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Examining Egg Surface Morphology And Microbial Content Of Sceloporus Virgatus Eggshells, Linnaea Arnett, Stacey Weiss Dr., Mark Martin Dr.

Summer Research

Eggs laid by the Sceloporus virgatus lizard are exposed to a variety of potentially protective microorganisms when passed through the cloaca, the opening at the end of both the reproductive and digestive tracts. Past data have indicated that eggs dissected out of the female before passing through the cloaca often have decreased hatching success, potentially due to the lack of protective bacteria on the dissected eggshell surface. This study examined the microorganisms found on both laid and dissected eggs at 0 weeks of incubation, as well as microbial and fungal content on the eggshells after 3 weeks of incubation in …