Use of field‐portable ultrasonography reveals differences in developmental phenology and maternal egg provisioning in two sympatric viviparous snakes

• Published in: Ecology and evolution Vol. 8; no. 6; pp. 3330 - 3340
• Main Authors: Sparkman, Amanda M., Chism, Kenneth R., Bronikowski, Anne M., Brummett, Lilly J., Combrink, Lucia L., Davis, Courtney L., Holden, Kaitlyn G., Kabey, Nicole M., Miller, David A. W.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01.03.2018; John Wiley and Sons Inc
• Subjects: Animal behavior; Annual variations; Demography; Developmental stages; Ecological niches; Eggs; Embryogenesis; embryonic development; Embryonic growth stage; Embryos; Environmental conditions; Evolution; Fetuses; Fitness; Interspecific; Investment; Life cycles; Lizards; Mountains; Niches; Original Research; Placenta; Placental transfer; Provisioning; reproduction; Reproductive fitness; Snakes; Species; Sympatric populations; Thamnophis; Thamnophis sirtalis; Ultrasonic imaging; ultrasonography; Ultrasound; Viviparity; viviparity; ultrasonography; Thamnophis; embryonic development; reproduction

A thorough understanding of the life cycles underlying the demography of wild species is limited by the difficulty of observing hidden life‐history traits, such as embryonic development. Major aspects of embryonic development, such as the rate and timing of development, and maternal–fetal interactio...