Sexual body size and body shape dimorphism of Testudo hermanni in central and eastern Serbia

2011 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 445-458 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marko Djurakíc ◽  
Sonja Djordjevíc ◽  
Xavier Bonnet ◽  
Ljiljana Tomovíc ◽  
Rastko Ajtíc ◽  
...  

AbstractHermann's tortoise (Testudo hermanni) is widely distributed in western and southern Europe. Most populations in the western part of the distribution range (e.g. Spain, France, Italy) are severely reduced, and relatively well studied, whilst the species is still abundant in eastern areas (i.e. the Balkans). However, essential biological information (e.g. main morphological, ecological, and behavioural characteristics) for the Balkans are still extremely limited. As reptiles exhibit strong geographic variation in most morphological, as well as life history traits, gathering data from distant areas is important. We present data from two populations of T. hermanni in Serbia, focusing on sexual dimorphism in body size and body shape. We found that almost all of the 43 morphological traits analysed were significantly different between sexes and that sexual size and sexual shape dimorphisms were not expressed in similar ways. Notably, sexual size dimorphism (SSD) was more pronounced than sexual shape dimorphism (SShD). Our analyses suggested that SShD is more stable than SSD, and that the scale of the focus (i.e. whole body proportions versus morphological details) is a key factor to test this notion. When general measurements were considered, the expected consistency of SShD between populations was verified; nevertheless, when more specific morphological attributes were considered, substantial variations were observed. These results provide a baseline for comparisons between populations to further examine geographic variation of sexual dimorphism.

Zootaxa ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4614 (1) ◽  
pp. 180
Author(s):  
HÉLCIO R. GIL-SANTANA ◽  
DIEGO L. CARPINTERO

There are 22 genera and more than 100 described species of Ectrichodiinae in the New World (Gil-Santana et al. 2015). Intraspecific variation in coloration and body size have been recorded in several species of the subfamily. These characteristics can occur in the same population or can suggest geographic variation of the same species (Wygodzinsky 1951, Dougherty 1995, Gil-Santana & Baena 2009, Gil-Santana et al. 2013). Sexual dimorphism is also common: females are almost always more or less larger than males, frequently have thicker fore femora and smaller eyes and ocelli (Dougherty 1995). 


2005 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 127-137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helga Wiederhecker ◽  
Adriana Pinto ◽  
Guarino Colli

AbstractWe describe the sexual dimorphism in coloration, body shape, and body size in Tropidurus torquatus, a widely distributed lizard species in central Brazil. Adult males have colored patches varying from yellow to yellow-and-black, and black on the abdomen, ventral aspect of the thighs, and pre-cloacal flap. Adult females lack ventral colored patches. During ontogeny, there is a gradual darkening of the patches, but no modification either in patch size or color is associated with the reproductive cycle. Adult males have wider heads and thinner bodies than females of the same body size. Males and females grow at the same rate prior to sexual maturity, but males take longer to reach sexual maturity, maturing at a larger body size than females.


1996 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 19 ◽  
Author(s):  
DG Quin ◽  
AP Smith ◽  
TW Norton

Geographic variation iri body size and sexual dimorphism, as determined by measurements of condylo-basal length, was investigated in the sugar glider (Petaurus breviceps) and the squirrel glider (P. norfolcensis). Correlation and multiple regression analyses were employed to determine whether geographic or climatic variables accounted for more of this size variation. The effects of age and sex were removed from analyses prior to applying statistical techniques. Numerous geographic and climatic variables were correlated with size variation in both species. Both species followed a clinal change in body size consistent with Bergmann's rule (i.e. both species were larger in the south of their ranges where temperatures are colder). One geographic variable, latitude, and three climatic variables representing temperature, precipitation and seasonality, were then selected for multiple regression analyses. Latitude accounted for more of this size variation (20-28%) in P. breviceps than climatic variables in four multiple regression models (considering two age and two sex classes). This result indicated that an isolation-by-distance model was operating in this species which was attributed to the oceanic barriers between the Australian mainland and New Guinea and Tasmania, causing genetic differentiation between isolated populations. Once latitude was removed from the analyses, temperature accounted for more of the variation (18-24%) in body size in three regressions, whilst precipitation (11%) contributed significantly to the remaining model. This result was interpreted as an adaptation to ambient temperature following Bergmann's rule. When using both geographic and climatic variables, latitude accounted for more size variation (47-69%) than climatic variables in two regressions for P. norfolcensis, whilst seasonality accounted for more variation (26-46%) in the remaining two regressions. When latitude was excluded From the analyses, seasonality (body size decreases with increasing seasonality) accounted for more variation in size in three of four regressions (26-46%), whilst precipitation (60%) accounted for the most variation in the fourth regression. These findings for P. norfolcensis suggested that large body size may be an advantage in aseasonal environments where climates and therefore foods are less predictable. Latitude and precipitation both contributed significantly to the degree of sexual dimorphism exhibited across the range of P. breviceps, suggesting that an isolation-by-distance model and primary productivity account for some of the change in sexual dimorphism in this species. Both these variables were more important than temperature and average sexual dimorphism was greater in the tropics. The relationship with primary productivity implies that in areas where food is more abundant, males attempt to grow larger in order to enhance fighting ability for access to food and mates. In contrast, females channel extra energy towards offspring production, not body size, in order to minimise energy costs during reproduction. Character displacement did not appear to influence body size variation in the two Petaurus species.


Medicina ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 57 (3) ◽  
pp. 191
Author(s):  
Kangho Kim ◽  
Denny Eun ◽  
Yong-Seok Jee

Background and Objectives: This study investigated the various impulse effects of whole-body electromyostimulation (WB-EMS) on psychophysiological responses and adaptations. Materials and Methods: The participants included fifty-four men between 20 and 27 years of age who practiced isometric exercises for 20 min, three days a week, for 12 weeks while wearing WB-EMS suits, which enabled the simultaneous activation of eight muscle groups with three types of impulse intensities. Participants were allocated to one of four groups: control group (CON), low-impulse-intensity group (LIG), mid-impulse-intensity group (MIG), and high-impulse-intensity group (HIG). Psychophysiological conditions were measured at week 0, week 4, week 8, and week 12. Results: Compared with the CON, (1) three psychological conditions in LIG, MIG, and HIG showed positive tendencies every four weeks, and the analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) test revealed that body image (p = 0.004), body shape (p = 0.007), and self-esteem (p = 0.001) were significantly different among the groups. (2) Body weight, fat mass, body mass index, and percent fat in the CON showed decreasing tendencies, whereas those in LIG, MIG, and HIG showed a noticeable decrease, which revealed that there were significant differences among the groups. Specifically, a higher impulse intensity resulted in a greater increase in muscle mass. (3) Although there was no interaction effect in the abdominal visceral fat area, there were significant interactions in the abdominal subcutaneous fat (ASF) and total fat (ATF) areas. Both the ASF and ATF in the CON showed decreasing tendencies, whereas those in other groups showed a noticeable decrease. The ANCOVA revealed that the ASF (p = 0.002) and ATF (p = 0.001) were significantly different among the groups. In particular, the higher the impulse intensity, the greater the decrease in abdominal fat. Conclusions: This study confirmed that high-impulse-intensity EMS can improve psychophysiological conditions. In other words, healthy young adults felt that the extent to which their body image, body shape, and self-esteem improved depended on how intense their EMS impulse intensities were. The results also showed that higher levels of impulse intensity led to improved physical conditions.


2007 ◽  
Vol 85 (12) ◽  
pp. 1275-1285 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastián P. Luque ◽  
Edward H. Miller ◽  
John P.Y. Arnould ◽  
Magaly Chambellant ◽  
Christophe Guinet

Pre- and post-weaning functional demands on body size and shape of mammals are often in conflict, especially in species where weaning involves a change of habitat. Compared with long lactations, brief lactations are expected to be associated with fast rates of development and attainment of adult traits. We describe allometry and growth for several morphological traits in two closely related fur seal species with large differences in lactation duration at a sympatric site. Longitudinal data were collected from Antarctic ( Arctocephalus gazella (Peters, 1875); 120 d lactation) and subantarctic ( Arctocephalus tropicalis (Gray, 1872); 300 d lactation) fur seals. Body mass was similar in neonates of both species, but A. gazella neonates were longer, less voluminous, and had larger foreflippers. The species were similar in rate of preweaning growth in body mass, but growth rates of linear variables were faster for A. gazella pups. Consequently, neonatal differences in body shape increased over lactation, and A. gazella pups approached adult body shape faster than did A. tropicalis pups. Our results indicate that preweaning growth is associated with significant changes in body shape, involving the acquisition of a longer, more slender body with larger foreflippers in A. gazella. These differences suggest that A. gazella pups are physically more mature at approximately 100 d of age (close to weaning age) than A. tropicalis pups of the same age.


2014 ◽  
Vol 154 (2) ◽  
pp. 259-269 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heather M. Garvin ◽  
Sabrina B. Sholts ◽  
Laurel A. Mosca
Keyword(s):  

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1969 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 459-459
Author(s):  
T. E. C.

I know of no contemporary pediatrician who believes that the cutting of deciduous teeth causes skin rashes. But, almost all the great figures in the history of pediatrics believed firmly that teething was associated with a riety of rashes. Michael Underwood, who more than anyone else laid the foundation of modern pediatrics, wrote about tooth-rashes as follows: A very common rash, appears chiefly in teething children, which yery much resembles the measles, and has been sometimes mistaken for it. It is preceded by sickness at the stomach, but is attended by very little fever; though the rash continues very florid for three days, like the measles, but does not dry off in the manner of that disease. . . . While the double or eye-teeth are cutting, I have noticed a rash Which at its first appearance is very similar to the above, and has likewise been mistaken for the measles. It, however, soon spreads into larger spots and patches of bright red, and afterwards of a darker hue, resembling the ill-looking petechiae which appear in bad fevers, but is, nevertheless, of a benign nature. It is, indeed, attended with some fever, arising possibly from the irritation occasioned by teething, and has been followed by small and hard round tumours on the legs, which softening in two or three days, always appear as if they would suppurate, though I believe they never do . . . [? erythema nodosum, T. E. C., Jr.] I have seen a third kind of rash, in appearance resembling the measles, and, like it, covering the whole body, but with larger intermediate patches, like the eruption in the scarlet fever. . . .


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