Reproductive Cycle and Feeding Habits of the Basilisk Lizard Basiliscus basiliscus (Sauria: Iguanidae) in the Guasare-Socuy Coal Region, Zulia State, Venezuela

Ciclo reproductivo y hábitos alimentarios del lagarto Basiliscus basiliscus (Sauria: Iguanidae) de la región carbonífera Guasare-Socuy, estado Zulia,Venezuela

• Harold Molero M. Ministerio del Poder Popular para el Ambiente

Keywords: diet, reproduction, Sauria, Squamata, Perijá

Abstract

To better know the reproductive cyc1e and feeding habits of the basilisk lizard, Basiliscus basiliscus (Sauria: Iguanidae) 116 specimens were collected along Norte, Carichuano and Paso del Diablo Creeks, near the General Wenceslao Briceño mining camp, in the Guasare-Socuy
coal region of Zu1ia State. Monthly visits were made from april 1984 to march 1985; and included both rainy and dry seasons. The minimum SVL and age to consider a lizard an adu1t and sexually mature were l32 mm, and 18 months for females, and 140 mm and 17,9 months for males respectively. The longevity of basilisks is short and the population comprises mostly young individuals. Basilisks are sexually mature in january and february, and the largest numbers of eggs are laid in may and june. Most hatching takes place in july and august. All specimens contained animal matter but only 33 percent had vegetable matter. Animal food represented 89% of the stomach contents and vegetable matter 11%. The animal matter consisted of 89% arthropods and 11% vertebrates. The Araneida were the most important food items in the dry season, and the Cerambycidae in the rainy season. In adults, Vespidae were the most important food items and, in juveniles, the Araneida. The Formicidae were the most important food items in males and the Araneida in females.

References

Barden, A. 1943. Food of the basilisk lizard in Panama. Copeia 2:118–121. Bello, C. 1985. Consideraciones ecológicas de los caños de la región carbonífera del Guasare, Estado Zulia, Maracaibo. 1 era. Edición. Ediciones Facultad Experimental de Ciencias, Universidad del Zulia 10, 107 pp.

Brattstrom, B. y N. Adis. 1952. Notes on a collection of reptiles and amphibians from Oaxaca, Mexico. Herpetologica 8:59–60.

Brattstrom, B. y T. Howell. 1954. Notes on some collections of reptiles and amphibians from Nicaragua. Herpetologica 10:114–123.

Fitch, H. 1973. A field study of Costa Rican lizards. University of Kansas, Science Bulletin 50:39–126.

Fuller, J. 1987. El basilisco: el lagarto que corre sobre el agua. Geomundo 11(3): 256–261.

George, E. y W. Hadley. 1979. Food and habitat partitioning between rock bass (Amblopites rupestris) and smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieui) young of the year. Transactions of American Fisheries Society 108:253– 261.

Hallinan, T. 1920. Notes on lizards of the Canal Zone, isthmus of Panama. Copeia 82:45–49.

Hirth, H. 1963. The ecology of two lizards on a tropical beach. Ecological Monograph 33: 80–112.

Lancini, A. 1980. El Basilisco. Natura 69:18–19.

Lieberman, A. 1980. Nesting of the basilisk lizard (Basiliscus basiliscus). Journal of Herpetoly. 14:103–105.

Lilyestron, C. y D. Taphorn. 1982. El control biológico de mosquitos mediante peces en la cuenca del lago de Maracaibo, Venezuela. Informe técnico del vicerrectorado académico de la Universidad Nacional Experimental de los Llanos Ezequiel Zamora, año 2, No. 2.

Maturana, H. 1962. A study of the species of the genus Basiliscus. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology 128:1–34.

Park, O. 1938. Studies in nocturnal ecology, VII. Preliminary observations on Panama rain forest animals. Ecology 19:208–223.

Pennack, R. 1953. Fresh-water invertebrates of the United States. 1era. ed. Ronald Press, New York, 803 pp.
Pough, F. 1973. Lizards energetics and diet. Ecology 54: 837–844.

Sexton, O., E. Ortleb, L. Hathaway, R. Ballinger y P. Licht. 1971. Reproductive cycles of three species of anoline lizards from the Isthmus of Panama. Ecology 52:201–215.

Sexton, O. y O. Turner. 1970. The reproductive cycle of a Neotropical lizard. Ecology 52:159–164.

Smith, R. 1985. La vegetación de las cuencas de los ríos Guasare, Socuy y Cachirí, Estado Zulia. En: Contribución al conocimiento de la flora y vegetación del Estado Zulia. Boletín de la Sociedad Venezolana de Ciencias Naturales 143:294–325.

Smith, R. y G. Silva. 1983. Clave para los artrópodos terrestres del Neotropico. Barquisimeto, 334 pp.

Van Devender, R. 1978. Growth ecology of a tropical lizard, Basiliscus basiliscus. Ecology 59:1031–1038.