Banca de DEFESA: MARIA JAQUELINE MONTE DE ANDRADE

Uma banca de DEFESA de DOUTORADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
DISCENTE : MARIA JAQUELINE MONTE DE ANDRADE
DATA : 17/12/2018
HORA: 14:00
LOCAL: Sala Darwin
TÍTULO:

Behavioral ecology of Hemidactylus agrius Vanzolini, 1978 e H. brasilianus (Amaral, 1935) (Squamata: Gekkonidae) in areas of Caatinga in the northeastern of Brazil

PALAVRAS-CHAVES:

Foraging behavior; Trophic ecology; Behavior thermoregulation; Period of activity; Space use by lizards.

PÁGINAS: 101
GRANDE ÁREA: Ciências Humanas
ÁREA: Psicologia
RESUMO:

Lizards have been widely used in studies of behavioral ecology across the world. Although species belonging to the Gekkonidae Family are known to be sit-and-wait foragers, studies have shown that some groups present modulations in the foraging behavior. In two native species of Hemidactylus that occurr in the northeastern region of Brazil (H. agrius and H. brasilianus), data about the trophic ecology demonstrate the presence of nutrition itens of low mobility, which are uncommon in the diets of species of sit-and-wait foraging type. Adding to that, information referring to activity profiles, termal ecology and thermoregulation behavior in those species remain unclear. Another relevant matter concerns to the distribution of those species across the domain of Caatingas, since, even though they occur in simpatry in highland areas, in some areas of the “Sertaneja Depressão” there is the presence of only one species, which could be related to the specificities in the use and sharing of resources. In this sense, this thesis has as objective to analyse the foraging and thermoregulation behaviors of Hemidactylus agrius and H. brasilianus, as well as the use of resources by both species in the Caatinga. For such reason, 18-day long excursions were taken in two areas of Caatinga with distinct traits, located in the municipalities of Lagoa Nova and Serra Negra do Norte, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. In the first area (“Caatinga Serrana”) both Hemidactylus species occurr in simpatry, while in the second (“Caatinga Stricto sensu”) one there is only the presence of H. agrius. Nocturnal active searches were carried out along preexisting transects (600m). For each registered animal, notes were taken about time, habitat and micro-habitat and behavioral observations were taken by focal-animal sampling method, during 10 minutes. After which the specimens were captured and body temperature (Tc), substract temperature (Ts) and air temperature (Ta) were assessed. Results showed that both species are foragers of the sit-and-wait type, remaining in stationary posture during most of the observed time with low activity rates (PTM ≤ 1,6%; MPM ≤ 0,3; e NAP ≤ 0,3).  In the diet analysis, 20 categories of prey were registered, where Orthoptera, Blattaria and Lepidoptera larvae were the main itens in both investigated areas. Furthermore, unprecedented cases of keratophagy and malocophagy were registered on both species of Hemidactylus. Seasonal differences in the diet were noted only on the H. agrius population in the ESEC Seridó; there were no sexual and interpopulational differences related to volume and number of consumed preys on the populations. Hemidactylus agrius presented a larger trophic niche and high values of overlapping between both species were obtained, especially when in sympatry. In relation to activity, both species are nocturnal with registered activity from 18:00h to 05:00h. Concerning the habitat use, H. brasilianus has used mainly areas of tree and shrubs vegetation, while H. agrius used mostly areas of rocky outcrops. The average body temperature (Tb) of H. brasilianus and H. agrius in activity in the highland area were the same at Tb = 22.8 °C and Tb = 23.2° C, while the Tb of H. agrius in the typical Caatinga was considerably higher (Tb = 26.2 °C); positive correlations were obtained between the body temperatures of the species and both environmental analysed temperatures (air and substract). In relation to the behavioral degree of thermoregulation, the values obtained from both species were relatively low (Δ < 1), indicating that the behaviors of both species have a low influence on the body temperature maintenance in those environments.

MEMBROS DA BANCA:
Externo à Instituição - DANIEL CUNHA PASSOS - UFERSA
Externo ao Programa - 1121066 - ELIZA MARIA XAVIER FREIRE
Externo à Instituição - LEONARDO BARROS RIBEIRO - UNIVASF
Externo ao Programa - 350638 - MARIA DE FATIMA ARRUDA DE MIRANDA
Externo ao Programa - 2569078 - RAFAEL CAMILO LAIA