ROUSE, M.N.*; FOX, S.F.; HUSAK, J.F.; Oklahoma State University, Stillwater; Oklahoma State University, Stillwater; Oklahoma State University, Stillwater: Does asymmetry relate to components of fitness in Crotaphytus collaris?

Random deviation from perfect symmetry in bilateral morphological characters among individuals in a population, known as fluctuating asymmetry, has been used as an indicator of the inability of an organism to overcome detrimental genetic and environmental stresses during development. We measured the asymmetry of five mensural and seven meristic characters of 175 collared lizards (Crotaphytus collaris) from north-central Oklahoma. To test the predicted negative relationship between asymmetry and fitness, we looked for relationships between morphological asymmetry and the following components of fitness: social status, territory or home range size, escape behavior, snout-vent length (age), and body condition. We found little or no significance in the relationships between the degree of symmetry and the various components of fitness. These results may be explained due to the observed non-uniformity of asymmetry among the various morphological characters within individuals. This low correlation of asymmetry among characters within individuals suggests a more ambiguous relationship between fluctuating asymmetry and fitness than conventional wisdom suggests.