Lipophilic compounds from the femoral gland secretions of male hungarian green lizards, Lacerta viridis

Abstract

In spite of the importance of chemical signals (pheromones) in the reproductive behav-iour of lizards, only a few studies have examined the role of specific chemical compounds as sexual signals. The secreted chemicals vary widely between species but whether this vari-ation reflects phylogenetic or environmental differences remains unclear. Based on mass spectra, obtained by GC-MS, we found 40 lipophilic compounds in femoral gland secretions of male green lizards (Lacerta viridis), including several steroids, α-tocopherol, and esters of n-C16 to n-C20 carboxylic acids, and minor components such as alcohols between C12 and C20, squalene, three lactones and one ketone. We compared these chemicals with those previ-ously found in other closely related green lizard species, and discussed how phylogenetical differences and/or environmental conditions could be responsible for the differential presence of chemicals in different lizard species. © 2009 Verlag der Zeitschrift für Naturforschung, Tübingen.