Hematology of Liolaemus pacha (Iguania: Liolaemidae) and its relationship with mite infestation, reproductive period and body condition.

Variations in hematological profile in reptiles can be caused by multiple factors, including parasites presence. Our goals were to identify and morphologically describe blood cells of Liolaemus pacha and analyze their relationship with sex, body condition, individual reproductive/post-reproductive period and mite infestation. Blood smear analyses do not indicate the presence of hemoparasites, suggesting that the mites Neopterygosoma do not serve as vectors for these organisms, as has been proposed for other genera of ectoparasitic mites. In post-reproductive period, there was a reduction in specimens' body condition and a higher leukocyte count in uninfected lizards. This could be a consequence of the testosterone effects, in higher concentration during the reproductive season, which can increase the metabolic rate, decreasing feeding rate. Infested and non-infested lizards showed no differences in body condition, as well as in leukocyte count, hence the host's immune system could be developing infestation tolerance. Infested specimens had a higher count of monocytes, thrombocytes, heterophils and lymphocytes. Based on cells function, mites' effect could be associated with inflammatory processes, allergic reactions or infectious diseases. These results suggested a complex interaction between lizards' hematological parameters and factors associated to ectoparasites or body conditions. We consider this work as a diagnostic tool for genus Liolaemus, to evaluate health quality, with relevance to the conservation or management of this lizard's genus.

Thermal biology of Liolaemus scapularis (Iguania:Liolaemidae) from argentinian northwest.

Thermal traits knowledge is elemental to forecasting the impacts of environmental change on lizard diversity. Daily and seasonal environmental temperature fluctuations are amplified in desert and semi-desert species. As ectotherms, they can ameliorate physiological constrains through behavioral thermoregulation. Herein, we explored the thermal biology and behavioral related aspects of the endangered sand lizard Liolaemus scapularis and compared it between austral spring and summer seasons. The study was carried out in a north sector of Medanos de Cafayate in the SW of Salta province, Argentina. Mean field-body temperature (Tb) of L. scapularis was 35.72 °C ranging from 29.10 to 41.10 °C. Regression analyzes showed that substrate temperature (Ts) was the parameter that best explained the variability of the Tb. Body temperature in spring was only positively related to Ts, whereas in summer the Tb was positively related to air temperature (Ta). Despite GLMs indicated that the Tb of L. scapularis result statistically unchanged through seasons sampled and sexes, micro-environmental temperatures were different for males and females between sampled seasons. The behavioral thermoregulation trait assessed, sun exposure, revealed that the use of patches with different sun input varied with temperature parameters and between seasons. This behavioral trait seems to have a crucial role in the thermal strategy of these lizards in order to maintain an optimal homeostatic state avoiding overheating; still the Tb recorded for the studied population places Liolaemus scapularis in the upper range for the genus. Our results suggest that the species is an active thermoregulator with a hit gain through sand conduction mainly, a relevant shuttling behavior and seasonal intraspecific shifts.