Cherlin V., Okshtein I., Labazanov I. The importance of the ratio of temperature conditions on the soil surface and at different depths for the ecology of the toad-headed agamas (Phrynocephalus mystaceus) on the Sarykum dune (Republic of Dagestan, Russian Federation) // Principy èkologii. 2026. № 1. P. 3‒2. DOI: 10.15393/j1.art.2026.16842


Issue № 1

Original research

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The importance of the ratio of temperature conditions on the soil surface and at different depths for the ecology of the toad-headed agamas (Phrynocephalus mystaceus) on the Sarykum dune (Republic of Dagestan, Russian Federation)

Cherlin
   Vladimir Alexandrovich
DSc, Dagestan State Univeersity, 43-a M. Gadzhiyev str., Makhachkala, Republic of Dagestan, 367000 Russia, cherlin51@mail.ru
Okshtein
   Igor Leonidovich
A.I. Alikhanov Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Physics, 25 Bolshaya Cheremushkinskaya St., 117218, Moscow, Russia, okshtein@yandex.ru
Labazanov
   Ibragim Makhmudovich
Dagestan State Univeersity, 43-a M. Gadzhiyev str., Makhachkala, Republic of Dagestan, 367000 Russia, ibralabz.0@bk.ru
Keywords:
toad-headed agama
dynamics of environmental factors
internal thermal needs
external thermal conditions
Summary: The article describes the patterns of diurnal and seasonal dynamics of temperature dynamics on the surface and in the soil at different depths in the entire zone used by toad-headed agamas (Phrynocephalus mystaceus) in their vital activity on the Sarykum dune in Dagestan (from 2 cm above the surface of the sand to about 80 cm in its depth). In addition, the article shows that these different air and soil layers provide agamas with a wide range of thermal conditions that allow them to regulate body temperature and organize their necessary daily and seasonal dynamics, regulate and promote their optimal seasonal physiological cycles. Finally, the article shows how individual temperature parameters of the external environment are used by lizards in different ways for their vital activity. All the described patterns illustrate the coordinated functional unity of the parameters of homeostasis, endogenous needs for the implementation of seasonal physiological cycles and the dynamics of environmental factors.

© Petrozavodsk State University

Reviewer: A. Kidov
Received on: 24 November 2025
Published on: 27 March 2026

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