or by-products of genetic drift. Further studies would be required to conclude these details. Reproduction Males defend territories both during and after the breeding season. Territorial defense is accomplished by posturing and physical combat. Male and female territories overlap, which enables the male lizards to court and mate with a few familiar females. Courtship involves head bob and shudder displays, and is physically demanding and time-consuming. Males are usually slightly larger than females. Sagebrush lizards mate in the spring, and have one or two clutches of two to ten eggs that are laid during late spring to midsummer. The eggs are laid about 1 inch (2.5 cm) deep in loose soil, usually at the base of a shrub. The eggs hatch in 45–75 days (approximately two months). Females in the northwestern range may produce two clutches. The young become sexually mature in the first (southern range) or second (northern range) year. Courtship For males to invest in courtship is a costly business. Not only does it require time and energy, but it also exposes males to competition and predatory behavior. However, courtship is very important in reproductive potential. The sagebrush males repeatedly visit the same females as they move through the various territories. Repeated courtship is even more costly, but for sagebrush lizards, it is a requirement for reproductive behavior. However, in order to slightly lower their courtship costs, they vary their courtship based on the female's reproductive state. If the female sagebrush was previously confronted by the male already during their bout of repeated courtship, then they are less likely to perform rejection behavior. Within this lizard species, the male and female territories are overlapping and polygamous males are constantly exposed to females they have repeatedly courted or are familiar with. However, females are particularly picky and they exhibit many rejection displays, so males have realized that repeated courtship is necessary to allow male insemination. In the study done by Mayte Ruiz et al. in "Courtship attention in sagebrush lizards varies with male identity and female reproductive state", they tested the possible predictors of male courtship behavior in S. graciosus. The predictions include individual variation among males, female reproductive state and female fitness. Ultimately, it was found that male sagebrush lizards show individual differences in courtship behavior, but that behavior is mostly tailored to female reproductive fitness. The males displayed quite intensely towards females less far along in the