%0 Journal Article
%T The Female Reproductive Cycle of the Bedriaga Plate-Tailed Gecko, Teratoscincus bedriagai (Sauria: Gekkonidae) in Iran
%A Fatemeh Mojibi
%A Vida Hojati
%J International Journal of Zoology
%D 2014
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2014/782641
%X The Bedriaga Plate-tailed Gecko, Teratoscincus bedriagai Nikolsky, 1900, is distributed in the northern and eastern desert basins of the Central Plateau of Iran, Sistan, and the desert regions of southern Afghanistan. Iranian specimens are believed to be rare in collections. In this study, the reproductive cycle of this species has been investigated through focusing on oogenesis from 5 April to 5 August, 2013. Generally, 15 adult females were collected by hand at midnight from southern parts of Damghan County, situated in Semnan Province of Iran. Ovaries were removed and processed for the purpose of histological and morphometric studies. The results revealed that oocyte growth starts in early April and terminates in late July. Moreover, mating commences in spring, especially at the beginning of May, with oviposition occurring from late May to late July. Approximately, 1 to 2 eggs are laid by females per clutch with the possibility of producing a secondary clutch later in the season. The maximum reproductive activity takes place in May and continues with a decreasing trend in June and more reduction in July and finally ends in August. No significant difference was observed between right and left side of reproductive system. Therefore, oogenesis occurs from April to July, while T. bedriagai follows an oogenic cycle typical for temperate species. 1. Introduction Lizards show three general types of reproductive cycles: constant, associated, and dissociated [1]. A constant reproductive cycle is exhibited by tropical lizards in which gonads are active almost year-round [2]. Associated and dissociated reproductive cycles are characterized by the presence of a discontinuous mating season. In associated type, gonadal activity increases immediately prior to the mating period in both males and females simultaneously and females have no need to store sperm due to its availability during the reproductive season. This cycle is common in species that live in predictable environments such as in the temperate zones [3], the subtropics [4], and the seasonal tropics [5]. In the dissociated type, gonadal activity is low during the mating period and peaks during the nonmating period and male gonadal activity is shorter than that of females and sperm is stored by the female genital system for some months with fertilization occurring later [6]. A dissociated cycle is typically observed in species that live in temperate zones and have a brief mating season [7]. The Gekkota are an infraorder of reptiles, comprising all geckos and the limbless Pygopodidae. Gekkota are a suborder
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ijz/2014/782641/