Investment in chemical signalling glands facilitates the evolution of sociality in lizards.

ABSTRACT: The evolution of sociality and traits that correlate with, or predict, sociality, have been the focus of considerable recent study. In order to reduce the social conflict that ultimately comes with group living, and foster social tolerance, individuals need reliable information about group members and potential rivals. Chemical signals are one such source of information and are widely used in many animal taxa, including lizards. Here, we take a phylogenetic comparative approach to test the hypothesis that social grouping correlates with investment in chemical signalling. We used the presence of epidermal glands as a proxy of chemical investment and considered social grouping as the occurrence of social groups containing both adults and juveniles. Based on a dataset of 911 lizard species, o

SUBMITTER: Baeckens S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7935108 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature