1,721,038 research outputs found
Cavallaro (C), Zuffi (M.), Gagliardi (L.), 1984. — Isola Salina ; Ipotesi di assetto territoriale
No full textMagagnosc J.S. Cavallaro (C), Zuffi (M.), Gagliardi (L.), 1984. — Isola Salina ; Ipotesi di assetto territoriale. In: Norois, n°129, Janvier-Mars 1986. p. 124
Analisi biometrica di una popolazione di Testuggine palustre europea (Emys orbicularis) nella Riserva Naturale “Lago Preola e Gorghi Tondi” (Sicilia sudoccidentale)
No full text
Sexual dimorphism in the Moorish gecko (Tarentola mauritanica, Gekkota, Phyllodactylidae): body size and head shape characteristics
No full textTwo main adaptive hypotheses are invoked for the evolution of SD: sexual selection and natural selection. In snakes SD is generally interpreted as the adaptation of the two sexes to different ecological niches, whereas in lizards sexual and ecological causes may work simultaneously, with different outcomes according to taxonomic group. Surprisingly, geckos have been almost ignored in the general debate over the evolution of SD, despite their being an extremely diversified taxon with over 1300 species showing a wide range of variability in SD. The Moorish gecko is one of those species whose dimorphism is poorly studied. We took an integrated approach using a linear (biometrical) analysis on head and body size of 157 geckos and a relatively new analytical approach (geometric morphometry) to assess head size of 38 geckos from central Italy. Males were, on average, larger and heavier than females, and body size relationships differed between age classes showing a significant SD between sexes. When controlling for snout to vent length, sexes differed only in body mass and eye diameter (larger in males). Head shape, on the contrary, showed differences according to age classes, with deep differences in hatchlings compared to adults and, among adults, between sexes. However, the growth trajectories did not differ among sexes, and SD of head shape is probably due to a more prolonged growth of the males with respect to the females. The male-biased pattern of SD in this species is most parsimoniously interpreted as the result of sexual selection, whereby larger head and body size probably confer a greater advantage to males during combats and courtship, rather than conferring independent adaptations to different ecological pressures to each sex
Studio longitudinale sulle modificazioni scheletriche indotte da terapia con doppia placca di Falconi
No full textAge and sex based differences in the head shape of Moorish geckos: a geometric morphometric approach
No full textA long-term study of a snake community in north-western Tuscany (Central Italy): Population structure and density patterns
No full textWe analysed a snake species community of a Mediterranean 0.2 ha ecotonal area during a 21 year time span, monitoring two colubrid and one viperid snake species. We carried out analyses in seven years (1997, 1999, 2002, 2004–2005, 2016–2017) that had similar sampling efforts and, in the last two years of short-term monitoring, we applied a recently proposed monitoring protocol of the Italian Environment Ministry. In total, we captured 172 distinct individuals, 61 whip snakes (Hierophis viridiflavus), 26 barred grass snakes (Natrix helvetica) and 85 asp vipers (Vipera aspis). Regarding the long-term monitoring period, whip snakes were captured on average about nine times per year, grass snakes were captured four times per year and asp vipers were found 12 times per year. Captures decreased in whip snakes, while increased in grass snakes and remained constant in asp vipers. In 2016 and 2017, we captured 10 whip snakes, 19 grass snakes and 31 asp vipers. Density estimates of snake species (0.5 H. viridiflavus/ha, 0.3 N. helvetica/ha and 0.7 V. aspis/ha) differ, to a certain extent, from published results for some other areas of central, northern and western Europe, perhaps depending on the approach applied for habitat suitability estimation. The average body size between two years differed neither for whip snakes nor for grass snakes, but it decreased significantly in asp vipers
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