Variation in body size and morphometric traits of males and females of the wall gecko,Tarentola delalandii(Phyllodactylidae) from different environments on Tenerife

A significant male-biased sexual dimorphism in body size and morphometric traits was confirmed in two populations of the wall gecko, Tarentola delalandii, from Tenerife's San Cristóbal de La Laguna (North) and Granadilla de Abona (South). Males exhibited larger snout-vent length (SVL), head dimensions, limb lengths, and tail measurements than females, with northern individuals generally larger than southern ones. While most size-adjusted traits were larger in males, shape-adjusted traits showed significant differences favoring females. The study employed Permutational MANCOVA to analyze morphological variables, controlling for head and trunk lengths as covariates. These findings highlight the influence of evolutionary, ontogenetic, and ecological factors on sexual dimorphism in this species.

de Fuentes-Fernández, M., Mercedes Suárez-Rancel, M., & Molina-Borja, M. (2016). Variation in body size and morphometric traits of males and females of the wall gecko,Tarentola delalandii(Phyllodactylidae) from different environments on Tenerife. African Journal of Herpetology, 65(2), 83–98. https://doi.org/10.1080/21564574.2016.1234512