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Title Natural History of a Madagascan Gecko Author(S) Ikeuchi, Isami; Mori Title Natural History of a Madagascan Gecko Author(s) Ikeuchi, Isami; Mori, Akira Citation Current Herpetology (2014), 33(2): 161-170 Issue Date 2014-08 URL http://hdl.handle.net/2433/198818 © 2014 by The Herpetological Society of Japan; 許諾条件に Right より本文ファイルは2017-09-01に公開. Type Journal Article Textversion publisher Kyoto University Natural History of a Madagascan Gecko Blaesodactylus ambonihazo in a Dry Deciduous Forest Author(s): Isami Ikeuchi and Akira Mori Source: Current Herpetology, 33(2):161-170. Published By: The Herpetological Society of Japan DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5358/hsj.33.161 URL: http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.5358/hsj.33.161 BioOne (www.bioone.org) is a nonprofit, online aggregation of core research in the biological, ecological, and environmental sciences. 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Current Herpetology 33(2): 161–170, August 2014 doi 10.5358/hsj.33.161 © 2014 by The Herpetological Society of Japan Natural History of a Madagascan Gecko Blaesodactylus ambonihazo in a Dry Deciduous Forest ILjƵǑƿ IKEUCHI1,2 Ƶǃƺ AǁƿLJƵ MORI1* 1Department of Zoology, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Sakyo, Kyoto 606–8502, JAPAN 2Present address: Takinocho 2–19–3–202, Nagaokakyo, Kyoto 617–0817, JAPAN Abstract: Several aspects of natural history of Blaesodactylus ambonihazo, a gecko distributed in a dry forest of northwestern Madagascar, were investi- gated in the rainy and dry seasons between 2000 and 2006. There were no signiÖcant seUual siWe di÷erences in snout-vent length, and no seUual diJor- phisJ was detected either in head width or body Jass. FeJales ceased oogenesis during the rainy season and were recrudescent at the beginning of the dry season. They probably lay eggs in the Jiddle of the dry season. Hatchlings were observed at the beginning of the rainy season and probably reach adult siWe in the subseNuent dry season. At night geckos perched on tree trunks and buildings and eUhibited typical sit-and-wait foraging. During the day they retreated to shelters, Jainly crevices between buttress roots. The gecko was therJally passive to environJental teJperatures, showing a wide range of cloacal teJperatures 0 , but they selected relatively higher substrate teJperatures at low air teJperature, possibly for therJo- regulation. ecause Jultiple individuals were observed on single trees, hoJe ranges of the gecko were presuJably overlapping each other, and no obvious territorial behavior was observed. The absence of Jale-biased seUual diJor- phisJ, which suggests little Jale-Jale coJpetition for Jating, also supports the absence of territoriality of B. ambonihazo. oJparison with a syntopic diurnal gecko, Phelsuma kochi, which shows ecological characters siJilar to B. ambonihazo but has eUclusive hoJe ranges, Jay clarify ecological corre- lates associated with teJporal niche partitioning. Key words: Gekkonidae; Blaesodactylus ambonihazo; Madagascar; Field obser- vation; Ankarafantsika National Park IǃljLJDŽƺNJƹljƿDŽǃ 2013). Gekkonidae, the largest family of Gekkota, is comprised of approximately 930 Gekkota is a large monophyletic group of species and is mainly distributed in the Old Squamata, which accounts for approximately World (Bauer, 2013). Because of their high one-fourth of all species of lizards (Bauer, species richness, their ecology and life history are likely to be diverse. Nonetheless, informa- * Corresponding author. Tel: +81–75–753–4075; tion on their natural history based on quanti- Fax: +81–75–753–4075; S@SHUDëDKCNARDQU@SHNMRHRK@BJHMFENQSGD E-mail address: [email protected] majority of the species, impeding comparative 162 Current Herpetol. 33(2) 2014 DW@LHM@SHNMRNESGDHQDBNKNFHB@KCHUDQRHëB@SHNM MƵljƻLJƿƵǂLj Ƶǃƺ MƻljƾDŽƺLj Madagascar is one of the global hotspots that has a great species diversity of endemic The study was conducted in a tropical reptiles (Myers et al., 2000; Goodman and d e c i d u o u s f o r e s t a t A m p i j o r o a , A n k a r a f a n t s i k a Benstead, 2005). Gekkos are not exceptional: National Park (16q19'S, 46q49'E) from October more than 10% of gekkonids, most of which 2000 to January 2001, from June to July 2003, are endemic, occur in Madagascar (Glaw and from October 2003 to June 2004, and from Vences, 2007). However, in spite of their tre- November 2005 to February 2006. The dry mendous diversity and high endemism, eco- season usually lasts from May to October, and logical and behavioral studies on wild geckos the rainy season starts gradually in November in Madagascar based on quantitative data are (See Fig. 1 in Ikeuchi et al., 2012). The study extremely limited (e.g., Vences et al., 2004; area included a camping site (approximately Ikeuchi et al., 2005, 2012). Appropriate knowl- 250×100 m), Jardin Botanique A (JBA: edge of natural history of each species is approximately 550×450 m), trails from the essential to understand the patterns of their camping site to JBA (approximately 1200 m), adaptive radiation. In addition, because origi- and trails around Lake Ravelobe (approxi- nal forests of Madagascar, which are major mately 5 km). The vegetation consisted of a G@AHS@SR NE SGD FDBJNR BTQQDMSKX RTðDQ EQNL deciduous canopy of 10–15 m high and fairly RDUDQDEQ@FLDMS@SHNMAXëQDR HKKDF@KKNFFHMF sparse understory. and deforestation for agriculture (Ganzhorn, We walked through the study area at least #TëKR RTBGJMNVKDCFDHRBQHSHB@K twice per week in the day (0700–1800 h) and SNDU@KT@SDSGDHMìTDMBDNECDENQDRS@SHNMNM at night (2000–0400 h), searching for geckos their survival and establish conservation mea- on trees and buildings up to ca. 4 m high. sures and management strategies of them. When a gecko was located, we attempted to In the present study we examined several collect it with a noose or by hand. We imme- aspects of natural history of a gecko, diately measured its cloacal temperature Blaesodactylus ambonihazo, which is known (CT), air temperature at 1 m above the ground only from a dry forest of northwestern (AT), and substrate temperature at the exact Madagascar (Bauer et al., 2011). The taxo- spot where the gecko was perching (ST) using nomic history of geckos in Blaesodactylus a quick-reading thermistor. When geckos were was recently reviewed by Greenbaum et al. perching in high places (approximately more 3GDXBNMëQLDCSGDRHRSDQFQNTOQDK@- than 2 m), we measured substrate temperature tionship and reciprocal monophyly of the at the spot as close as possible. Then we mea- Malagasy Blaesodactylus and the mainland sured its snout-vent length (SVL), head width African Homopholis. Greenbaum et al. (2007) (HW), and body mass (BM). Sex was deter- also reported a specimen that is genetically mined as male if a gecko had a swollen tail highly divergent from all other recognized base (i.e., hemipeneal bulge). Gravidity of species of Blaesodactylus. Subsequently, Bauer EDL@KDR V@R BNMëQLDC AX NARDQU@SHNM @MC et al. (2011) made detailed examinations of palpation of eggs in the abdomen. Individuals this form both morphologically and geneti- with SVL smaller than that of males and cally and described B. ambonihazo as the gravid females were considered juveniles (see fourth member of this genus from a dry forest Results). After measurement, the individuals in Ankarafantsika National Park. In the pres- were marked by toe clipping and were released ent study we describe its size composition, at the site where they were found. We recorded female reproductive traits, thermal character- habitat type (tree or building) for each gecko’s istics, spatial usage, and foraging mode based perch site and whether it was exposed (exposed NM@KNMF SDQLëDKCRSTCX or in shelter). If the perch site was a tree, substrate characters (trunk, branch, crevice IKEUCHI & MORI—NATURAL HISTORY OF BLAESODACTYLUS AMBONIHAZO 163 between trunk, crevice between buttress TRHMF*DMC@KK¥RBNQQDK@SHNMBNDîBHDMS roots, or hole), perch height (PH), perch diameter (PD), and diameter at the breast RƻLjNJǂljLj height (DBH; 1.2 m high) of the tree were recorded. If a marked gecko was re-sighted on Size composition and female reproductive trait @SQDDCHðDQDMSEQNLSGDOQDUHNTRNMD SGDCHR- Because the minimum SVL of males and tance between the trees was measured. gravid females were 66.6 mm and 85.3 mm, To examine foraging mode, focal animal respectively, individuals whose SVL was less observations were conducted for six geckos, than 66.6 mm were considered juveniles. The which were perching on trees in forest, at two smallest individuals (SVL=44.0 and night (2100–0100 h) from March to June 44.2 mm) each had an obvious umbilicus and 2004 using an infrared video camera. We VDQDBNMRHCDQDC@RG@SBGKHMFR 2DWT@KCHðDQ- continuously observed their behavior at least ence in SVL was not detected (Mann-Whitney for 17 min standing at least 5 m away from U-test; U=3734.5, P=0.70; Table 1). Head trees where they were perching. An individual VHCSG@MC!,VDQDANSGRHFMHëB@MSKXBNQQD- V@RBK@RRHëDC@RDHSGDQRS@SHNM@QXNQLNUHMF lated with SVL (log transformed data; HW, Stationary included postures and actions in r2=0.95, P<0.0001, BM, r2=0.98, P<0.0001), which the gecko remained in the same posi- @MC SGDQD VDQD MN RHFMHëB@MS CHðDQDMBDR tion (e.g., remaining motionless, moving its bet ween sexes both i n H W a nd BM (A NCOVA , head, jaws, tongue, limbs, or tail, and turning log transformed data; HW, elevation, df=1, around by 180 degrees).
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