Journal article
BEHAVIOR AND CONSPECIFIC INTERACTIONS OF NESTING GOPHER TORTOISES (GOPHERUS POLYPHEMUS)
Herpetological conservation and biology, Vol.12(2), pp.373-383
01 Aug 2017
Featured in Collection : UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
Abstract
Nesting behavior, including nest site selection, has important consequences for many egg-laying reptiles because it can influence egg depredation rates, embryonic development, and offspring characteristics. We investigated nesting behavior in a population of Gopher Tortoises (Gopherus polyphemus) inhabiting an old-growth Longleaf Pine (Pinus palustris) forest in southwest Georgia (USA) using time-lapse video cameras set to record nesting activity in front of tortoise burrows, where females often nest. Information on nesting in this species is primarily limited to frequency, seasonal timing, and location; actual nesting behavior remains incompletely described for wild individuals. Females engaged in nesting activity at their own burrows and at other burrows from 1000 to about 1800 during late May to mid June. Tortoises exhibited wide variation in nest site preparation activity, ranging from no preparation to circling and constructing a shallow depression. Nesting females faced away from burrows, braced with forelimbs, and used hindlimbs to dig nest cavities, arrange oviposited eggs, and initially cover nests. On average females spent 74 min constructing nests, but about twice as long manicuring nest sites thereafter. Manicuring females repeatedly nuzzled the ground, kicked dirt out of burrows onto nests and surrounding areas, and roughed up the soil, perhaps to assess and obscure olfactory and visual cues available to potential nest predators. Notably, on multiple occasions females abandoned nesting attempts in response to conspecifics. Additional observations of conspecific interactions at burrows, particularly aggressive mating attempts and female-female combat involving gravid individuals, further indicate that tortoises routinely interact in ways that can interfere with nesting and influence where individuals nest.
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Details
- Title
- BEHAVIOR AND CONSPECIFIC INTERACTIONS OF NESTING GOPHER TORTOISES (GOPHERUS POLYPHEMUS)
- Creators
- Thomas A. Radzio - Drexel Univ, Dept Biodivers Earth & Environm Sci, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USAJames A. Cox - Tall Timbers Res Stn & Land Conservancy, 13093 Henry Beadel Dr, Tallahassee, FL 32312 USAMichael P. O'Connor - Drexel University
- Publication Details
- Herpetological conservation and biology, Vol.12(2), pp.373-383
- Publisher
- Herpetological Conservation & Biology
- Number of pages
- 11
- Grant note
- Western Digital Foundation McLean Fellowship in Ornithology and Environmental Science from the Department of Biodiversity, Earth, and Environmental Science at Drexel University Biology Department at Drexel University National Aeronautical and Space Administration; National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA) Wade Tract Research Fund Minnesota Herpetological Society Betz Chair Endowment in Environmental Science at Drexel University Chicago Herpetological Society
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Biodiversity, Earth, and Environmental Science (BEES)
- Identifiers
- 991019170602404721
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- Web of Science research areas
- Zoology