‘Third sex’ lizards could outcompete their normal female cousins

Sex is never simple—even among lizards. Unlike mammals, the sex of central bearded dragons, large lizards found in eastern Australia, is determined by their chromosomes and the environment. If the eggs are incubated in high temperatures, male embryos turn into females. Such sex-reversed lizards still retain the chromosomal makeup of a male, but they develop into functional superfemales, whose output of eggs exceeds that of the regular females. Now, a new study predicts that—in some cases—these superfemales may be able to drive regular ones to extinction. That’s because superfemales not only produce more eggs, but they’re also exceptionally bold. Looking at the shape, physiology, and behavior of 20 sex-reversed females, 55 males, and 40 regular females, scientists found that the sex-reversed dragons were physically similar to regular males: They had a male dragon’s long tail and high body temperature. They were also behaviorally similar, acting like bold, active males—even as they produced viable eggs. Indeed, the scientists report in the current issue of the Proceedings of the Royal Society B that these sex-reversed females were behaviorally more malelike than the genetic males. Because of these advantages, this third sex could reproductively outcompete normal females, the scientists say, possibly causing some populations to lose the female sex chromosome. (Females are the heterogametic sex, like human males.) In such a population, the dragons’ sex would then be determined solely by temperature instead of genetics—something that’s occurred in the lab within a single generation. Could it happen in the wild? The scientists are still investigating.


http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2016/06/third-sex-lizards-could-outcompete-their-normal-female-cousins