PHYMATURUS PALLUMA (Hight Mountain Lizard). COPROPHAGY.

VICENZI, N

HERPETOLOGICAL REVIEW

Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles

Año: 2015 vol. 46 p. 93 - 93

0018-084X

Phymaturus palluma is a medium-sized, saxicolous, herbivorous, and viviparous lizard that inhabits the Altoandina phytogeographic province in the Andes Highlands, Argentina. During the summer 2014 I observed juveniles of P. palluma eating small bites of fecal pellets at the Aconcagua Provincial Park, Mendoza, Argentina (32.8453°S, 69.7619°W, WGS84; 2480 m elev.). After recording this behavior, I approached to get a closer view, and I saw that the feces, based on size, were of adult individuals of this species. This is the first record of coprophagy in Phymaturus lizards. This behavior was reported in the herbivorous lizards Sauromalus obesus and Iguana iguana (Montanucci 1999. Herpetol. Rev. 30[4]:221?222; Troyer 1982. Science 216:540?542), which shows an association of hatchlings with adults of the same species similar to P. palluma. It has been demonstrated that coprophagy in I. iguana is related to the transfer of anaerobic gut symbiotic microbes that are utilized for effective degradation of plant materials. Possession of more complex microflora was associated with improved growth rate and digestive efficiency (Troyer 1982, op. cit.). Symbiotic microbes of P. palluma have not been studied. Phymaturus palluma shows social behaviors between juveniles and adults (Videla 1982. Bol. Mus. Cienc. Nat. Antropol. 3:57?62), similar to those in other lizards where transfer of microflora occurs; therefore, transfers of symbiotic microflora from parents to offspring via coprophagy might be possible