Mating behaviour of the side-blotched lizards of the genus Uta (Sauria: Iguandidae)

I described four stages of the mating behaviour of Uta: approaching, licking, neck-holding, and copulating. Some aspects of mating behaviour are more stereotyped within Uta populations than between populations. However, none of the geographic differences are sufficiently great to be useful for subspecific diagnosis. Absence of `head jerk' behaviour and short copulation may indicate ancestral affinity between Texas and Santa Catalina Island Uta. A higher degree of intraspecific aggression and shorter life expectancy in some Uta populations may be directly or indirectly responsible for the presence of circling behaviour, longer duration of the licking stage and the shorter duration of copulation in those populations.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/32811/1/0000185.pd