In a new experiment, scientists showed that hotter temperatures cause deformities in a South American lizard. The researchers incubated eggs from the Amazon lava lizard (Tropidurus torquatus) under five different temperatures ranging from 83 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit. These temperatures reflect current climactic conditions as well as predicted future warming scenarios. Of the 159 eggs in the experiment, only 84 hatched. Of those, more than one third had malformations, such as deformed tail vertebrae, abnormal coloring and even a condition where the brain develops outside the skull. For each degree Celsius increase in incubation temperature, an egg’s chances of dying increased by 80%. “Many severe malformations occurred in embryos that failed to hatch,” wrote the authors. The researchers said that their results show how climate change may ultimately jeopardize Neotropical lizard populations.
