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An Integrative, Cost-Benefit Analysis On Animal Perturbations: Autotomy And Life-History Related Weight Gain, Chi-Yun Kuo

Doctoral Dissertations

The variation in behavioral traits and the adaptive significance behind such variation has been a classic question in behavioral ecology. Traits that enhance while simultaneously impose high fitness costs are particularly suitable for addressing this fundamental question, as their expressions are likely under strong selection. In this dissertation, I investigate the variation in a costly antipredator behavior and the underlying cost-benefit mechanisms. The trait of interest is the voluntary shedding of the tail, or tail autotomy, in lizards. Tail autotomy allows lizards to survive close-range encounters with predators but also has severe fitness consequences, including increased energetic demand for regeneration …