Ultrastructure of the eggshell of two species of anoline lizards

✍ Scribed by Sexton, Owen J. ;Veith, George M. ;Phillips, David M.

• Book ID: 102893549
• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1979
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 948 KB
• Volume: 207
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0022-104X
• DOI: 10.1002/jez.1402070207

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

The role of the eggshell of two species of lizard (Anolis limifrons and A. sagrei, lguanidae, Squamata) in water transport is discussed. Levels of soil moisture in habitats of A. limifrons in Panama vary seasonally in two locales; the lowest values are attained during the dry season months of February–April. The transfer of water from the soil to the egg must be mediated by the biologically passive eggshell. The eggshells of these two species consist of five concentrically arranged zones of fibrils peripheral to the shell and egg membranes. The fibrils are covered by a granular layer containing CaCO~3~. This layer bounds irregular channels passing from the exterior to the interior of the eggshell. It is proposed that water moves from the soil through the eggshell by capillary.