Body size and evolution of motion dazzle coloration in lizards

Gopal Murali, Ullasa Kodandaramaiah and John FitzpatrickHandling Editor

Behavioral Ecology, 2018, vol. 29, issue 1, 79-86

Abstract: Many lizards have contrasting longitudinal body stripes, thought to dazzle predators during motion, thereby misdirecting attacks to the expendable tail. To understand what promotes evolution of such “dazzle†patterns, we performed a touchscreen predation experiment with humans and found stripes to be more effective in smaller prey. Comparisons across lizard species showed that stripes are correlated to smaller body length. We conclude that body length has a strong effect on the functioning of dazzle colorations.

Keywords: antipredator adaption; lizards; motion dazzle; prey size; redirection; stripes (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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