Developing Temperature Responsive Reptiles Insights Conservation Breeding

Embryonic Temperature Programs Phenotype in Reptiles

Reptiles are critically affected by temperature throughout their lifespan, but especially so during early development. Temperature -induced changes in phenotype are a specific example of a broader phenomenon called phenotypic plasticity in which a single individual is able to develop different phenotypes when exposed to different environments.

In reptiles (turtles and tortoises, tuatara, lizards, snakes and crocodilians), there is a growing empirical literature testing the effects of early thermal environments (i.e., incubation temperatures ) on the phenotypic development of a broad range of physiological, morphological and performance traits 7-11.

Embryonic Temperature Programs Phenotype in Reptiles

Reptiles are critically affected by temperature throughout their lifespan, but especially so during early development. Temperature -induced changes in phenotype are a specific example of a broader ...

Early environments can profoundly influence an organism in ways that persist over its life. In reptiles , early thermal environments (nest temperatures ) can impact offspring phenotype and survival in ...

PDF How extreme temperatures alter reptile reproduction

The UAB team recently published two studies on reptiles that demonstrate how changes in environmental temperature can alter the genetic processes of reproduction and evolution of the species.

How temperature influences development has direct relevance to ascertaining the impact of climate change on natural populations. Reptiles have served as empirical models for understanding how the ...

Developmental plasticity of thermal ecology traits in reptiles

However, almost nothing is known about the effects of temperature variance during early development on subsequent thermal ecology traits in reptiles . For example, how does temperature variance during egg incubation affect the magnitude or persistence length of developmental plasticity in thermal traits?

While temperature and early resource provisioning can influence thermal traits in ectotherms [18], most research effort has focused on temperature , which is known to have a profound effect on fitness [19, 20]. In reptiles , temperatures during embryonic development are known to affect phenotypes throughout ontogeny [7].

Patterns of developmental plasticity in response to incubation ...

Abstract Early life environments shape phenotypic development in important ways that can lead to long-lasting effects on phenotype and fitness. In reptiles , one aspect of the early environment that impacts development is temperature (termed 'thermal developmental plasticity').

Environmental temperature is a key driver of variation in developmental physiological rates in reptiles . Cooler temperatures extend development time and can increase the amount of energy required to achieve hatching success, which can pose fitness ...