When you hear about a spa, you visualize a relaxing place where soft skin peeling is commonly practiced. Even if the place is human-specific, skin peeling itself has been recorded in the “animal world,” and in a way that goes beyond your imagination.
Indeed, some species of scincid and gekkonid lizards are known to lose a part of their skin during drastic regional integumentary loss (Bauer et al., 1989, 1992a, 1993; Bauer & Russell, 1992). Such loss is dependent on the bilayering of the dermis and the inherent weakness of the outer layers of the skin and is used as an antipredator strategy (such as the tail autotomy), particularly during the early stages of subjugation by the predator (Bauer et al., 1989, 1992, 1993; Bauer & Russell, 1992). Nonetheless, this practice has severe costs related to radiation exposure (particularly in diurnal species), osmoregulation and immunological integrity (Bauer & Russell, 1992).
Back to the Caribbean island of Dominica the past month, I sampled populations of Anolis cristatellus. During the routine measurement process on a big male, I was surprised to see that the lizard lost his entire skin as soon as I touched him, the muscle being nearly apparent (Fig. 1). I measured more than 2.000 anoles, and this guy was the first one to lose his skin in my hands. Did I sample a very special individual? The response is probably “no.” Within the same day, this regional integumentary loss occurred in two adult males and one adult female A. cristatellus in total. To my knowledge, such a skin loss was not observed in anoles before. Could it be an underestimated antipredator strategy in Anolis? If yes, could it be different on island vs mainland species as suggested Bauer & Russell (1992) in gekkonid lizards? The anole world has not finished to surprise us!
References:
Bauer, A.M.; Russell, A.P.; Shadwick, R.E. 1989. Mechanical properties and morphological correlates of fragile skin in gekkonid lizards. J. Exp. Biol. 145(79-102)
Bauer, A.M.; Russell, A.P.; Shadwick, R.E. 1992. Skin mechanics and morphology in Sphaerodactylus roosevelti (Reptilia: Gekkonidae). Herpetologica. 48(124-133)
Bauer, A.M.; Russell, A.P. 1992. The evolutionary significance of regional integumentary loss in island geckos: a complement to caudal autotomy. 4(343-358).
Bauer, A.M.; Russell, A.P.; Shadwick, R.E. 1993. Skin mechanics and morphology of two species of Pachydactylus (Reptilia: Gekkonidae). S. Afr. Tydskr Dierk. 28(192-197)
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Fernando Ayala
I saw that antipredator strategy in Anolis biporcatus. Their skin is like in Gonatodes and the regeneration is fast (website).
Kristin Winchell
Has it been particularly wet there? I noticed that on one trip – after it had been really rainy several cristatellus in San Juan lost their skin just from handling them. Never had that happen any other time.
Dufour Claire
Thank you for the replies. Good to know that it is not a unique case. I sampled this population since 2016 and under wetter conditions (in 2017 for instance), but for unknown reason, the integumentary loss happened only one day, last month (when it was not specially rainy).