Response of Eublepharis macularius to Aposematic Coloration in Prey

Graduate #64
Discipline: Ecology Environmental and Earth Sciences
Subcategory: Ecology

Kianna Phillip - Georgia State University
Co-Author(s): Charles Watson, Midwestern State University, Wichita Falls, TX

Aposematism can be defined as an antipredator adaptation, associating warning and most often bright coloration to unprofitable prey. It has been an effective survival mechanism present in many smaller animals throughout evolutionary time with reptiles and insects being no exception. Eublepharis macularius, commonly known as the leopard gecko, is a ground dwelling nocturnal species known for its vast diet, as it will attempt to feed on any prey it can catch as long as it is moving. Having such a wide diet consisting of mostly insects (of which many are known to be aposematic), this study intended to discover if Eublepharis macularius as predators have already adapted the ability to initially detect and avoid unprofitable prey. An observational experiment was assembled in the lab, where 5 captive Eublepharis macularius were placed in an empty 18×12 container and were allowed to hunt and eat up to 6 of 12 artificially colored roaches (6 naturally colored and 6 brightly colored). The Hypotheses aimed to describe a significance difference in number and order of prey eaten in respects to color. The experiment was repeated twice with each gecko and statistical testing was used to analyze all data. Though no significance was found in the number or order of brightly colored vs naturally colored roaches eaten, a considerable significance was found in the overall attempts (both successful and unsuccessful) as 4 out of the 5 geckos made substantially more attempts to catch brightly colored as opposed to naturally colored prey. The next step of this study will aim to induce prey avoidance in Eublepharis macularius through a process of learning and reinforcement in hopes that findings will either further help associate or distinguish evolutionary advancements in known related behaviors amongst other species.

Not Submitted

Funder Acknowledgement(s): Midwestern State University Department of Biology

Faculty Advisor: Charles Watson, charles.watson@mwsu.edu