Evolution of viviparity: variation between two sceloporine lizards in the ability to extend egg retention

Abstract

The evolutionary transition between oviparity and viviparity in squamate reptiles presumably occurs via a gradual increase in the duration of egg retention, the production of thinner eggshells, and increases in the vascularity of maternal and embryonic tissues. The ‘ease’ of this transition may differ among taxa. For example, in the genus Sceloporus, the scalaris species group contains both oviparous and viviparous species, and female Sceloporus scalaris can extend egg retention facultatively in response to the absence of a suitable site for oviposition without impairing embryonic development. In contrast, the undulatus species group contains only oviparous species, and, while female Sceloporus virgatus can extend egg retention, doing so retards embryonic development. I tested several hypotheses that would explain the greater ability of 5. scalaris than S. virgatus to extend egg retention. In this study, female S. scalaris retained eggs for 19 d without affecting the mortality of embryos, total developmental time, or dry mass of hatchlings. In contrast, when female S. virgatus retained eggs for 18 d, embryos had very high mortality and eggs took significantly longer to hatch than control (non‐retained) eggs, although the dry mass of hatchlings was not affected. The ability of S. scalaris females to retain eggs with little negative effect on embryonic development was associated with relatively large chorioallantois, relatively thin eggshells, and relatively small clutch masses. These observations suggest that phylogenetic differences in the ability to extend egg retention may facilitate or constrain the evolution of viviparity in some lineages.