The British Herpetological Society

The Herpetological Journal is the Society's prestigious quarterly scientific journal. Articles are listed in Biological Abstracts, Current Awareness in Biological Sciences,Current Contents, Science Citation Index, and Zoological Record.

 ISSN 0268-0130

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pdf 07. The relationship between body mass and snout–vent length in three species of Mabuya from eastern Brazil

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pp. 43-47
Authors: Vrcibradic, Davor; Rocha, Carlos Frederico D. & Rocha-Barbosa, Oscar

Abstract: Little information exists on the allometric relationship between body mass and snout-vent length (SVL) in lizards, in spite of the relevance of that relationship for the understanding of morphological and ecological parameters. In this study we analyzed the mass-SVL relationship for three Brazilian scincid species (Mabuya agilis, M. macrorhyncha and M. frenata). Our results were indicative of negative allometry for both sexes in all three species, suggesting a general tendency for a relative reduction in bulk as the animal grows. The slopes and intercepts of the regression line did not differ between the sexes in any of the species, except M. macrorhyncha, in which the intercepts differed (suggesting that females would tend to be relatively less robust than males). When the analyses were repeated including juvenile individuals (previously excluded from the data set), the regression for M. agilis tended towards isometry, though it did not change for the remaining species. The results of the present study differ from those found for other Scincidae (including the congener M. heathi), which generally tended towards isometry or positive allometry. We also indicate that mass-SVL regressions may give different results for the same lizard species, depending on whether immature specimens are included or not in the analyses.

Keywords: GROWTH, ALLOMETRY, BRAZIL, SCINCIDAE

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IMPORTANT NOTE - JUNE 2020

Please note that as from Volume 31 Number 1 (January 2021) on, the Herpetological Journal will be available as an online publication only - the last print edition will be Volume 30 Number 4.   

Aligning with this change, it is now no longer possible to purchase a subscription that includes a print copy of the HJ.  All members who have existing HJ print subscriptions that remain active as at end June 2020 will receive the full four 2020 print editions.  New subscribers or renewals after this time will only have option to subscribe to the online only subscription package.  Subscription pricing has been amended to reflect the content changes.

 

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