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Photic induction of locomotor activity is correlated with photic habitat in Anolis lizards

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Abstract

A variety of ecologically important behaviors, including circadian rhythms and seasonal reproduction, are influenced by non-visual responses to light, yet very little is known about the relationship between photic habitat and non-visual photoreception. Puerto Rican Anolis lizards have diverged into multiple photic niches, making them a good model for non-visual photosensory ecology. We investigated the photic induction of locomotor activity, a non-visual response to light, in four species of Anolis comprising two pairs of closely related, ecomorphologically similar species whose microhabitats differ in solar irradiance. We developed a device for continuous, automated detection and recording of anole locomotor activity, and used it to characterize activity under 12:12 h light–dark cycles. Next, we administered a series of 2-h light pulses during the dark period of the light–dark cycle and measured the increase in locomotor activity relative to baseline dark activity. Five different irradiances (ranging from very dim to daytime levels) were given to each individual lizard on separate nights. As expected, light caused an irradiance-dependent increase in locomotor activity in all four species. The responses at the highest irradiances were significantly greater in species occupying relatively more shaded habitats, suggesting that non-visual photoreception may be adapted to habitat light in Anolis lizards.

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Acknowledgments

Funding for this project was provided by the National Science Foundation (Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant 0910075 to AFM, MM, and E. Brodie III) and the University of Virginia (Center and Labs Union Technology Grant to AFM). The authors thank the Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambientales of Puerto Rico for permission to collect animals for this study (DRNA permit 2009-IC-025). All procedures were approved by the University of Virginia Animal Care and Use Committee. Special thanks goes to Y. Kawasaki for the construction of activity enclosures and sensor circuits and to D. Mills for videography analysis and calibration of the recording system. We are grateful to D. Carr for providing invaluable statistical advice. We also thank E. Liebgold, P. Bartell, H. Vasaly, and S. Steiner for assistance with animal capture, as well as undergraduate assistants M. Fredericksen, E. Wrona, and R. Ababio for help with animal care. L. Avila, T. Ransom, K. Burke, and two anonymous reviewers offered helpful suggestions that improved the quality of this manuscript.

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  1. Department of Biology, University of Virginia, PO Box 400328, Charlottesville, VA, 22904-4328, USA

    Ashli F. Moore, Masashi Kawasaki & Michael Menaker

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  1. Ashli F. Moore
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  2. Masashi Kawasaki
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  3. Michael Menaker
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Correspondence to Michael Menaker.

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Moore, A.F., Kawasaki, M. & Menaker, M. Photic induction of locomotor activity is correlated with photic habitat in Anolis lizards. J Comp Physiol A 198, 193–201 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-011-0699-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-011-0699-5

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