Thermal Model for Prediction of a Desert Iguana’s Daily and Seasonal Behavior

Abstract

A mathematical description of the transient thermal response of the desert iguana, Dipsosaurus dorsalis, to environmental changes is developed. The thermal model for the lizard was combined with a desert micrometeorological model, and the combination was used to predict diurnal and seasonal thermoregulatory behavior. Comparisons are made between the predictions and observed behavior. The model analysis is sufficiently general so that it can be used to predict the thermoregulatory behavior of other species of lizards.