Lipids in femoral gland secretions of male lizards, Psammodromus hispanicus

Abstract

Many lizards produce chemical secretions that may be used as pheromones in reproductive behavior, but only a few studies have identified chemical compounds in secretions. By using GC–MS, we found only 20 lipophilic compounds in femoral glands secretion of male lizards, Psammodromus hispanicus. Main compounds were six steroids (mainly cholesterol and campesterol) and seven n-C 9 to n-C 18 carboxylic acids (especially dodecanoic acid), and minor components were six alcohols between C 16 and C 29 and squalene. We compared these chemicals with those previously found in secretions of the closely related sister species Psammodromus algirus and other lizard species.