Vivariums;reptiles;Agamid;Ctenophorus

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ctenophorus is a genus of lizards, also known as comb-bearing dragons, that contains the most diverse group of dragon lizards in Australia. Many of these have been grouped by a similar morphology. The informal names and groupings within this genus — rock, crevice-, ground, sand-, and bicycle-dragon — are named after the mythological creature, the dragon.

Ctenophorus :

Ctenophorus fordi, Mallee dragon

Ctenophorus

Scientific classification :

Kingdom:Animalia

Phylum:Chordata

Class:Reptilia

Order:Squamata

Suborder:Iguania

Family:Agamidae

Subfamily:Amphibolurinae

Genus:Ctenophorus
Fitzinger, 1843[1]

Ctenophorus nuchalis

Species :

There are 29 recognized species in the genus.[2]

Ctenophorus adelaidensis (Gray, 1841) – western heath dragon
Ctenophorus butleri (Storr, 1977)
Ctenophorus caudicinctus (Günther, 1875) – ring-tailed bicycle-dragon, ring-tailed dragon
Ctenophorus chapmani (Storr, 1977)
Ctenophorus clayi (Storr, 1967) – black-shouldered ground-dragon, black-collared dragon
Ctenophorus cristatus (Gray 1841) – crested bicycle-dragon, crested dragon, bicycle dragon
Ctenophorus decresii (A.M.C. Duméril & Bibron, 1837) – tawny crevice dragon, tawny dragon
Ctenophorus femoralis (Storr, 1965) – long-tailed sand-dragon
Ctenophorus fionni (Procter, 1923) – Peninsula crevice-dragon, Peninsula dragon
Ctenophorus fordi (Storr, 1965) – Mallee dragon, Mallee sand-dragon, Mallee military dragon
Ctenophorus gibba (Houston, 1974) – Bulldust ground-dragon, gibber dragon
Ctenophorus isolepis (Fischer, 1881) – central military dragon
Ctenophorus maculatus (Gray, 1831) – spotted military dragon, spotted dragon, spotted sand-dragon
Ctenophorus maculosus (F.J. Mitchell, 1948) – Lake Eyre dragon, salt-lake ground-dragon
Ctenophorus mckenziei (Storr, 1981) – dwarf bicycle-dragon, McKenzie's dragon
Ctenophorus mirrityana McLean et al., 2013
Ctenophorus nguyarna Doughty, Maryan, Melville & J. Austin, 2007 – Lake Disappointment dragon
Ctenophorus nuchalis (De Vis, 1884) – central netted dragon, central netted ground-dragon
Ctenophorus ornatus (Gray, 1845) – ornate dragon, ornate crevice-dragon
Ctenophorus parviceps (Storr, 1964)
Ctenophorus pictus (W. Peters, 1866) – painted dragon
Ctenophorus reticulatus (Gray, 1845) – western netted dragon, western netted ground-dragon
Ctenophorus rubens (Storr, 1965)
Ctenophorus rufescens (Stirling & Zietz, 1893) – rusty crevice-dragon, rusty dragon
Ctenophorus salinarum Storr, 1966 – saltpan ground-dragon, claypan dragon
Ctenophorus scutulatus (Stirling & Zietz, 1893) – lozenge-marked dragon, lozenge-marked bicycle-dragon
Ctenophorus tjantjalka Johnston, 1992 – ochre dragon
Ctenophorus vadnappa Houston, 1974 – red-barred crevice-dragon, red-barred dragon
Ctenophorus yinnietharra (Storr, 1981) – Yinnietharra crevice-dragon, Yinnietharra rock dragon

Nota bene: A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Ctenophorus.

Polymorphism :

This genus of lizards is known to display color polymorphism, when more than one color type is found within a population. It is believed that color polymorphism in this group has evolved as a result of a combination of sexual selection and natural selection.[3]

For the external links , refrences click here to read the full wikipedia article

Video :

Lake Disappointment Dragon (Ctenophorus nguyarna)

Species :

1- Ctenophorus decresii :

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ctenophorus decresii, also known as the Tawny Dragon, is a species of lizard commonly found in Australia.

They are a member of the Ctenophorus genus, which is a very diverse group of lizards found throughout the world. The entire genus of lizards is sexually dimorphic. Neck and overall coloration distinguishes male lizards from female and juvenile lizards.

Most often C. decresii are found in rocky areas throughout Australia. However, their habitat varies as they are found in a few distinct locations throughout Australia.[1] Scientists have identified the different populations of lizards as separate lineages due to their geographic isolation.[1] The three lineages of C. decresii are the northern, southern, and NSW lineages. The entire Ctenophorus genus maintains a generally constant body shape, adapted for the Australian climate.[1]

Ctenophorus decresii

Picture of the Tawny Dragon

Scientific classification :

Kingdom:Animalia

Phylum:Chordata

Class:Reptilia

Order:Squamata

Suborder:Iguania

Family:Agamidae

Genus:Ctenophorus

Species:C. decresii

Binomial name :

Ctenophorus decresii
(Duméril & Bibron, 1837)

Polymorphism

Ctenophorus decresii are known to display polymorphisms in their throat coloration.[2] Within the species of C. decresii, the morphs can range from grey and white to a bright red.[2] Some of the variants found throughout the world include multi-colored, grey, yellow, orange, blue and red throated lizards.[3] This variation comes from the diverse geographic locations C. decresii can be found in, such as, South Australia, New South Wales and other areas throughout Australia.[3] One geographic location may favor a certain throat color for C. decresii, while a different location may prefer a different color.[3]

Although there is a lot of diversity in throat colors, the color variants in the throats are discrete, meaning individual lizards morphology could be placed into specific categories [4] After using objective methods to identify the color morphs, statistical tests were run.[4]

The tests analyzed variation based on granularity, segmentation, and comparison with visual background.[4] One group of lizards had similar granularity, segmentation, and coloration.[4] Another group also had similar granularity, segmentation and coloration that differed from the first group. There were very few lizards with in between phenotypes.[4] However, within the categories, there still is slight variation in the shades of colors of the lizards.[4] Because throat coloration is a discrete trait, it is highly heritable. This is a key reason that the discrete color variation has been maintained over multiple generations. The offspring will have similar or the same coloration as the parents, therefore making the coloration carryout over generations.

C. decresii's diversity in discrete throat color may be caused by a combination of sexual selection and natural selection.[2]

The C. decresii throat colors can be classified into two main, discrete categories—dull and bright colored.[5] The dull colored throats give lizards a fitness advantage because the lizards are harder for predators, like birds, to see.[5] The dull throats allow the lizards to avoid predators and survive longer; therefore, this trait became more prevalent in that population of lizards.[5]

However, bright colored throats also give the lizards a fitness advantage because the bright colored throats attract more females, and therefore those males are more likely to reproduce.[5] Although the bright colored throats increases the likelihood of being eaten by predators, it also increases their sexual success.[5] Therefore, the prevalence of bright colored throats is maintained in this population of lizards.[5] Based on the conflicting benefits of dull and bright colored throats, it is understandable that both morphs have been maintained in this species.[5] Both traits give the lizards a different evolutionary advantage.

For the external links , refrences click here to read the full wikipedia article

Video :

Tawny Dragon in wild attacks camera

Tawny Dragon

Relating motion signals of dragon lizards to habitat characteristics

Other websites :

- jeb.biologists.org/content/218/10/1556.figures-only

- reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Ctenophorus&species=decresii

- bie.ala.org.au/species/urn:lsid:biodiversity.org.au:afd.taxon:dd7ab119-1023-4716-bb5c-3ad71c742fd8

- reptilesofaustralia.com/lizards/agamids/cdecresii.htm#.WSE4sGiGPIU

Ctenophorus decresii — Tawny Dragon

courtesy to : www.wildherps.com/species/C.decresii.html

My first agamid of South Australia was this mid-sized male Tawny Dragon eyeing me warily from a rock. It didn't let me get any closer before rushing to the back side of the rock and finding a way underneath. This species is one of a group of "rock dragons" for whom this is standard behavior.

The next day I saw a female (probably gravid) and a more colorful male. The female held her position while I snuck up on her, took photos, and then backed away. The male wasn't so sanguine; it first did some push-ups to try to impress me I guess, and then scrambled away behind the rock. I was more impressed with its pretty colors than with its push-ups, I must say.

The day after that was a Tawny Dragon bonanza. On a rocky hillside trail, I saw several females and at least a dozen males. The females were better at hiding, because they didn't feel the need to show off their bravado and beautiful colors the way the males did. The first photo above is a female, and the others are males in order of increasing beauty. Note that the second-to-last male has at least three large ticks trying to deplete his masculine glory: one on the chest, one in the ear, and one on the top of the head. It's not easy being a lizard!

A couple of days after that, further north, I found another thriving population of Tawny Dragons on another rocky hillside hike. The first two pictured are females, and the rest are males (but you knew that by now, right?).

Printed references:

Cogger, H. G. 2014. Reptiles & Amphibians of Australia, Seventh Edition
Wilson, S. and Swan, G. 2013. A Complete Guide to Reptiles of Australia, Fourth Edition

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