Lizard Reproduction: Habitat Specificity and Constraints on Relative Clutch Mass

Abstract

The iguanid lizard Platynotus semitaeniatus is adapted morphologically and behaviorally to utilize rock crevices to escape predation. Attendant reproductive adaptations reveal an adaptive compromise in which costs incurred from reduced reproductive investment per episode are outweighed by advantages associated with use of a relative predator-free refugium, thereby increasing adult survivorship and thus lifetime reproductive success.