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Inter-populational variation in the cost of autotomy in the metallic skink (Niveoscincus metallicus)

journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-16, 15:22 authored by Chapple, DG, Swain, R
Many species of lizard use tail autotomy to escape from potential predators. While frequency of tail loss is an unreliable indicator of predation intensity it may enable inter-populational comparisons of predation costs. This reasoning was applied to a study of the metallic skink Niveoscincus metallicus. A total of 368 lizards was sampled from across four populations to compare the frequency and position of tail loss and ultimately to examine whether the implications of tail autotomy differ between populations. The overall frequency of tail loss was 72%, although between populations the incidence of tail autotomy varied from 61.4% (Laughing Jack Lagoon) to 78.2% (Dynnyrne). No sexual differences were observed in the frequency of tail loss; however, the incidence of autotomy increased with age. The estimated position of tail loss did not vary between the sexes, although individuals from Dynnyrne experienced more proximal tail breaks than the other populations. This resulted in the predicted energetic cost of tail loss being significantly higher in the Dynnyrne population and, when combined with a high frequency of tail loss and relatively smaller body size, suggests that this population incurs relatively high costs as a result of autotomy. Overall, measures of tail loss in N. metallicus were found to be useful for examining inter-populational variation in the cost of tail autotomy.

History

Publication title

Journal of Zoology

Volume

264

Pagination

411-418

ISSN

0952-8369

Department/School

School of Natural Sciences

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

Place of publication

UK

Repository Status

  • Restricted

Socio-economic Objectives

Terrestrial biodiversity

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