Lizards playing Rock - Paper - Scissors   THIS IS REAL ep.1 - video Dailymotion

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00:00 This is a side-blushed lizard male.

00:04 And this orange-colored one is also a side-blushed lizard male.

00:09 And so is this yellow-throated fellow.

00:13 They might look different, but are all the same species,

00:18 and have been playing a perpetual cycle of rock-paper-scissors for 15 million years.

00:24 I'm Mario and this is Real.

00:29 The side-blushed lizard is named after the dark-colored patch behind its front feet.

00:38 And, although it might not look that impressive at a first glance,

00:43 this lizard has been playing a never-ending game of rock-paper-scissors long before humans have.

00:51 It is all about their colors.

00:56 As weird as it sounds, these three males are all the same species,

01:01 but each color has a unique behavior.

01:04 Orange ones, also known as ultra-dominant males, are the largest and the most powerful morphs.

01:11 They are tough and aggressive and have large territories and lots of females.

01:18 Blues, aka dominant males, have a medium size.

01:25 They have smaller territories and are monogamous,

01:29 which means that they mate with only one female and are always around her.

01:34 And last but not least, there are the yellow-throated morphs, aka the sneakers.

01:42 They don't hold territories and are the smallest and the least powerful of the three,

01:48 but are sneaky and can mimic females to fool the other males.

01:53 So what does that have to do with rock-paper-scissors?

01:56 The rules of this game are simple.

01:59 Rock beats scissors, scissors beats paper, and paper beats rock,

02:05 and it is the same for the three different colors.

02:08 Orange beats blue because oranges are larger and more powerful than blues,

02:13 so they can steal their females.

02:16 Blue beats yellow because the monogamous blues are vigilant

02:20 and don't let yellow steal their females.

02:23 And yellow beats orange because oranges can't look after all the females at once,

02:29 so the sneaky yellows steal them.

02:32 Sometimes, yellow-throated males can become blue during mating seasons if a nearby blue dies.

02:40 Not only do they change their color, but they also adapt the behavior of a blue male,

02:46 giving up on their female mimicry.

02:50 Another fascinating fact about blues is that they are not competitive with other blues

02:55 and actually warn each other when intruders are nearby, doing those weird little push-ups.

03:02 They have been observed to risk their lives for other blues, which is a behavior called altruism.

03:09 So you might think that over the course of some generations, one color will prevail over the others.

03:17 For example, the altruistic blues could win.

03:20 But that hasn't happened, because each color is kept in check by the other two

03:25 due to that rock-paper-scissors cycle.

03:28 And if one morph does happen to become scarce, females bring it back on track,

03:34 because they actually prefer the rarest male color.

03:38 And this strategy has been working for 15 million years.

03:45 And it looks like this amazing game of rock-paper-scissors will continue for a long time.

03:52 I hope you enjoyed the first episode of This is Real.

03:57 I have a lot more interesting videos about animals, so subscribe for more upcoming ones.

04:02 And if you really like what I make, consider supporting me on Patreon.

04:07 Respect animals!

Lizards playing Rock - Paper - Scissors THIS IS REAL ep.1

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