Data from: Towards a functional understanding of species coexistence: ecomorphological variation in relation to whole-organism performance in two sympatric lizards

1. We examined intra- and interspecific variation in functional morphology and whole-organism performance in a sympatric lizard species pair, Iberolacerta horvathi and Podarcis muralis, in the area with a high potential for competition. 2. The biggest variation between species was found in two functional traits, bite force and climbing speed, linked with corresponding morphological traits. 3. The species with larger and taller heads, P. muralis, exhibited correspondingly stronger bite forces. The other species exhibited smaller and flatter head. Both traits may potentially promote segregation between species in trophic niche (stronger bites relate to harder prey) and in refuge use (flatter heads allow using narrower crevices, hence, influencing escaping from common predators). Stronger bites and larger heads also provide one species with a dominant position in interspecific agonistic interactions. 4. Females had longer trunks that impacted negatively on climbing speed, which may lower anti-predator escape abilities of the more trunk-dimorphic species, but positively influence reproductive effort. 5. Our results exemplify how the joint examination of morphological and functional traits of ecologically similar and sympatric species can provide a mechanistic background for understanding their coexistence, namely syntopic populations that are frequent in the study area. 6. The identified roles of functional morphology in this system of sympatric rock lizards support the contribution of functional diversification for the complexity of community structure via coexistence.

1. 我们针对一处具备高种间竞争潜力的区域内的同域分布蜥蜴物种对——伊比利亚蜥蜴（Iberolacerta horvathi）与壁蜥（Podarcis muralis），开展了其功能形态学与整体有机体性能的种内及种间变异研究。
2. 两物种间最显著的变异体现在两项功能性状上：咬合力与攀爬速度，二者均与对应的形态性状紧密关联。
3. 头部更大且更高的壁蜥（P. muralis），其咬合力也相应更强；另一物种则拥有更小且更扁平的头部。这两项性状或可推动两物种在营养生态位与避难所利用方面的生态位分化：更强的咬合力对应更坚硬的猎物，更扁平的头部则允许个体进入更狭窄的缝隙，进而影响其躲避共同捕食者的能力。此外，更强的咬合力与更大的头部，还能让其中一个物种在种间争斗互作中占据优势地位。
4. 雌性个体拥有更长的躯干，这会对攀爬速度产生负面影响，进而降低躯干形态分化更显著的物种的反捕食逃逸能力，但同时会对繁殖投入产生积极影响。
5. 本研究结果证实，针对生态相似且同域分布的物种开展形态与功能性状的联合解析，可为理解其共存机制（即研究区域内常见的同生境种群共存现象）提供机制性依据。
6. 本研究明确的功能形态学在该同域分布岩蜥蜴类群中的作用，证实了功能分化可通过物种共存过程推动群落结构的复杂化。