Image of a veiled chameleon by Geoff (CC BY-SA 3.0).
It is a well-known fact that people need constant interaction with others in order to grow up to become normal, healthy adults. But do all types of animals require group contact with other members of their species as we do? Ballen and colleagues were interested in the behavioral differences caused by raising a particular type of lizard, the veiled chameleon, in a group or in isolation. The findings of their paper were further brought to public attention by the science writer, Mary Bates, in her news article titled “Lizards Need Social Lives, Too.” Although the main message from these two pieces of literature is the same, Ballen and colleagues wrote for the scientific community and Bates wrote for a more general and wider audience.
Ballen and colleagues knew from previous studies that birds and mammals raised in isolation had problems with “social behavior, mental performance, and foraging behavior” (Ballen 2014). However, they were curious if reptiles were also negatively affected by being raised alone. Ballen found a type of lizard known to grow up with its siblings in its early life: the veiled chameleon. Ballen decided to test if isolation early in life affected the chameleon’s ability to forage for food and interact with members of its species later in life. To do this, Ballen incubated chameleon eggs until they hatched and then raised some of these hatchlings in groups and others in isolated enclosures. The chameleons’ foraging ability was then tested by measuring the amount of time an individual took to catch a cricket. The scientists tested social behavior by placing two chameleons of the same size and sex together and observing aggressiveness and submissiveness in social interactions. Aggressive behaviors included chasing, tail curling and uncurling, gaping, and compressing or extending the body. Submissive behaviors included running away or curling up into a ball. After one chameleon dominated over the other, Ballen then measured the color of each chameleon. The results of these experiments showed that isolated chameleons took 4.19 seconds longer to capture food, were more submissive, and displayed “darker and less green colours.” Even though the chameleon is believed to be less social than other reptiles, it still experiences harmful effects from being raised in isolation. This finding made Ballen believe that more social reptile species would also be affected. In the future, Ballen and colleagues want to investigate the biological mechanisms behind the behavioral changes observed. Ballen also wanted to make sure that zoo management knew that raising reptiles in isolation could potentially harm these animals.
I applaud Ballen and colleagues for conducting experiments on an area that has not been studied before. I think measuring foraging and observing social behaviors are good ways to measure the effects of isolation. However, I think Ballen could have explained more about the relationship between aggressiveness and color. Although Ballen and colleagues discovered isolation-raised chameleons to be less aggressive and darker-colored, it was not clear if color is a side effect of submissiveness of if it is an unrelated factor. I would like to know more about whether color and submission are known to be directly related. Additionally, Ballen and colleagues said they could not measure the “resting” color of the chameleons. I feel that color differences would be more conclusive if the normal resting color was accounted for in the comparisons.
I believe that Bates did a very accurate job of portraying this study in her news article. She grabbed the reader’s attention by describing the horrible effects isolation has on humans, birds, and mammals to successfully prime the reader for this new study done on reptiles. She also extracted and shortened all the important findings and implications of this study without adding any bias, exaggeration, or unnecessary emphasis. Bates used some of the terminology from the original study, but she also used simpler language that was easy for a wide range of people to understand. Since Bates’ article was featured on the Wired Science website, I believe she wrote the article to appeal to many people interested in the sciences, particularly those interested in helping animals. This article was understandable to the young animal-lover and more available to members of zoo management than Ballen’s scientific paper was. Zookeepers need to know the harmful effects of isolation since they control how reptiles are raised. By using simple and concise language, Bates publicized the findings from Ballen’s study to allow more people to understand the issues of isolation and to help ensure that reptiles are raised in the best environment possible.
Works Cited
Ballen, C., Shine, R., and Olsson, M. (2014). Effects of early social isolation on the behaviour and performance of juvenile lizards, Chamaeleo calyptratus. Animal Behaviour 88: 1-6. doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2013.11.010.
Bates, Mary. “Lizards Need Social Lives, Too.” Zoologic. Wired Science, 10 Jan. 2014. Retrieved 13 Mar. 2014 <http://www.wired.com/2014/01/lizards-need-social-lives-too>.
Tags: lizards, social behavior