Thermal dependence of reproductive allocation in a tropical lizard

In ectotherms, environmental temperature is the most prominent abiotic factor that modulates life-history traits. We explored the influence of environmental temperature on reproduction in the Madagascar ground gecko (Paroedura picta) by measuring reproductive traits of females at constant temperatures (24, 27, 30 degrees C). Females of this species lay clutches of one or two eggs within short intervals. For each female, we measured egg mass for the first five clutches. For one clutch, we also measured the energetic content of eggs via bomb calorimetry. Temperature positively influenced the ;rate of egg production, but females at 30 degrees C laid smaller eggs than did females at either 24 or 27 degrees C. Dry mass of eggs scaled allometrically with wet mass, but this relationship was similar among thermal treatments. Females at all temperatures produced eggs with similar energy densities. Females at 24 degrees C allocated less energy per time unit (approximate to 8 mW) to reproduction than did females from higher temperatures (approximate to 12 mW). However, females at either 24 or 27 degrees C allocated significantly more energy per egg than did females at 30 degrees C. Our results demonstrate that a complex thermal sensitivity of reproductive rate can emerge from distinct thermal sensitivities of egg size, egg composition and clutch frequency. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.