Ecologia de mabuya frenata (Sauria, scincidade) em uma area de afloramentos rochosos no sudeste do Brasil

AUTOR(ES)
DATA DE PUBLICAÇÃO

1995

RESUMO

Mabuya frenata is a relatively common skink in the area of Fazenda Manga, Valinhos, SP, which has a highly seasonal climate. In this study, various aspects of its ecology (activity, thermal ecology, habitat use and diet) were analysed in the area at issue. Its activity comprised almost all diurnal period and differed between seasons, being more uniform along the day in the rainy season than in the dry season. The mean body temperature of active M frenata was 31,6 ± 3,2 °C and was correlated to those of the air and substrate where it occurs, although direct insulation is also a presumably important source of heat for this lizard. Unlike environmental temperatures, the mean activity temperature of M frenata did not differ among seasons, which, combined with field observations, suggests that this lizard thermorregulates actively. The microhabitat preferred for M frenata were granitic boulders, which abound in the area. Its diet included a great variety of arthropods, although termites were the dominant items. The diet of M frenata did not differ between seasons and was related to prey availability in the environment. There were also no sexual differences in diet composition, although females apparently consume a wider spectrum of prey sizes, probably because they attain larger adult size. The data indicated that the ecological aspects of M frenata like foraging strategy, diet, and active body temperature are intermediate compared to other species of lizard whose ecological tendencies are relatively clear-cut

ASSUNTO(S)

lagarto corpo - temperatura - regulação habitat (ecologia)

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