O. G. Dely szerk.: Vertebrata Hungarica 21. (Budapest, 1982)
Daravskii, I. S. ; Kupriyanova, L. A.: Rare males in parthenogenetic lizard Lacerta armeniaca Méhely 69-76. o.
of sex chromosomes (Plate I: Fig. : 3). Taking into consideration the nonhybrid diploid nature of the male individuals, we suggested that one of the possible causes of their origin might be a hormonal sex reversion (DAREVSKY et al. 1978). This paper describes another male L. armenlac a captured within a mixed population of two unisexual species ( L. armeniaca. L. dahl i) and one bisexual species ( L. portschinskii ). This male was initially caged with females of L. armeniac a, and although the former was viable and active, no mating was observed. The male was maintained alive until autumn and was sacrificed and fixed in September 1979. In this paper we report the results of karyological, cytological and cytophotometrical analyses of ordinary females of L. armeniac a and the male in question, as well as of a control male of the bisexual species L. portschinski i and a hybrid female L . dahl i x L. portschinskii. MATERIAL AND METHODS The males of L. armeniac a, L. portschinski i and the hybrid female of L. dahl i x L. por tschinski i were collected from one population (in Armenia, near the town Stepanavan), the females of L. armeniac a were caught in two Isolated populations near the towns Ankavan and Zurnabad. Judging from its body size, head and body length being 48.5 mm, the L. armeniac a male was at least two years old, i.e. it was caught after its second hibernation (Plate I: Fig. 1). Its affiliation with L. armeniac a was proved, besides its characteristic colouration, by some typical features of the pholidosis, including the characteristic arrangement of some scutes of the temporal area and a discontinuous row of granules between the supraoculars and the supraciliaries . Some deviations in meristic features were observed which appeared well within the range of variation established for this particular species. ( Post-mortem examination of the male L. ar maniac a showed that its testes were rather well developed, likewise its hemi-penises. Of special interest is that, unlike other males of the rocklizards mentioned above, clearly visible rudimentary oviducts were lacking in the abdomen cavity of the male in question (Plate I.: Fig. 2). In all, the picture of the inner sex organs of this male did not actually differ from that usually observed for males of bisexual species examined in the same season. In the karyological analysis, the bone marrow, blood and testicular cells of the colchicined lizards were treated with hypotonie solution (0.075 M KCL), fixed in methanol acetic acid (3:1). The smears were then stained with Giemsa Solution. For preparing series of paraffine sections the right testis of males of L. armeniac a and L. portschinski i were fixed in ßouin* s fluid (30 min), then placed in 70% alcohol and then stained with Heidenhaln's hematoxylin. The smears of blood and testis of the males of L. armeniaca. L. portschinski i and of hybrid female L. dahl i x L. p ortschinski i were dried and fixed in 96% methanol. The slides were treated with IN HCL, then stained with Schiff reagent. Measurement of the DNA content in the nuclei of blood and spermatid cells of the above specimens was carried out using 2-wave cytophotometry (the long waves being equal to 500 nm and 530 nm). Chromosomes of about 150 cells from 6 lizards were examined and DNA quantity in 271 nuclei from 3 lizards was measured. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION The number and morphology of the chromosomes of female L. armeniac a are the same as in the males and the intersex of L. armeniac a described earlier: 35 acrocentric macro- and 3- microchromosomes (Plate I.: Figs 3-4). The small size of the chromosomes of the heteromorphic (the 18th) pair makes it difficult to study and identify them. Therefore at present we cannot say exactly PLATE I. Figs 1-2: A male of the parthenogenetic species Lacerta armeniac a: external view (1), the same, reproductive organs a, b - testis (2). - Figs 3-6: Metaphase plates: metaphase in male L. armeniac a (3), metaphase in female L. armeniac a (4), metaphase I in male L. arm eniac a (5), metaphase in male L. portschinski i (6). Arrows mark the micro- and presumably sex (ZW) chromosomes and bivalents (x 630)
