Stephanie M. Campos, PhD
Assistant Professor of Biology | Villanova University
Villanova, PA, UNITED STATES
Stephanie M. Campos, PhD researches animal behavior with an emphasis on territoriality, sexual selection, chemical communication and lizards
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Areas of Expertise (8)
Animal Behavior
Chemical Communication
Behavioral Ecology
Lizard Behavior
Territoriality
Pheromones
Sensory Ecology
Lizard Brains
Biography
Chemicals control the social lives of animals. Dr. Campos researches and can discuss the role of chemical signaling (pheromones, hormones, and brain chemicals) in modulating reproductive and competitive social interactions in animals, especially lizards, and how sensory systems are shaped by environmental factors and social needs.
Education (2)
Indiana University: PhD
University of Texas at Arlington: BS
Affiliations (1)
- Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology : Division of Animal Behavior Program Officer
Select Media Appearances (1)
Who Knew Reptiles Could Be Such Romantics?
The New York Times print
2022-10-24
When comparing reptile and mammal brains, “a lot of the regions are very similar to what we have,” said Dr. Campos, who studies chemical communication in lizards. Many of the brain regions that are important for social behavior in mammals, she says, are also involved in reptile interactions.
Select Academic Articles (6)
Signaler’s Vasotocin Alters the Relationship between the Responder’s Forebrain Catecholamines and Communication Behavior in Lizards (Anolis carolinensis)
Brain, Behavior and Evolution2022 Dynamic fluctuations in the distribution of catecholamines across the brain modulate the responsiveness of vertebrates to social stimuli. Previous work demonstrates that green anoles (Anolis carolinensis) increase chemosensory behavior in response to males treated with exogenous arginine vasotocin (AVT), but the neurochemical mechanisms underlying this behavioral shift remains unclear. Since central catecholamine systems, including dopamine, rapidly activate in response to social stimuli, we tested whether exogenous AVT in signalers (stimulus animals) impacts catecholamine concentrations in the forebrain (where olfactory and visual information are integrated and processed) of untreated lizard responders.
Chemical Communication in Lizards and a Potential Role for Vasotocin in Modulating Social Interactions
Integrative and Comparative Biology2021 Lizards use chemical communication to mediate many reproductive, competitive, and social behaviors, but the neuroendocrine mechanisms underlying chemical communication in lizards are not well understood and understudied. By implementing a neuroendocrine approach to the study of chemical communication in reptiles, we can address a major gap in our knowledge of the evolutionary mechanisms shaping chemical communication in vertebrates. In this review, we posit that, though limited, the available data on AVT-mediated chemical communication in lizards reveal intriguing patterns that suggest AVT plays a more prominent role in lizard chemosensory behavior than previously appreciated.
Volatile fatty acid and aldehyde abundances evolve with behavior and habitat temperature in Sceloporus lizards
Behavioral Ecology2020 Animal signals evolve by striking a balance between the need to convey information through particular habitats and the limitations of what types of signals can most easily be produced and perceived. Here, we present new results from field measures of undisturbed behavior and biochemical analyses of scent marks from 12 species of Sceloporus lizards to explore whether evolutionary changes in chemical composition are better predicted by measures of species behavior, particularly those associated with visual displays, chemoreception, and locomotion, or by measures of habitat climate (precipitation and temperature).
Arginine vasotocin impacts chemosensory behavior during social interactions of Anolis carolinensis lizards
Hormones and Behavior2020 In reptiles, arginine vasotocin (AVT) impacts the performance of and response to visual social signals, but whether AVT also operates within the chemosensory system as arginine vasopressin (AVP) does in mammals is unknown, despite social odors being potent modifiers of competitive and appetitive behavior in reptiles. Here, we ask whether elevated levels of exogenous AVT impact rates of chemical display behavior (e.g. tongue flicks) in adult males, and whether conspecific males or females can chemically discriminate between competitor males based on differing levels of exogenous AVT in green anoles (Anolis carolinensis). This study provides empirical support for AVT-mediated chemosensory behavior in reptilian social interactions, in a microsmatic lizard species, suggesting the mechanism by which mammalian AVP and non-mammalian AVT mediate chemosensory behavior during social interactions may be evolutionarily conserved.
Structural Identification, Synthesis and Biological Activity of Two Volatile Cyclic Dipeptides in a Terrestrial Vertebrate
Scientific Reports2020 Single substances within complex vertebrate chemical signals could be physiologically or behaviourally active. However, the vast diversity in chemical structure, physical properties and molecular size of semiochemicals makes identifying pheromonally active compounds no easy task. Here, we identified two volatile cyclic dipeptides, cyclo(L-Leu-L-Pro) and cyclo(L-Pro-L-Pro), from the complex mixture of a chemical signal in terrestrial vertebrates (lizard genus Sceloporus), synthesised one of them and investigated their biological activity in male intra-specific communication.
In Space and Time: Territorial Animals are Attracted to Conspecific Chemical Cues
Ethology2017 Territorial animals lay scent marks around their territories to broadcast their presence, but these olfactory signals can both attract and repel conspecifics. Attraction or aversion can have a profound impact in terms of space use and thereby influence an individual's access to resources and mates. Here, we test the impact of chemical signals on the long-term space use and activity of receivers, comparing the response of males and females, territory holders, and temporary visitors in Sceloporus undulatus lizards in the field. These results suggest that territorial scent marks are attractive to conspecifics and impact space use, but that the specific effects depend on receiver sex and residency status.
