Abstract

SMITH, Libia Yael; ZARACHO, Víctor Hugo  and  ARBINO, Manuel Osvaldo. Dietas similares en dos especies sintópicas de lagartijas (Squamata: Teiidae) de una isla del noreste de Argentina. Caldasia [online]. 2023, vol.45, n.2, pp.341-350.  Epub July 10, 2023. ISSN 0366-5232.  https://doi.org/10.15446/caldasia.v45n2.100682.

How coexisting species partition resources is a central focus of ecology, and diet is an important potential axis of competition. Here, we study the diet of syntopic populations of the lizards Ameivula apip-ensis and Teius oculatus from an island in northeastern Argentina. Based on stomach contents extracted from specimens collected in September and December 2012 and February 2013, we analyzed prey richness and abundance and calculated both trophic niche breadth and the degree of dietary overlap for the two species. Both species were almost completely insectivorous, and their dietary composition showed a similar prey richness. Numerically, Isoptera dominated the diet of both species, followed by Hymenoptera, insect larvae, and Coleoptera. We report a low niche breadth for each species and substantial overlap between them. This high overlap in their diets could reflect the overall abundance of prey resources in the environment. Other factors, such as the foraging microenvironment and activity period, might be dimensions on which the niches of these species are differentiated.

Keywords : Ameivula; Diet; Overlap; Teius.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )