On the flick of the tongue: male island and mainland lizards' responses to self and conspecific chemical stimuli
(2025) Journal of Zoology — Vol. 327, n° 2, p. 207-219 (2025)
Files
gavriilidi_et_al___2025_-_on_the_flick_of_the_tongue_male_island_and_mainland_lizards_responses_to_self_and_conspecific_chem.pdf
Open Access - Adobe PDF
- 516.71 KB
Details
- Authors
Gavriilidi, Ioanna 
Van Damme, Raoul
- Abstract
- Self and conspecific recognition allows many animals to effectively navigate complex social environments. However, these discriminatory abilities come with substantial sensory and neurological costs and therefore should be more prevalent in populations where recognizing self-other and individual cues is essential. Populations on islands may experience reduced benefits from self and conspecific recognition due to the distinct ecological and social conditions of insular life (e.g. high population densities, decreased territoriality, minimal hybridization risk, challenging signalling environment). To test this hypothesis, we compared the discriminatory abilities for self and conspecific chemical recognition of mainland and island Italian wall lizards (Podarcis siculus), a species much dependent on chemoreception. We sampled lizards from three locations on the Italian mainland and three Adriatic islands and assessed their tongue flick behavior when confronted with water (control), their own odour, or that of conspecifics. Our results indicated that both mainland and island lizards could discriminate between their own scents and those of other individuals within their population, as well as between two distinct individuals, as evidenced by significant increases in tongue-flick rates. This indicates self-other and conspecific recognition on the basis of chemical cues, in both mainland and island populations. However, we do find some evidence of chemosensory deprivation in the island populations, as increases in tongue flick rates were lower in island lizards compared to mainland lizards. In addition, island lizards tongue flicked at much lower rates than mainland lizards, suggesting a reduced use of the chemosensory channel in insular conditions. Nevertheless, if insular lizards have a chemosensory deficiency, it does not seem to jeopardize self and conspecific chemical recognition.
- Affiliations
Citations
Gavriilidi, I., Baeckens, S., Van Linden, L., & Van Damme, R. (2025). On the flick of the tongue: male island and mainland lizards’ responses to self and conspecific chemical stimuli. Journal of Zoology, 327(2), 207-219. https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.70046 (Original work published 2025)