Year

2009

Language

English

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Biology

Department

Biology

First Advisor

Jonathan A. Campbell

Abstract

In Honduras, Anolis lemurinus is distributed along the Atlantic versant of the mainland and on the Caribbean island system consisting of the Bay Islands and Cayos Cochinos archipelagos. In the Cayos Cochinos, A. lemurinus occurs on the two largest islands, Cayo Mayor and Cayo Menor, which are separated by less than 1km. A previous study using genetic (amplified fragment-length polymorphisms) and morphometric (mass and SVL) data suggested that populations of A. lemurinus in the Cayos Cochinos did not differ from each other (Klutsch et al. 2007). Despite the extremely close proximity of Cayo Mayor and Cayo Menor populations, I hypothesized that they might differ in morphology and habitat use due to noticeable differences in the abiotic and biotic environment between islands. I sampled lizards from both islands, measuring 12 morphometric variables, 9 environmental and habitat use variables, and 3 physiological variables. Principal Component and Discriminant analyses revealed that populations of males could be distinguished based on morphology. No such differences were found for females, although sample sizes for females may have been too low for statistical inference. Moreover, correlation and regression analyses revealed that space use and upper thermal tolerance is related to dewlap size in males. Observed differences in habitat use and morphology can perhaps be explained by differences in population density, community composition, and forest structure among islands.

Disciplines

Biology | Life Sciences

Comments

Degree granted by The University of Texas at Arlington

Download

Included in

Biology Commons

Share

COinS