Search results for "LIZARD"

Chemosensory enrichment as a simple and effective way to improve the welfare of captive lizards

2018

PSA-NCAM immunocytochemistry in the cerebral cortex and other telencephalic areas of the lizard Podarcis hispanica: differential expression during me…

2002

The lizard medial cortex, a region homologous to the mammalian dentate gyrus, shows postnatal neurogenesis and the surprising ability to replace its neurons after being lesioned specifically with the neurotoxin 3-acetylpyridine. As the polysialylated form of the neural cell adhesion molecule (PSA-NCAM) is expressed during neuronal migration and differentiation, we have studied its distribution in adult lizards and also during the lesion-regeneration process. In the medial cortex of control animals, many labeled fusiform somata, presumably corresponding to migratory neuroblasts, appeared in the inner plexiform layer. There were also scattered immunoreactive granule neurons in the cell layer.…

Intestinal Helminth Parasites of Wall Lizards, Podarcis vaucheri Complex (Sauria: Lacertidae) from Algeria

2011

Abstract A parasitological survey was carried out to determine the relationships between the helminth fauna and biological traits of the hosts in three Algerian populations of Podarcis lizards belonging to two different evolutionary lineages. Size, sex, and locality of collection, as well as the infracommunities and component communities, were analyzed. Very low values of parasite infection parameters and diversity were found in all three populations. This is in accordance with the feeding habits of these lizard hosts, which only eat animal prey and no plant matter. Spauligodon saxicolae (Nematoda: Pharyngodonidae), a specialist in lizards, is reported here for the first time in Africa. Thi…

The lizard cerebral cortex as a model to study neuronal regeneration

2002

The medial cerebral cortex of lizards, an area homologous to the hippocampal fascia dentata, shows delayed postnatal neurogenesis, i.e., cells in the medial cortex ependyma proliferate and give rise to immature neurons, which migrate to the cell layer. There, recruited neurons differentiate and give rise to zinc containing axons directed to the rest of cortical areas, thus resulting in a continuous growth of the medial cortex and its zinc-enriched axonal projection. This happens along the lizard life span, even in adult lizards, thus allowing one of their most important characteristics: neuronal regeneration. Experiments in our laboratory have shown that chemical lesion of the medial cortex…

Synopsis of the helminth communities of the lacertid lizards from the Balearic and Canary Islands

2012

Helminth communities of reptiles have usually been considered as depauperate and isolationist, with low abundance and species richness when compared to other vertebrates. Nevertheless there are some insular reptile populations in which this general rule is not fulfilled. In this study, we compare helminth faunas from two groups of lizards living in two different archipelagos and having different feeding habits. Lacertid lizards from Canary Islands, belonging to the endemic genus Gallotia, showed by contrast with other lacertids, a tendency to high consumption of plant matter and to rich and diverse helminth communities. Differences were found even between the lizards living in different isl…

Daphnia females adjust sex allocation in response to current sex ratio and density

2018

Cyclical parthenogenesis presents an interesting challenge for the study of sex allocation, as individuals’ allocation decisions involve both the choice between sexual and asexual reproduction, and the choice between sons and daughters. Male production is therefore expected to depend on ecological and evolutionary drivers of overall investment in sex, and those influencing male reproductive value during sexual periods. We manipulated experimental populations, and made repeated observations of natural populations over their growing season, to disentangle effects of population density and the timing of sex from effects of adult sex ratio on sex allocation in cyclically parthenogenetic Daphnia…

Sexual selection drives asymmetric introgression in wall lizards.

2015

Hybridisation is increasingly recognised as an important cause of diversification and adaptation. Here, we show how divergence in male secondary sexual characters between two lineages of the common wall lizard (Podarcis muralis) gives rise to strong asymmetries in male competitive ability and mating success, resulting in asymmetric hybridisation upon secondary contact. Combined with no negative effects of hybridisation on survival or reproductive characters in F1-hybrids, these results suggest that introgression should be asymmetric, resulting in the displacement of sexual characters of the sub-dominant lineage. This prediction was confirmed in two types of secondary contact, across a natur…

Exotic Meats: An Alternative Food Source

2019

International audience; Exotic meats were a protein source for human diet for many years. However, the massive capture caused the overexploitation and placed many reptiles and amphibious on the verge of extinction. Therefore, the captive rearing, the control during slaughtering and processing has been proposed as an alternative to the capture of wild animals. The present chapter shows the nutritional composition of this kind of meat, characterized by low levels of fat, high contents of protein, essential amino acids, fatty acids (especially long-chain n-3) and minerals indicating that their consumption may be beneficial for human health. However, very little data is available on the nutriti…

Conservation genetics of insular **Podarcis** lizards using partial cytochrome b sequences

1998

Sequence data derived from a 306 bp fragment of mitochondrial cytochrome b and molecular variance estimates were used to investigate the genetic population structure of the endangered and endemic lizard Podarcis atrata of the Columbretes archipelago (Mediterranean, Spain). Our results show a very high and significant among-population genetic differentiation. FST values and phylogenetic analyses confirm the evolutionary distinctiveness of P. atrata populations, suggesting that the populations of these islands deserve special protection measures. The populations of the two islands Columbrete Grande and Mancolibre are less differentiated than those of Foradada and Lobo, and seem to have retain…

HERPETOFAUNA DI HUTAN DATARAN RENDAH HAYA, MAMBERAMO, PAPUA

2008

<p><em>During about 19 days field work survey (7-25 February 2008) on the Haya lowland forest area, Mamberamo Papua. Eksploration is the methods used in this study. Reptiles and amphibians were collected by hand on the night and day in several type of habitat (plains, swamp, oxbowlake, stream, creeks and hills). The result showed that 48 species of herpetofauna (21 species frogs, 19 species of lizard, six species of snakes and one species of turtles and crocodile) were found.</em></p>