041 Learned Lizards

Herpetological Highlights

Smart lizards!? Traditionally, lizards are thought of as simple, but this episode we look at some smart skinks whose intelligence allows them to learn from each other. We look at a couple factors that influence that itelligence. FULL REFERENCE LIST AVAILABLE AT: herphighlights.podbean.com

Main Paper References:

Munch, K. L., Noble, D. W. A., Botterill-James, T., Koolhof, I. S., Halliwell, B., Wapstra, E., & While, G. M. (2018). Maternal effects impact decision-making in a viviparous lizard. Biology Letters, 14(4), 20170556. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2017.0556

Whiting, M. J., Xu, F., Kar, F., Riley, J. L., Byrne, R. W., & Noble, D. W. A. (2018). Evidence for Social Learning in a Family Living Lizard. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 6(May). https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2018.00070

Species of the Bi-Week:

Grismer, L. L., Wood, P. L., Lim, K. K. P., & Liang, L. J. (2017). A new species of swamp-dwelling skink (Tytthoscincus) from Singapore and Peninsular Malaysia. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology, 65(October), 574–584.

Other Mentioned Papers/Studies:

Beck, B. B. (1967). A Study of Problem Solving By Gibbons. Behaviour, 28(1–2), 95–109. https://doi.org/10.1163/156853967X00190

Dayananda, B., & Webb, J. K. (2017). Incubation under climate warming affects learning ability and survival in hatchling lizards. Biology Letters, 13(3). https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2017.0002

Duckett, P. E., Morgan, M. H., & Stow, A. J. (2012). Tree-dwelling populations of the skink Egernia striolata aggregate in groups of close kin. Copeia, 2012(1), 130-134.

Gardner, M. G., Hugall, A. F., Donnellan, S. C., Hutchinson, M. N., & Foster, R. (2008). Molecular systematics of social skinks: phylogeny and taxonomy of the Egernia group (Reptilia: Scincidae). Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 154(4), 781-794.

Munch, K. L., Noble, D. W. A., Wapstra, E., & While, G. M. (2018). Mate familiarity and social learning in a monogamous lizard. Oecologia, 188(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-018-4153-z

Riley, J. L., Küchler, A., Damasio, T., Noble, D. W. A., Byrne, R. W., & Whiting, M. J. (2018). Learning ability is unaffected by isolation rearing in a family-living lizard. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 72(2), 20. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-017-2435-9

Riley, J. L., Noble, D. W. A., Byrne, R. W., & Whiting, M. J. (2017). Early social environment influences the behaviour of a family-living lizard. Royal Society Open Science, 4(5), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.161082

Music:

Intro/outro – Treehouse by Ed Nelson

Other Music – The Passion HiFi, www.thepassionhifi.com