University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln Papers in Herpetology Papers in the Biological Sciences 1985 Notes on Maternal Behavior and Post-brooding Aggression in the Prairie Skink, Eumeces septentrionalis Louis A. Somma Florida State Collection of Arthropods, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/biosciherpetology Part of the Behavior and Ethology Commons, and the Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons Somma, Louis A., "Notes on Maternal Behavior and Post-brooding Aggression in the Prairie Skink, Eumeces septentrionalis" (1985). Papers in Herpetology. 13. http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/biosciherpetology/13 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Papers in the Biological Sciences at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Papers in Herpetology by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. (1985) NEBRhS'J<.A HfllP:5:'OOLOGICAL NEW SL:5:TTDl 6 (4) I 9 - 12 , (fJ",,,J. .. ) Notes on Maternal Behavior and Post-broodinSJ ASJSJression in the prairie sRinR E!!HIeces se~telttl"'iMla/is Louis A. S(lII'JI!a Th. '~~;:: :'i :O~b .servation s on . In E. Parental beha vior in 1 hards an d were IIIade OJ sna~e~ see~s to be a relat i ve ly and Ne 1 son rare phenomenon (Porter, 1972) . ions reported Snakes such as py thon s (Hutchison were made on three et aI., 1966; Harlow and Gri99, female E. septentrional Is that were R84J. cobras (Oliver, 1956 ; obta l nedon June 11, 1983 from an Campbell and Quinn, 1975; Tryon, urban colony of skinks living In 19 79) , kraits (Wa ll, 1921), the Omaha , Ne braska. They were cap­ bl i nd snake , LeptotyPhlops du lcls . tured wh ile In a gr4v id condition and with in their nest cav ities (Hibbar d. which Ifflre hollowed out beneath, vi per, rock. All three cavities were con ­ (SIIIHh , nected to e<l ch other by a system of Trlmeresurus burrows. 1929). the abacura (Meade, 1937, The sklnk s werE' sep~rated and an d wilson , 19661 and placed in indhidual pl astiC sna~es of the genus terraria that had a soil substrate. {I(opsteln, 19]8; Fuk.da , 191;51 A square plate of 1" thi ck a ll known to brood their eggs. transparent red acr ylic was pro­ vided for each of them <lS a shelter Katernal beh<lv ior ' in lizards was under whi ch they cou ld hol low out a probably first described by P.R. nest chamber . The ac rylic plates Hoy in 188], based on his obser- facilitated easy observation of the vat ions the glass sklnks while provid i ng th@lll wilh a lizard , and sense of security. Nest c';vlt les were not constr ucted ,¥j11~#:f;, "CO ~I h<l s been ' i'::;;~:~ by the capti ve skinks until June alligator 25 . On this same day , two of t he l locephalus (G reene s kinks beg an ovtposltlng thei r and ..,st oviparous e!l9s. On the fol lowing day, a ll membe rs of the 5cl ncld th~ee had comp 1eted oy Ipos 1t i ng (Ditmars , 1904; Noble t heir eggs. The cl utch s izes num ­ • PH] ; Taylor . H135; bered 11. 15 and 18. j~;;::. 1943; Fi t ch. 19 54, 1970 ; ~~ 1959 ; Mount , 196]; Collins , During the Incub ation period, the 1975; Hl klda, 1981 ; Hasegawa . s ki nkS m<ltntained olfactory contact 1985), • with their eggs by tongue-flicking Neonatal care has not been pre­ them. Eggs were occasionally viously documented for E. ro 11 ed about the nes t chambers by septentrionalis, ~lthough it 15 the females with the use of their known to occur 1n E. fasciatus snouts. This egg\ manipulating (Fitch, 1954), E. obso1etus (Evans, activity seemed to 'increase when 1959), ~ fascTatus (Fitch, 1954), the skinks were disturbed by the Eo obsoletus (Evans, 1959), E. observer. Much of the females' iatiscutatus (Hikida, 1981) and r. time was spent quietly coiled laticeps (Hammond, 1985). around or 1yi ng on top of the i r eggs. One individual refused food On July 22, the skinklets were for the duration of the incubation separa ted from the fern a 1es. All period. Whenever a finger was three fema 1es were placed together prodded into the nest chambers, two in the same terrarium. These fema- of the females aggressively bit it, 1es showed a remarkable degree of presumably to defend their aggress i on towards each other for clutches. Defensive behavior while one week prior to being released. brooding has not been previously They constantly bit each other at documeted for this species the bases of their tail regions (Breckenridge, 1943; Nelson, 1963). wh i ch soon became covered wi th An adult ringneck snake, Diadophis scars. None of the skinks had pre­ viously shown aggression towards punctatus, was introduced into one others while they were gravid. of the terraria and was immediately attacked when the fern a 1e came Such post-brooding agression has rushing out of the nest and bit it. been documented for E. egregius The snake was so severely lacerated (Mount, 1963) and ~ laticeps about the head and neck region that (Hammond, 1985). it died two days later. The obserations reported in this On July 16, two clutches of eggs article generate many questions. began hatching. The third clutch It is hoped that this note will ha tched on Ju 1y 18. Th'e presence stimulate more interest in the of 19 hatch 1i ngs from a clutch of study of maternal behavior in the 18 eggs suggests that one of the scincid genus Eumeces. eggs was twinned. All three skinks were observed to 1i ck fl u i d from some of their young while they were Literature Cited h~tching. Similar grooming beha­ Vlor has been reported in the great plains skink, E. obsoletus (Evans Breckenridge, W.J. 1943. The life 1959). One of the females gathered history of the black-banded skink all' 19 of her young into a heap in Eumeces. septentrional is (Baird). the corner of the nest and coi 1ed Amer. M1dl. Nat., 29:591-606. around them. Juveniles that attempted to leave were nudged back Campbell, J. A. and H. R. Quinn. 1975 into the heap. The female that had Reproduction. in a pair of Asiatic previously killed the ringneck cobras, Naja naja (Serpentes snake remained defensive. When a Elapidae). J. Herp~(2): 229-233. ' ~i nger was placed near the young, lt was promptly bitten. Collins, J. T. 1975. Observations on re~roduct i on in the southern coa 1 The females remained in the nests sk1nk (Eumeces anthracinus pluvialis with their, young for three days. Cope). Trans. Kansas Acad. Sci. 77(2): 126-127. - t 10 Ditmars, R. L. 1904. Observations on Hikida, T. 1981 Reproduction in the lacertilians Ann. Rept. New York Zool. Japanese skink (Eumeceslatiscutatus) Soc., (8): 146-160 --- in Kyotot. Zool. Mag., 90: 85-95. Evans, L.T. 1959. A motion picture study Hoy, P.R. 1883. Catalogue of the cold­ of maternal behavior of the lizard, blooded vertebrates of Wisconsin. Eumeces obsoletus Baird and Girard. Geol. Wisconsin Surv. 1873-1878. 1: COpela, 1959(2): 103-110 422-435. Fitch, H. S. 1970. Reproductive cycles Hutchison, V. H., H. G. Dow 1 i ng and A. in 1 izards and snakes. Univ. Ka-ilsas Vinegar. 1966. Thermoregulation in a Misc. Publ. Mus. Nat. Hist., (52): brooding female Indian pythan. Python 1-247. -- -- molurus bivittatus. Science, 151(3711) : 694-695. Fukada, H. 1965. Breeding habits of some Japanese reptiles (critical Kopstein, F. 1938. Ein Beitrag Zur review). Bull. Kyoto Gakugei Univ., Eirkunde and Zur Fortpflanzung der Sere ~ (27): 65-82. Malaiischen Reptilien. Bull. Raffl. Mus. (Singapore), (14): 81-167. Greene, H. W. and B. E. Dial. 1966. Brooding behavior by female Texas Meade, G. P. 1937. Breeding habits of alligator lizards. Herpetologica, Farancia abacura in captivity. 22 (4): 303. Copeia, 1937(1): 12-1~. Hahn, D. E. and L. D. Wilson. 1966. Meade, G.P. 1940. Maternal care of eggs Variation in two broods of Farancia by Farancia. Herpetologica, 12(2): abacura reinwardti Schlegel 111-114 (Serpentes: Colubridae) from Louisiana. J. Ohio Herpetol Soc.- Mount, R. H. 1963. The natural history 5(4): 159-160 of the red-tailed skink, Eumeces egreg;us Baird. Amer. Midl. Nat., Hammond, S. 1985. Repr~ductive behavioi -_o_-_o-}O(2): 356-385. - in the broadhead skink, Eumeces laticeps. Notes from Noah, 12 (4) : Nelson, W. F. 1963. Natural history of 7-8. the northern prairie skink, Eumeces septentrional is septentrional is Harlow, P. and G. Grigg. 1984. (Baird). Unpubl. Ph.D~ Diss., Univ. Shivering thermogenesis in a brooding Minnesota, Minneapolis~-; 135 pp. diamond python, Python spilotes Noble, G. K. and E. R.Mason. 1933. spilotes. Copeia, 1984(4): 959-965. Experiments on the brooding habits of Hasegawa, M. 1985. Effect of brooding the lizards E,umeces and O~hisaurus. on egg mortality in the lizard Eumeces Amer. Mus. Novlt., (619): 1- 9. okadae on Miyake-Jima, Izu Islands, Japan. Copeia, 1985(2): 497-500. Oliver, J.A. 1956. Reproduction in the king cobra, Oph;ophagus hannah Cantor. Hibbard, C.W. 1964. A brooding colony Zoologica, 41(17): 145-152. of the blind snake, Leptotyphlops dulcis dissecta Cope. Copeia, Pope, C.H. 1929. Notes on reptiles from T964IT): 222. Fukien and other Chinese provinces. Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 58: 335-487. -- I I Porter, K.R. 1972. Herpetology. W.B. Saunders Co., Philadelphia. 524 pp. Smith, M.A.