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(Reference retrieved automatically from Web of Science through information on FAPESP grant and its corresponding number as mentioned in the publication by the authors.)

Predation and Schooling Influence on the Primary Response of Individuals of Rhinella ornata (Spix, 1824) (Anura: Bunonidae): An Experimental Assessment of Habitat Selection

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Author(s):
Carvajalino Fernandez, Juan Manuel ; Tavares de Oliveira, Mariana Zanotti
Total Authors: 2
Document type: Journal article
Source: South American Journal of Herpetology; v. 12, n. 1, p. 57-60, APR 2017.
Web of Science Citations: 2
Abstract

A limiting factor in habitat selection is the presence of predators in the environment. Schooling behavior is one of the strategies that allows organisms to become established in specific habitats, even when predators are present. Although numerous reports about schooling behavior in tadpoles of Bufonidae exist, few experimental results on the subject are available. We conducted an experiment to study anti-predatory schooling behavior in tadpoles of Rhinella ornata. A subject (only one tadpole per experiment) got to choose among treatments with other tadpoles (promoting grouping), places with only water, places with dead tadpoles and dead dragonflies larvae chemical cues (simulating predators), and a mixture of all treatments. We found that individual tadpoles of R. ornata detected the chemical cues and tended to flee. The initial preference of escaping to places without aggregations of other tadpoles has not been reported for Bufonidae. Our results do not rule out schooling in R. ornata, but highlight the occurrence of an initial behavior under stressful predatory contexts. (AU)

FAPESP's process: 14/16320-7 - Impacts of climate/environmental change on the fauna: an integrative approach
Grantee:Carlos Arturo Navas Iannini
Support Opportunities: Research Program on Global Climate Change - Thematic Grants