Reptiles Magazine
Pogona vitticeps can change gender via sex chromosomes or hot temperatures.
April 19, 2021
Elina Litovkina/Shutterstock
For many egg laying reptiles, temperature of the eggs during incubation determines the sex of the hatchling. For example, a 2017 study of green sea turtle (
Chelonia mydas) hatchlings on Australia’s Reine Island found that 99 percent of the sea turtles hatched on the island for the last 20 years were female, due to the temperatures in which the eggs incubated. This is attributed to a warming planet.
The bearded dragon, the most popular reptile kept as a pet, has the capability to change sex via two different sets of genes, either via sex chromosomes or via hot temperature, according to a study in the PLOS One journal.