Phenotypic plasticity in representatives of two Anura genera: effects of temperature during larval development

Author(s)

Renan Lopes Rodrigues

• Document type: Master's Dissertation
• Press: Ribeirão Preto.
• Institution: Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto (PCARP/BC)
• Defense date: 2019-07-04

Examining board members

Tiana Kohlsdorf; Cinthia Aguirre Brasileiro; Wilfried Klein; Cynthia Peralta de Almeida Prado

• Advisor: Tiana Kohlsdorf

Abstract

Environmental parameters may influence the establishment of phenotypic traits during the development of a given organism. More specifically, current literature provides evidence for associations between the thermal environment and the development of several traits in vertebrate animals exhibiting aquatic larval stages, such as anurans. The thermal sensitivity and associated effects elicited by variations in the environmental temperature differ among species of anurans, and ecological and phylogenetic factors may explain how larval development is affected by the thermal regimes in tadpoles of a given species. The present study evaluated morphological developmental responses to the thermal environment in 3 Rhinella species (Rhinella schneideri, Rhinella icterica and Rhinella ornata) and 1 species of Leptodactylus (Leptodactylus labyrinthicus). We raised tadpoles in 5 different developmental environments in order to evaluate the sensitivity of developmental processes to temperature in the studied species, inferring likely associations with phylogenetic and ecological aspects. Results suggest that species from thermal environments of greater sazonal thermal variation (species exclusive to the atlantic forest - Rhinella icterica and Rhinella ornata) are more sensitive, in relation to development, growth and morphological plasticity, to temperature variation in the developmental environments, whereas species having a wide distribution, which occupy several biomes (caatinga, cerrado and atlantic forest - Rhinella schneideri and Leptodactylus labyrinthicus), only exhibit plastic morphological responses when raised in developmental environments comprising temperature decreases. This study contributes for discussions regarding the sensitivity of developmental processes to temperature in species of Rhinella and Leptodactylus, and provides information that may access the vulnerability of the studied species to climatic changes derived from global warming (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 17/04777-0 - Phenotypic plasticity in the larval development of anurans: effects of temperature and their relationships with the reproductive season
• Grantee: Renan Lopes Rodrigues
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master