Intraespecific variation in the locomotor performance of Tropidurus torquatus to determine its thermal sensitivity to global warming

• Grant number: 14/00809-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate (Direct)
• Start date: May 01, 2014
• End date: June 30, 2014
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Physiology of Recent Groups
• Principal Investigator: Carlos Arturo Navas Iannini
• Grantee: Carla Piantoni
• Supervisor: Donald Bailey Miles
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IB). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Ohio University, United States

Abstract

Climate change projections for Brazil predict an increase in the mean air temperature of up to 6°C and a tendency of decrease rainfalls by 5-20% in 2071-2100. Predicting the responses of organisms to climate change is one of the many urgent challenges faced by contemporary eco-physiologists. Ectothermic vertebrates are particularly sensitive to global warming, as temperature changes could shift behavioral and physiological performance to suboptimal levels, restricting time for activity. Although sensitivity of a species or individual depends not only on their thermal tolerance limits, but also on their behavior, and genetic diversity, most tropical ectotherms live close to their thermal limits for optimal metabolic performance which makes them more vulnerable to thermal increments. We examine the hypothesis that vulnerability to rising temperatures and changing precipitation patterns of the widespread Brazilian lizard, Tropidurus torquatus, is inversely related to latitude. The geographic variation in thermal sensitivity will be examined based on the shape of thermal performance curves of three populations along a latitudinal gradient. (AU)