Animal Sciences Commons^™

Conceptual Model For Thermal Limits On The Distribution Of Reptiles, J. Sean Doody, Jennifer A. Moore

J. Sean Doody

Recent climate change has re-invigorated scientific interest in the dynamics of geographic distributions of organisms. Climate responses and their biogeographical ramifications can be predicted indirectly by studying variation in fitness-related traits across environmental gradients in wide-ranging species. We review evidence for such variation in reptiles. Clinal variation in seasonal timing (onset) of nesting is common but may offer only minor compensation. In contrast, clinal variation in nesting behavior in two wide-ranging species suggests that reptiles can use nest site choice to counter climate differences. We suggest that when range boundaries located at climate extremes are determined by thermal conditions of …