Literaturdatenbank
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Dominy, A. E., Loew, E. R., Spotila, J. R., & Avery, H. W. , Turtles in a different light: The underwater visual ecology and mating behavior in the diamondback terrapin. Unpublished paper presented at 6th Symposium on the Ecology, Status & Conservation of Diamondback Terrapins.
Added by: Sarina Wunderlich (06 Jul 2014 16:10:41 UTC) |
| Resource type: Conference Paper BibTeX citation key: Dominy2013 View all bibliographic details  |
Categories: General Keywords: Chrysemys picta, Emydidae, Schildkröten - turtles + tortoises, Sehvermögen - vision, Verhalten - ethology Creators: Avery, Dominy, Loew, Spotila Collection: 6th Symposium on the Ecology, Status & Conservation of Diamondback Terrapins |
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| Abstract |
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Malaclemys terrapin Terrapin mating behavior has been explored through limited observations and genetic analyses, but what do we know about mate choice and selection? In closely related turtle species, courtship behavior involves tactile and visual communication. What is a terrapin looking for in a potential mate? Like birds and other reptiles, terrapins have tetrachromatic vision—they can perceive colors in the UV, blue, green, and red portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. This study has found, through the analysis of spectrophotometric data, that terrapins express conspicuous coloration and patterns on their skin, carapace, and plastron, in all four color channels. These colors and patterns may be used to assess the genetic quality of a potential mate. Phenotypic measurements show a strong correlation between colors expressed in the UV and red portions of the spectrum, suggesting that these colors are co-selected. Light availability in the water column attenuates to optimally highlight these correlated colors; ultraviolet light dominates at the water surface but attenuates quickly within 0.5 meters below the surface. This suggests that mate selection should occur near the surface of the water column to allow the terrapin to optimally display UV coloration. Given that mating aggregations are observed to occur near the surface of the water column, this suggests that a visual signal may be an important factor in mate selection. Given also that males have been observed to arrive in advance to an aggregation site, terrapins may be performing lek behavior similar to that of birds, where vision dictates choice.
Added by: Sarina Wunderlich |