Thomas, J (2022) Phenotypic variation and sexual dimorphism of the Madeiran wall lizard (Tiera dugesii). Other thesis, Liverpool John Moores University.

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Abstract

The Madeiran wall lizard, Teira dugesii (Milne-Edwards, 1829) is an endemic lizard of the Madeiran archipelago and is widely dispersed throughout different environments. The previous reports of morphological variation of T.dugesii within Madeira have not provided clear patterns but prompted this research into sexual and environment-related differences in morphology. For this study, geometric morphometrics (GMM) techniques combined with phenotypic trajectory analysis were applied to investigate the dorsal and lateral head shape morphology of T. dugesii. Univariate and multivariate statistical analyses were conducted to assess sexual dimorphism within the species and identify if ecological adaptations towards intertidal and terrestrial habitats occurred in the T. dugesii populations across four different localities within Madeira.
Sexual dimorphism accounted for the largest proportion of size and shape variation in head morphology. Males exhibited a larger and more robust head shape compared to that of females which displayed relatively more petite and slender head shapes. Intertidal/terrestrial habitats were associated with head shape variation between sexes. Specimens from terrestrial environments also consistently had larger heads compared to intertidal specimens from the same locality. Additionally, phenotypic trajectory analysis revealed habitat differences in head morphology, again supporting parallel phenotypic divergence across localities between lizards from terrestrial and intertidal habitats.

Item Type:	Thesis (Other)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Sexual Dimorphism; Phenotypic Variation; Geometric Morphometrics; Ecomorphology; Phenotypic trajectory analysis
Subjects:	Q Science > QH Natural history > QH301 Biology Q Science > QL Zoology
Divisions:	Biological & Environmental Sciences (from Sep 19)
SWORD Depositor:	A Symplectic
Date Deposited:	14 Oct 2022 09:01
Last Modified:	14 Oct 2023 00:50
DOI or ID number:	10.24377/LJMU.t.00017795
Supervisors:	Meloro, C and Brown, R
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/17795

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