Reproductive strategies of the semifossorial snake Atractus zebrinus from the Atlantic Forest

Secretive snakes (e.g., fossorial or semifossorial) show morphological adaptations that may constrain potential reproductive output. However, females can store sperm in the reproductive tract, increasing their reproductive potential. Thus, studies on the reproduction of fossorial and semifossorial s...

Descripción completa

Guardado en:

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales:	Carvalho Siqueira, Lucas Henrique, Lima Santos, Jade, Pereira Silva, Karina Maria
Formato:	Articulo Comunicacion
Lenguaje:	Inglés
Publicado:	2022
Materias:	Ciencias Naturales Female sperm storage Reproductive cycle Secretive snakes Sexual dimorphism Spermiogenesis
Acceso en línea:	http://sedici.unlp.edu.ar/handle/10915/152989 http://ojs.aha.org.ar/index.php/CdH/article/view/6
Aporte de:	SEDICI (UNLP) de Universidad Nacional de La Plata

id	I19-R120-10915-152989
record_format	dspace
spelling	I19-R120-10915-1529892023-05-15T20:02:54Z http://sedici.unlp.edu.ar/handle/10915/152989 http://ojs.aha.org.ar/index.php/CdH/article/view/6 issn:1852-5768 Reproductive strategies of the semifossorial snake Atractus zebrinus from the Atlantic Forest Carvalho Siqueira, Lucas Henrique Lima Santos, Jade Pereira Silva, Karina Maria 2022 2023-05-15T14:54:29Z en Ciencias Naturales Female sperm storage Reproductive cycle Secretive snakes Sexual dimorphism Spermiogenesis Secretive snakes (e.g., fossorial or semifossorial) show morphological adaptations that may constrain potential reproductive output. However, females can store sperm in the reproductive tract, increasing their reproductive potential. Thus, studies on the reproduction of fossorial and semifossorial species are of great interest for a complete understanding of snake reproductive strategies. Here, we investigate the reproductive strategies of the semifossorial snake Atractus zebrinus through macroscopic and histological analyzes of the male and female reproductive tracts. Females were larger and had more ventral scales than males, the most common pattern in snakes, and apparently conserved in the genera. The female reproductive cycle was seasonal, with gravid females occurring in spring and summer. Rainfall seems to be the major factor driving female reproductive seasonality, and sperm storage in the infundibular receptacles may ensure fertilization and multiple paternity. The male reproductive cycle was aseasonal. Spermiation, hypertrophy of the sexual segment of the kidney, and sperm storage in the ductus deferentia occurred over several months. This aseasonal reproduction in males may enhance paternity by increasing the species mating chances. Las serpientes fosoriales y semifosoriales presentan adaptaciones morfológicas que pueden limitar su reproducción. Sin embargo, las hembras pueden almacenar espermatozoides en el tracto reproductivo aumentando su potencial reproductivo. Por lo tanto, estudios sobre la reproducción de especies fosoriales y semifosoriales son de gran interés para la comprensión de las estrategias reproductivas de las serpientes. En este trabajo, investigamos las estrategias reproductivas de la serpiente semifossorial Atractus zebrinus através de análisis macroscópicos y cortes histológicos de los tractos reproductivos de machos y hembras. Como resultado, encontramos que las hembras fueron más grandes y tenían más escamas ventrales que los machos. Por otro lado, el ciclo reproductivo de las hembras fue estacional, con hembras grávidas en primavera y verano. La lluvia parece ser el factor principal que influencia la estacionalidad reproductiva de las hembras, y el almacenamiento de espermatozoide en los receptáculos infundibulares podría asegurar la fertilización y la paternidad múltiple. Además, el ciclo reproductivo de los machos no fue estacional. En varios meses, se encontraron procesos de espermiación, hipertrofia del segmento sexual del riñón y almacenamiento de semen en el conducto deferente. Esta reproducción no estacional en los machos puede aumentar las posibilidades de apareamiento de la especie. Asociación Herpetológica Argentina Articulo Comunicacion http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) application/pdf 33-45
institution	Universidad Nacional de La Plata
institution_str	I-19
repository_str	R-120
collection	SEDICI (UNLP)
language	Inglés
topic	Ciencias Naturales Female sperm storage Reproductive cycle Secretive snakes Sexual dimorphism Spermiogenesis
spellingShingle	Ciencias Naturales Female sperm storage Reproductive cycle Secretive snakes Sexual dimorphism Spermiogenesis Carvalho Siqueira, Lucas Henrique Lima Santos, Jade Pereira Silva, Karina Maria Reproductive strategies of the semifossorial snake Atractus zebrinus from the Atlantic Forest
topic_facet	Ciencias Naturales Female sperm storage Reproductive cycle Secretive snakes Sexual dimorphism Spermiogenesis
description	Secretive snakes (e.g., fossorial or semifossorial) show morphological adaptations that may constrain potential reproductive output. However, females can store sperm in the reproductive tract, increasing their reproductive potential. Thus, studies on the reproduction of fossorial and semifossorial species are of great interest for a complete understanding of snake reproductive strategies. Here, we investigate the reproductive strategies of the semifossorial snake Atractus zebrinus through macroscopic and histological analyzes of the male and female reproductive tracts. Females were larger and had more ventral scales than males, the most common pattern in snakes, and apparently conserved in the genera. The female reproductive cycle was seasonal, with gravid females occurring in spring and summer. Rainfall seems to be the major factor driving female reproductive seasonality, and sperm storage in the infundibular receptacles may ensure fertilization and multiple paternity. The male reproductive cycle was aseasonal. Spermiation, hypertrophy of the sexual segment of the kidney, and sperm storage in the ductus deferentia occurred over several months. This aseasonal reproduction in males may enhance paternity by increasing the species mating chances.
format	Articulo Comunicacion
author	Carvalho Siqueira, Lucas Henrique Lima Santos, Jade Pereira Silva, Karina Maria
author_facet	Carvalho Siqueira, Lucas Henrique Lima Santos, Jade Pereira Silva, Karina Maria
author_sort	Carvalho Siqueira, Lucas Henrique
title	Reproductive strategies of the semifossorial snake Atractus zebrinus from the Atlantic Forest
title_short	Reproductive strategies of the semifossorial snake Atractus zebrinus from the Atlantic Forest
title_full	Reproductive strategies of the semifossorial snake Atractus zebrinus from the Atlantic Forest
title_fullStr	Reproductive strategies of the semifossorial snake Atractus zebrinus from the Atlantic Forest
title_full_unstemmed	Reproductive strategies of the semifossorial snake Atractus zebrinus from the Atlantic Forest
title_sort	reproductive strategies of the semifossorial snake atractus zebrinus from the atlantic forest
publishDate	2022
url	http://sedici.unlp.edu.ar/handle/10915/152989 http://ojs.aha.org.ar/index.php/CdH/article/view/6
work_keys_str_mv	AT carvalhosiqueiralucashenrique reproductivestrategiesofthesemifossorialsnakeatractuszebrinusfromtheatlanticforest AT limasantosjade reproductivestrategiesofthesemifossorialsnakeatractuszebrinusfromtheatlanticforest AT pereirasilvakarinamaria reproductivestrategiesofthesemifossorialsnakeatractuszebrinusfromtheatlanticforest
_version_	1766370227155632128

Reproductive strategies of the semifossorial snake Atractus zebrinus from the Atlantic Forest

Ejemplares similares