Sexual dichromatism in a cryptic poison frog is correlated with female tadpole transport

Palacios-Rodríguez, Pablo; González-Santoro, Marco; Amézquita, Adolfo; Brunetti, Andrés E.

doi:10.1007/s10682-021-10147-4

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 52 publications

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“…Dendrobatid frogs exhibit high diversity of parental care behaviors, and male uniparental care is the ancestral (and most common) type of care (Summers and Tumulty 2014). Biparental care has been described in only two species (Caldwell 1997;Brown et al 2010), and maternal care is present predominantly in the genus Oophaga (Carvajal-Castro et al 123AD) and Colostethus (Palacios- Rodríguez et al 2022). Mothers transport the tadpoles to bromeliad axils and then feed them with unfertilized eggs until metamorphosis is complete (Silverstone 1973;Weygoldt 1980;Brust 1993).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reproductive behaviors promote ecological and phenotypic sexual differentiation in the critically endangered Lehmann’s poison frog

Betancourth-Cundar

Palacios-Rodríguez

2022

Evol Ecol

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Territoriality and parental care are complex reproductive behaviors found in many taxa from insects to mammals. Parental care can be carried out by the female, the male, or both, depending on the species. Territoriality, in contrast, is predominantly displayed by males. Different selective pressures imposed on individuals from the sex performing territorial or parental care behaviors may also lead to sexual differentiation in other life-history traits. Due to their territorial behavior and their diversity of parental care behaviors, Neotropical poison frogs are an excellent study system to investigate whether behavioral traits can influence sexual differentiation in intrinsic or extrinsic traits of individuals. Here, we evaluate whether territorial and parental care behaviors mediate sexual differentiation in ecological (habitat use) and phenotypic (coloration, morphology) traits in the critically endangered Lehmann’s poison frog (Oophaga lehmanni), a species in which males defend territories while females provide parental care. We found sex differences in habitat use and morphological traits, but not in coloration. Males use trunks and green leaves as perches more frequently and are found on higher substrates, than females. We found no sex differences in body size, but females have longer arms than males, which is probably associated with their parental duties (climbing trees to feed the tadpoles). Altogether, our results provide evidence that selection pressures act differently on male and female traits, and that territoriality and parental care may promote the evolution of sexual differentiation in dendrobatids. Long-term wildlife observations are essential to identify important life-history traits and to evaluate hypotheses about the behavioral ecology and conservation of this and other vertebrate species.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reproductive behaviors promote ecological and phenotypic sexual differentiation in the critically endangered Lehmann’s poison frog

Betancourth-Cundar

Palacios-Rodríguez

2022

Evol Ecol

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Little evidence for color- or size-based mating preferences by male strawberry poison frogs (Oophaga pumilio)

Lehman,

González-Santoro,

Richards-Zawacki

2024

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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While there are many studies documenting female mating preferences across taxa, male mate choice remains relatively understudied. Male mate choice often develops when there is variation in female quality and thus the fitness benefits of mating with particular females. Specifically, males tend to prefer females with traits that confer direct fitness benefits such as large body size, which may be linked with high fecundity. Prior work has shown that females of the strawberry poison frog, Oophaga pumilio, prefer males bearing certain coloration (most often the female’s own color), and that this preference can be learned through maternal imprinting. Females have been shown to prefer larger males as well. Here we test whether similar mate preferences for color and size exist in males of this species using two-way choice tests on captive bred male O. pumilio. In each test focal males were placed in an arena with two stimulus females: either both of the same size but differing in color, or both of the same color but differing in size. We found only weak evidence for behavioral biases toward particular colors and no evidence for biases toward larger females, suggesting that males of O. pumilio do not predictably choose mates based on these female traits. Despite several aspects of their natural history that suggest males have reasons to be choosy, our findings suggest that the cost of mate rejection may outweigh any fitness benefits derived from being selective of mates. Studies of additional populations, ideally conducted on wild individuals, are needed to better understand the range of conditions under which males may exhibit mate choice and the types of traits on which they base these choices. Significance statement To fully understand the fitness landscapes and evolutionary trajectories that result from sexual selection, we need to understand when and how the mate preferences of the two sexes act and interact. While female mate choice has been widely studied, male mate choice remains poorly understood. To help bridge this gap, we studied male mate preferences in the strawberry poison frog Oophaga pumilio, a small brightly colored frog for which female preferences for male color and size have been well-documented. We found no evidence that male O. pumilio exhibit mate preferences based on female size and little evidence for male mate preferences based on female color. This is surprising given that larger females are often more fecund, male O. pumilio are known to exhibit color-based behavioral biases in the context of male-male competition, and both sexes provide parental care.

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Experimental evidence in a poison frog model suggests that tadpole transport on the dorsum may affects warning signal effectiveness in poison frogs

et al. 2022

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Sexual dichromatism in a cryptic poison frog is correlated with female tadpole transport

Cited by 3 publications

References 52 publications

Reproductive behaviors promote ecological and phenotypic sexual differentiation in the critically endangered Lehmann’s poison frog

Reproductive behaviors promote ecological and phenotypic sexual differentiation in the critically endangered Lehmann’s poison frog

Little evidence for color- or size-based mating preferences by male strawberry poison frogs (Oophaga pumilio)

Experimental evidence in a poison frog model suggests that tadpole transport on the dorsum may affects warning signal effectiveness in poison frogs

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