Sexual dimorphism in Trachylepis vittata (Olivier, 1804) (Sauria: Scincidae) in the Zagros Mountains, western Iran

Authors : Nasrullah RASTEGARPOUYANI, Razieh FATTAHI

Pages : 59-65

Doi:10.3906/zoo-1311-17

View : 15 | Download : 8

Publication Date : 0000-00-00

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :We describe sexual dimorphism in coloration, size, and shape in 48 specimens insert ignore into journalissuearticles values(19 males and 29 females); of the bridled skink, Trachylepis vittata insert ignore into journalissuearticles values(Olivier, 1804);, collected from western regions of the Iranian Plateau. For the analyses, we used 29 metric and 9 meristic characters. Our study showed the existence of slight sexual size dimorphism in body and head size between the sexes. Males had significantly smaller heads and narrower bodies than females. Furthermore, males and females were different in the structure of the cloaca. The possible scenarios behind sexual dimorphism in this lizard are discussed.
Keywords : Bridled skink, Scincidae, sexual size dimorphism, sexual selection, Iranian Plateau