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Hansson A, Wapstra E, While GM, Lindsay WR, Olsson M. Context-dependent thermolability of sex determination in a lacertid lizard with heteromorphic sex chromosomes. Biol Open 2023; 12:310405. [PMID: 37191107 DOI: 10.1242/bio.059967] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2023] [Accepted: 04/20/2023] [Indexed: 05/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Developmental conditions can profoundly impact key life history traits of the individual. In cases where offspring sex is driven by developmental reaction norms, permanent changes to the phenotype can fundamentally alter life history trajectories. Sex determination mechanisms in reptiles are remarkably diverse, including well-characterised genetic and temperature-dependent sex determination. In rarer, but increasingly more commonly documented cases, sex can also be determined by a combination of the two, with temperature overriding the genetically determined sex. Thus, sex-by-temperature interactions is a mechanism that can be contextually labile, where reaction norms of sex against developmental environment might only be observable under certain conditions. We examine the effects of incubation temperature on hatchling sex in an oviparous lizard with clearly defined heteromorphic sex chromosomes presumed to determine sex solely on a genetic basis. We also test the repeatability of our results by replicating incubation experiments across 3 years. We show that warmer temperatures may override chromosomal sex and cause an overproduction of daughters. However, this effect was inconsistent among years, with high temperature only resulting in a daughter-significant bias in one year. Warm-incubated daughters were more efficient at converting yolk into tissue, which would allow for greater resource allocation to other fitness-related processes, such as growth. This suggests that thermolabile sex determination could be a trait under selection. More energy-efficient embryos also produced faster-growing offspring, suggesting that energy utilization patterns of the embryo were maintained into the juvenile stage, which could have important implications for the ontogenetic development and evolution of life histories.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Hansson
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Box 463, 405 30, Gothenburg, Sweden
- School of Natural Sciences, University of Tasmania, Private Bag 55, Hobart, TAS, 7001Australia
| | - Erik Wapstra
- School of Natural Sciences, University of Tasmania, Private Bag 55, Hobart, TAS, 7001Australia
| | - Geoffrey M While
- School of Natural Sciences, University of Tasmania, Private Bag 55, Hobart, TAS, 7001Australia
| | - Willow R Lindsay
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Box 463, 405 30, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Mats Olsson
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Box 463, 405 30, Gothenburg, Sweden
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Whittington CM, Van Dyke JU, Liang SQT, Edwards SV, Shine R, Thompson MB, Grueber CE. Understanding the evolution of viviparity using intraspecific variation in reproductive mode and transitional forms of pregnancy. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2022; 97:1179-1192. [PMID: 35098647 PMCID: PMC9064913 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2021] [Revised: 01/18/2022] [Accepted: 01/20/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
How innovations such as vision, flight and pregnancy evolve is a central question in evolutionary biology. Examination of transitional (intermediate) forms of these traits can help address this question, but these intermediate phenotypes are very rare in extant species. Here we explore the biology and evolution of transitional forms of pregnancy that are midway between the ancestral state of oviparity (egg-laying) and the derived state, viviparity (live birth). Transitional forms of pregnancy occur in only three vertebrates, all of which are lizard species that also display intraspecific variation in reproductive phenotype. In these lizards (Lerista bougainvillii, Saiphos equalis, and Zootoca vivipara), geographic variation of three reproductive forms occurs within a single species: oviparity, viviparity, and a transitional form of pregnancy. This phenomenon offers the valuable prospect of watching 'evolution in action'. In these species, it is possible to conduct comparative research using different reproductive forms that are not confounded by speciation, and are of relatively recent origin. We identify major proximate and ultimate questions that can be addressed in these species, and the genetic and genomic tools that can help us understand how transitional forms of pregnancy are produced, despite predicted fitness costs. We argue that these taxa represent an excellent prospect for understanding the major evolutionary shift between egg-laying and live birth, which is a fundamental innovation in the history of animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camilla M. Whittington
- School of Life and Environmental SciencesThe University of SydneyHeydon‐Laurence Building A08SydneyNSW2006
| | - James U. Van Dyke
- Department of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, School of Molecular SciencesLa Trobe UniversityBuilding 4WodongaVIC3689Australia
| | - Stephanie Q. T. Liang
- School of Life and Environmental SciencesThe University of SydneyHeydon‐Laurence Building A08SydneyNSW2006
| | - Scott V. Edwards
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary BiologyHarvard University, and Museum of Comparative ZoologyCambridgeMA02138U.S.A.
| | - Richard Shine
- Department of Biological SciencesMacquarie UniversityNorth RydeNSW2109Australia
| | - Michael B. Thompson
- School of Life and Environmental SciencesThe University of SydneyHeydon‐Laurence Building A08SydneyNSW2006
| | - Catherine E. Grueber
- School of Life and Environmental SciencesThe University of SydneyHeydon‐Laurence Building A08SydneyNSW2006
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Ljubisavljević K, Anđelković M, Urošević A, Roitberg ES. Female reproductive characteristics of the Balkan sand lizard Lacerta agilis bosnica (Schreiber, 1912). REV SUISSE ZOOL 2022. [DOI: 10.35929/rsz.0069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Katarina Ljubisavljević
- University of Belgrade, Institute for Biological Research “Siniša Stanković” - National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, Department of Evolutionary Biology, Bulevar Despota Stefana 142, 11060 Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Marko Anđelković
- University of Belgrade, Institute for Biological Research “Siniša Stanković” - National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, Department of Evolutionary Biology, Bulevar Despota Stefana 142, 11060 Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Aleksandar Urošević
- University of Belgrade, Institute for Biological Research “Siniša Stanković” - National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, Department of Evolutionary Biology, Bulevar Despota Stefana 142, 11060 Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Evgeny S. Roitberg
- Zoological Research Museum Alexander Koenig, Adenauerallee 160, 53113 Bonn, Germany
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Muñoz MM, Feeley KJ, Martin PH, Farallo VR. The multidimensional (and contrasting) effects of environmental warming on a group of montane tropical lizards. Funct Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13950] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Martha M. Muñoz
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Yale University New Haven CT USA
| | | | - Patrick H. Martin
- Department of Biological Sciences University of Denver Denver CO USA
| | - Vincent R. Farallo
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Yale University New Haven CT USA
- Biology Department University of Scranton Scranton PA USA
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Laird MK, Thompson MB, Whittington CM. Facultative oviparity in a viviparous skink ( Saiphos equalis). Biol Lett 2019; 15:20180827. [PMID: 30940025 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2018.0827] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Facultative changes in parity mode (oviparity to viviparity and vice versa) are rare in vertebrates, yet offer fascinating opportunities to investigate the role of reproductive lability in parity mode evolution. Here, we report apparent facultative oviparity by a viviparous female of the bimodally reproductive skink Saiphos equalis-the first report of different parity modes within a vertebrate clutch. Eggs oviposited facultatively possess shell characteristics of both viviparous and oviparous S. equalis, demonstrating that egg coverings for viviparous embryos are produced by the same machinery as those for oviparous individuals. Since selection may act in either direction when viviparity has evolved recently, squamate reproductive lability may confer a selective advantage. We suggest that facultative oviparity is a viable reproductive strategy for S. equalis and that squamate reproductive lability is more evolutionarily significant than previously acknowledged.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melanie K Laird
- 1 Department of Anatomy, University of Otago , Dunedin , New Zealand.,2 School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney , Sydney , Australia
| | - Michael B Thompson
- 2 School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney , Sydney , Australia
| | - Camilla M Whittington
- 2 School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney , Sydney , Australia.,3 Sydney School of Veterinary Science, The University of Sydney , Sydney , Australia
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Pauliny A, Miller E, Rollings N, Wapstra E, Blomqvist D, Friesen CR, Olsson M. Effects of male telomeres on probability of paternity in sand lizards. Biol Lett 2019; 14:rsbl.2018.0033. [PMID: 30135115 PMCID: PMC6127112 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2018.0033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2018] [Accepted: 08/02/2018] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Standardized swim-up trials are used in in vitro fertilization clinics to select particularly motile spermatozoa in order to increase the probability of a successful fertilization. Such trials demonstrate that sperm with longer telomeres have higher motility and lower levels of DNA damage. Regardless of whether sperm motility, and successful swim-up to fertilization sites, is a direct or correlational effect of telomere length or DNA damage, covariation between telomere length and sperm performance predicts a relationship between telomere length and probability of paternity in sperm competition, a prediction that for ethical reasons cannot be tested on humans. Here, we test this prediction in sand lizards (Lacerta agilis) using experimental data from twice-mated females in a laboratory population, and telomere length in blood from the participating lizards. Female identity influenced paternity (while the mechanism was not identified), while relatively longer male telomeres predicted higher probability of paternity. We discuss potential mechanisms underpinning this result.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angela Pauliny
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Emily Miller
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sydney, Heydon-Laurence Building (A08), New South Wales 2006, Australia
| | - Nicky Rollings
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sydney, Heydon-Laurence Building (A08), New South Wales 2006, Australia
| | - Erik Wapstra
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart 7001, Australia
| | - Donald Blomqvist
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Chris R Friesen
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Wollongong, Australia
| | - Mats Olsson
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Sweden .,School of Biological Sciences, The University of Wollongong, Australia
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