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Why blue tongue? A potential UV-based deimatic display in a lizard

Why blue tongue? A potential UV-based deimatic display in a lizard Deimatic displays are a type of anti-predator behaviour that startles the predator. They have received much recent theoretical attention, enabling the empirical study of this phenomenon within a predictive framework. It has long been known that bluetongue skinks (Tiliqua spp.), when approached by predators, open their mouth widely and expose a conspicuously coloured tongue. Here, we test whether such ‘full-tongue’ displays are triggered by an imminent predatory attack in the Northern Bluetongue skink Tiliqua scincoides intermedia and examine whether this display behaviour is consistent with the predictions from deimatic display theory. First, we demonstrate that luminance at the rear of the tongue, which is only exposed during full-tongue displays, is almost twice as high for lizard and bird receivers compared to the tip of the tongue, and that tongue colouration is generally more conspic- uous to a bird than a lizard visual system. Second, staged predatory encounters using model predators reveal that lizards primarily exhibit full-tongue displays in the final stages of a predatory attack. Lizards performed full-tongue displays congruent with the predictions associated with deimatic displays, i.e. rapid exposure of conspicuous ele- ments from a previously inconspicuous state concurrently with aggressive defensive behaviour, most frequently during the final http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology Springer Journals

Why blue tongue? A potential UV-based deimatic display in a lizard

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References (86)

Publisher
Springer Journals
Copyright
Copyright © 2018 by Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature
Subject
Life Sciences; Behavioral Sciences; Zoology; Animal Ecology
ISSN
0340-5443
eISSN
1432-0762
DOI
10.1007/s00265-018-2512-8
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Deimatic displays are a type of anti-predator behaviour that startles the predator. They have received much recent theoretical attention, enabling the empirical study of this phenomenon within a predictive framework. It has long been known that bluetongue skinks (Tiliqua spp.), when approached by predators, open their mouth widely and expose a conspicuously coloured tongue. Here, we test whether such ‘full-tongue’ displays are triggered by an imminent predatory attack in the Northern Bluetongue skink Tiliqua scincoides intermedia and examine whether this display behaviour is consistent with the predictions from deimatic display theory. First, we demonstrate that luminance at the rear of the tongue, which is only exposed during full-tongue displays, is almost twice as high for lizard and bird receivers compared to the tip of the tongue, and that tongue colouration is generally more conspic- uous to a bird than a lizard visual system. Second, staged predatory encounters using model predators reveal that lizards primarily exhibit full-tongue displays in the final stages of a predatory attack. Lizards performed full-tongue displays congruent with the predictions associated with deimatic displays, i.e. rapid exposure of conspicuous ele- ments from a previously inconspicuous state concurrently with aggressive defensive behaviour, most frequently during the final

Journal

Behavioral Ecology and SociobiologySpringer Journals

Published: Jun 7, 2018

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