Smart lizards!? Traditionally, lizards are thought of as simple, but this episode we look at some smart skinks whose intelligence allows them to learn from each other. We look at a couple factors that influence that itelligence. FULL REFERENCE LIST AVAILABLE AT: herphighlights.podbean.com

Main Paper References:

Munch, K. L., Noble, D. W. A., Botterill-James, T., Koolhof, I. S., Halliwell, B., Wapstra, E., & While, G. M. (2018). Maternal effects impact decision-making in a viviparous lizard. Biology Letters, 14(4), 20170556. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2017.0556

Whiting, M. J., Xu, F., Kar, F., Riley, J. L., Byrne, R. W., & Noble, D. W. A. (2018). Evidence for Social Learning in a Family Living Lizard. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 6(May). https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2018.00070

Species of the Bi-Week:

Grismer, L. L., Wood, P. L., Lim, K. K. P., & Liang, L. J. (2017). A new species of swamp-dwelling skink (Tytthoscincus) from Singapore and Peninsular Malaysia. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology, 65(October), 574–584.

Other Mentioned Papers/Studies:

Beck, B. B. (1967). A Study of Problem Solving By Gibbons. Behaviour, 28(1–2), 95–109. https://doi.org/10.1163/156853967X00190

Dayananda, B., & Webb, J. K. (2017). Incubation under climate warming affects learning ability and survival in hatchling lizards. Biology Letters, 13(3). https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2017.0002

Duckett, P. E., Morgan, M. H., & Stow, A. J. (2012). Tree-dwelling populations of the skink Egernia striolata aggregate in groups of close kin. Copeia, 2012(1), 130-134.

Gardner, M. G., Hugall, A. F., Donnellan, S. C., Hutchinson, M. N., & Foster, R. (2008). Molecular systematics of social skinks: phylogeny and taxonomy of the Egernia group (Reptilia: Scincidae). Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 154(4), 781-794.

Munch, K. L., Noble, D. W. A., Wapstra, E., & While, G. M. (2018). Mate familiarity and social learning in a monogamous lizard. Oecologia, 188(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-018-4153-z

Riley, J. L., Küchler, A., Damasio, T., Noble, D. W. A., Byrne, R. W., & Whiting, M. J. (2018). Learning ability is unaffected by isolation rearing in a family-living lizard. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 72(2), 20. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-017-2435-9

Riley, J. L., Noble, D. W. A., Byrne, R. W., & Whiting, M. J. (2017). Early social environment influences the behaviour of a family-living lizard. Royal Society Open Science, 4(5), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.161082

Music:

Intro/outro – Treehouse by Ed Nelson

Other Music – The Passion HiFi, www.thepassionhifi.com