Abstract
The relationship between thermal and reproductive biology is complex and poorly understood. We measured selected body temperatures (T
sel) for the viviparous geckoHoplodactylus maculatus.T
selwas compared among pregnant females, nonpregnant females, and males from two sites: a cool site with biennially reproducing geckos and a warm site with annually reproducing geckos.T
selwas measured at five times of day during three seasons and compared with microhabitat temperature (T
top) and field body temperature (T
b).T
selvaried with time of day in all comparisons, and the effect of reproductive condition onT
seldiffered between sites and seasons. At both sites, whenT
seldiffered between reproductive conditions, pregnant females had higherT
selthan nonpregnant females and males. Stage of pregnancy affected the degree of elevation ofT
sel. Measurements of microhabitat temperature and fieldT
bshowed that, even in the warmest season, geckos rarely had the opportunity to achieveT
selat the cool site but were able to do so at the warm site. The elevation ofT
selwith pregnancy is extreme in this species (up to 8°C), which suggests that an increase inT
bis critical to successful reproduction. Interactions between the effects of time of day, season, and reproductive condition onT
selmust be considered in the assessment of thermoregulation in reptiles.