Sexual size dimorphism in steppe tortoises (Testudo horsfieldi): growth, maturity, and individual variation

摘要: Age and size at maturity are determined through complex interactions among birth, growth rate, maturation, survival. We studied sexual dimorphism rate maturation patterns in a long-lived organism, the steppe tortoise (Testudo horsfieldi), using scute lamina number width as age measures. There was no difference juvenile but females matured later hence were larger than males. also observed considerable inter-individual variation maturity. In both sexes, precocious animals grew faster during phase smaller body did tardy animals. Consequently, not seem size-dependent per se rather by rate. The strong between within sexes suggest that different trajectories schedules depend upon sex individual responses to resource availability.