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Parthenogenesis is a mode of asexual reproduction in which offspring are produced by females without the genetic contribution of a male. Among all the sexual vertebrates, the only examples of true parthenogenesis, in which all-female populations reproduce without the involvement of males, are found in squamate reptiles (snakes and lizards). [1]
In species that use the XY sex-determination system, parthenogenetic offspring have two X chromosomes and are female. In species that use the ZW sex-determination system the offspring genotype may be one of ZW (female), [28] [29] ZZ (male), or WW (non-viable in most species, [31] but a fertile, [dubious – discuss] viable female in a few, e.g ...
Females in many lizard species have the choice to mate with or reject males. [14] Females spend energy in investigating a male's traits in order to determine if he is healthy and has good genes. [14] In the species Side-blotched lizard (Uta stansburiana), males chosen by females had 76 percent less ectoparasites. [15]
The New Mexico whiptail (Aspidoscelis neomexicanus) is a female-only species of lizard found in New Mexico and Arizona in the southwestern United States, and in Chihuahua in northern Mexico. It is the official state reptile of New Mexico. [2] It is one of many lizard species known to be parthenogenetic.
Female also use cloaca for elimination of digestive waste and for reproduction. For female lizards, the cloaca is the external genital opening for the genital canal, equivalent to vagina in mammals. Copulation is performed through cloacal kiss, in which the male and female press their cloacas together as the male discharges sperm.
These species consist of all females who reproduce asexually with no need for males. This is known to occur in various species of whiptail lizards. [25] Parthenogenesis was also recorded in species that normally reproduce sexually. A captive female Komodo dragon produced a clutch of eggs, despite being separated from males for over two years. [26]
Adult males have a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of 68 mm (2.7 in) and females have a snout-to-vent length of 45 mm (1.8 in). [5] Adult body weight is three to seven grams. [6] The body is a brown or olive-brown color with brown spots randomly along its length. This species also has a yellow-brown dewlap and blue eyes. Males have crested tails. [4]
Body size for the female lizard could be a sought after trait and could be a factor in sexual selection and choosing a mate, a male may go after a larger female knowing that they will produce a larger number of offspring which will help them carry on their genes. There is also a relationship between the environment that the clutch is hatched in ...