ABSTRACT We documented the behaviour of pregnant McCann’s skinks (Oligosoma maccanni) before, during and after parturition. Females were maintained in captivity from early pregnancy under thermal environments differing in basking opportunity (low, mid and high regimes). Thermal regime during pregnancy had little influence on maternal behaviours, including basking behaviour prior to birth and the duration of, and site selection for, labour. The majority of births (78%) occurred in the open and warm areas. Most females (61%; n = 102 births, n = 36 females) aided offspring post-birth by biting them free of the enclosing extra-embryonic membrane. Some females from the low regime consumed non-viable offspring, but whether this is a consistent difference among females held under different basking regimes requires further study. Many females (c. 79%) also exhibited a brief transient decrease in control of hind-limbs post-birth. Further studies on other squamates are recommended to shed light on the evolutionary history and possible conservation consequences of maternal behaviour during parturition.

中文翻译：

---

胎生石龙子的分娩行为：当晒太阳的机会很低时母体同类相食的证据

摘要 我们记录了怀孕的麦肯石龙子 (Oligosoma maccanni) 在分娩前、分娩中和分娩后的行为。雌性从早孕开始就在不同晒太阳机会（低、中和高状态）的热环境下被圈养。怀孕期间的体温状况对母亲的行为几乎没有影响，包括出生前的晒太阳行为以及分娩的持续时间和地点选择。大多数出生 (78%) 发生在开放和温暖的地区。大多数雌性（61%；n = 102 次出生，n = 36 次雌性）通过咬掉封闭的胚胎外膜来帮助出生后的后代。一些来自低度制度的雌性消耗了无法存活的后代，但这是否在不同晒太阳制度下的雌性之间存在一致的差异需要进一步研究。许多女性（c。79%) 还表现出出生后后肢控制的短暂短暂下降。建议对其他有鳞类动物进行进一步研究，以阐明分娩期间母体行为的进化历史和可能的保护后果。