( the researchers precisely controlled th...)Geckos: It's not always about sex

the researchers precisely controlled the lizard's speed, body temperature, and measured how much energy the four-footers used to walk. Wahl, an alumna of Lewis & Clark, is now a doctoral student in wildlife biology at the University of Montana at Missoula.

"We found that the parthenogenetic forms were much better athletes than the sexual forms, clearly outpacing them on the treadmill," said Kearney. "This was a bit of a surprise because a similar study of another kind of parthenogenetic lizard from the deserts of the United States showed the opposite pattern."

Added Autumn: "If there was an Olympic team of Bynoe's geckos, there wouldn't be a single male on it. These geckos outperform their sexual relatives by 50 percent. They are the 'Xena: Warrior Princess' of the lizard world."

Article: "Increased Capacity for Sustained Locomotion at Low Temperature in Parthenogenetic Geckos of Hybrid Origin" Physiological and Biochemical Zoology, 78(3), May/June 2005. www.journals.uchicago.edu/PBZ/home.html

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Source:Lewis & Clark College


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