Breeding in bamboo: a novel anuran reproductive strategy discovered in Rhacophorid frogs of the Western Ghats, India

Seshadri, K.; Gururaja, KV; Bickford, David P.

doi:10.1111/bij.12388

Cited by 21 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 37 publications

(60 reference statements)

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“…However, non-aquatic microhabitat associations were also found for 78% of the sample taxa (Tables 2 & 3 ). Those microhabitats, climatic and habitat combinations fulfil a variety of ecological purposes beyond their basic physiological requirements; refugia from climatic extremes [ 108 ] and predators [ 109 , 110 ], mate advertisement perches [ 48 ], sites for egg deposition [ 111 , 112 ], breeding resources [ 36 , 43 , 113 ]; reproductive behaviour is selected for by suitable rainfall and relative humidity conditions [ 48 , 106 , 114 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Micro-habitat distribution drives patch quality for sub-tropical rocky plateau amphibians in the northern Western Ghats, India

et al. 2018

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The importance of patch quality for amphibians is frequently overlooked in distribution models. Here we demonstrate that it is highly important for the persistence of endemic and endangered amphibians found in the threatened and fragile ecosystems that are the rocky plateaus in Western Maharashtra, India. These plateaus are ferricretes of laterite and characterise the northern section of the Western Ghats/Sri Lanka Biodiversity Hotspot, the eighth most important global hotspot and one of the three most threatened by population growth. We present statistically supported habitat associations for endangered and data-deficient Indian amphibians, demonstrating significant relationships between individual species and their microhabitats. Data were collected during early monsoon across two seasons. Twenty-one amphibian taxa were identified from 14 lateritic plateaus between 67 and 1179m above sea level. Twelve of the study taxa had significant associations with microhabitats using a stepwise analysis of the AICc subroutine (distLM, Primer-e, v7). Generalist taxa were associated with increased numbers of microhabitat types. Non-significant associations are reported for the remaining 9 taxa. Microhabitat distribution was spatially structured and driven by climate and human activity. Woody plants were associated with 44% of high-elevation taxa. Of the 8 low-elevation taxa 63% related to water bodies and 60% of those were associated with pools. Rock size and abundance were important for 33% of high elevation specialists. Three of the 4 caecilians were associated with rocks in addition to soil and stream presence. We conclude the plateaus are individualistic patches whose habitat quality is defined by their microhabitats within climatic zones.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Micro-habitat distribution drives patch quality for sub-tropical rocky plateau amphibians in the northern Western Ghats, India

et al. 2018

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“…The negative relationships, detected for both occurrence and proportion data, suggest that terrestrial species are also at a disadvantage at high temperatures, because the permeable jelly capsule that coats the terrestrial amphibian eggs is prone to desiccation (Duellman & Trueb, 1986). In such conditions, the only species that can persist with terrestrial breeding do so with obligate parental care to reduce dessication (see Bickford, 2004;Seshadri, Gururaja, & Bickford, 2015). Annual rainfall was the second most important variable to predict both the occurrence and the proportion of TBS at the global scale.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Global patterns of terrestriality in amphibian reproduction

Lion

Mazzochini

Garda

et al. 2019

Global Ecol Biogeogr

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Aim Amphibians exhibit two basic reproductive modes, terrestrial and aquatic, each with different ecophysiological constraints related to evaporative water loss. We hypothesize that these fundamental niche differences will generate strong geographical patterns at the global scale in response to spatial heterogeneity in temperature and water availability. Location Global. Time period Present. Major taxa studied Amphibians. Methods We used global distribution maps of 5,434 amphibian species, classified into terrestrial or aquatic breeders, to estimate the occurrence and proportion of terrestrial breeding species per 1° cell. We used multiple regression models to test the relative importance of seven abiotic variables: annual precipitation, annual mean temperature, annual mean relative air humidity, annual mean actual evapotranspiration, availability of lotic and lentic environments and slope. We used residuals autocovariate (RAC) generalized multiple regression models to control for spatial autocorrelation and a spatial vector based on amphibian phylogeny to account for phylogenetic dependencies among cells. Model generality was evaluated by contrasting results between 11 widely recognized world zoogeographical realms. Results Globally, the occurrence of terrestrial breeding species was better explained by temperature followed by total annual rainfall, relative air humidity and terrain slope. In contrast, the proportion of terrestrial breeders was better explained by terrain slope, followed by total rainfall, temperature and relative air humidity. Actual evapotranspiration and the extension of large lotic and lentic water bodies played a minor role. However, the relative importance and even the sign of the regression coefficients varied among realms, revealing different evolutionary pressures. Main conclusions Niche differences among terrestrial and aquatic breeding amphibian species are reflected in their distinct geographical distribution across the globe. Adequate conditions for terrestrial reproduction to evolve and thrive are reached in distinct ways in different realms. Temperature constraints and slope suggest that reproductive modes will be impacted differently by climate change.

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“…As the reproduction of many species in this genus has not yet been studied, the extent of variation is likely to be even greater. Our limited understanding of this diversity is evidenced by the high number of recent publications reporting new modes of breeding and associated reproductive behaviours ( Zhang et al, 2012 ; Gururaja et al, 2014 ; Iskandar, Evans & McGuire, 2014 ; Crump, 2015 ; Seshadri, Gururaja & Bickford, 2015 ; Senevirathne et al, 2016 ). Within Nyctibatrachus , variation in the types of amplexus is especially remarkable, ranging from a normal axillary amplexus to a complete lack of physical contact between the sexes ( Kunte, 2004 ; Gururaja et al, 2014 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A unique mating strategy without physical contact during fertilization in Bombay Night Frogs (Nyctibatrachus humayuni) with the description of a new form of amplexus and female call

Willaert¹,

Suyesh

Garg

et al. 2016

PeerJ

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Anurans show the highest diversity in reproductive modes of all vertebrate taxa, with a variety of associated breeding behaviours. One striking feature of anuran reproduction is amplexus. During this process, in which the male clasps the female, both individuals’ cloacae are juxtaposed to ensure successful external fertilization. Several types of amplexus have evolved with the diversification of anurans, and secondary loss of amplexus has been reported in a few distantly related taxa. Within Nyctibatrachus, a genus endemic to the Western Ghats of India, normal axillary amplexus, a complete loss of amplexus, and intermediate forms of amplexus have all been suggested to occur, but many species remain unstudied. Here, we describe the reproductive behaviour of N. humayuni, including a new type of amplexus. The dorsal straddle, here defined as a loose form of contact in which the male sits on the dorsum of the female prior to oviposition but without clasping her, is previously unreported for anurans. When compared to known amplexus types, it most closely resembles the form of amplexus observed in Mantellinae. Furthermore, we prove that, opposed to the situation in most anurans, male semen release happens before egg deposition. We hypothesize that the male ejaculates on the female’s dorsum and that sperm subsequently runs from her back and hind legs before fertilizing the eggs. A second feature characterizing anuran breeding is the advertisement call, mostly produced solely by males. Despite recent descriptions of several new Nyctibatrachus species, few studies have explored their vocal repertoire. We describe both the male advertisement call and a female call for N. humayuni. The presence of a female call has not been reported within Nyctibatrachidae, and has been reported in less than 0.5% of anuran species. Altogether, our results highlight a striking diversity and several unique aspects of Nyctibatrachus breeding behaviour.

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Breeding in bamboo: a novel anuran reproductive strategy discovered in Rhacophorid frogs of the Western Ghats, India

Cited by 21 publications

References 37 publications

Micro-habitat distribution drives patch quality for sub-tropical rocky plateau amphibians in the northern Western Ghats, India

Micro-habitat distribution drives patch quality for sub-tropical rocky plateau amphibians in the northern Western Ghats, India

Global patterns of terrestriality in amphibian reproduction

A unique mating strategy without physical contact during fertilization in Bombay Night Frogs (Nyctibatrachus humayuni) with the description of a new form of amplexus and female call

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