Chemical signatures of femoral pore secretions in two syntopic but reproductively isolated species of Galápagos land iguanas (Conolophus marthae and C. subcristatus)
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Issue Date
2020Author
Colosimo, GiulianoDi Marco, Gabriele
D’Agostino, Alessia
Gismondi, Angelo
Vera, Carlos A.
Gerber, Glenn P.
Scardi, Michele
Canini, Antonella
Gentile, Gabriele
Journal title
Scientific ReportsVolume
10Issue
1Begin page
14314
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Show full item recordAbstract
The only known population of Conolophus marthae (Reptilia, Iguanidae) and a population of C. subcristatus are syntopic on Wolf Volcano (Isabela Island, Galápagos). No gene flow occurs suggesting that effective reproductive isolating mechanisms exist between these two species. Chemical signature of femoral pore secretions is important for intra- and inter-specific chemical communication in squamates. As a first step towards testing the hypothesis that chemical signals could mediate reproductive isolation between C. marthae and C. subcristatus, we compared the chemical profiles of femoral gland exudate from adults caught on Wolf Volcano. We compared data from three different years and focused on two years in particular when femoral gland exudate was collected from adults during the reproductive season. Samples were processed using Gas Chromatography coupled with Mass Spectrometry (GC–MS). We identified over 100 different chemical compounds. Non-Metric Multidimensional Scaling (nMDS) was used to graphically represent the similarity among individuals based on their chemical profiles. Results from non-parametric statistical tests indicate that the separation between the two species is significant, suggesting that the chemical profile signatures of the two species may help prevent hybridization between C. marthae and C. subcristatus. Further investigation is needed to better resolve environmental influence and temporal reproductive patterns in determining the variation of biochemical profiles in both species.Type
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© The Author(s) 2020Rights link
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1038/s41598-020-71176-7
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