Territorial vocal behavior in hybrid smooth froglets, Geocrinia laevis complex (Anura: Myobatrachidae) (original) (raw)

Abstract

Males of the parapatically distributed myobatrachid frogs Geocrinia laevis and G. victoriana have highly divergent advertisement calls. Furthermore, the two species differ strongly in the complexity of their vocal repertoires, with males of G. victoriana possessing, and those of G. laevis lacking, a distinct territorial vocalization (encounter call). We investigated the territorial vocal behavior of males in a persistent natural hybrid population. Most hybrid males possessed encounter calls functionally equivalent to those of G. victoriana, that were produced following exposure to playback of recorded advertisement calls presented at >110 dB peak sound pressure level. The territorial acoustic responses were not associated with an index of hybridity derived from the structure of the advertisement call, suggesting genetic and functional decoupling of the two components of the vocal repertoire; i.e., advertisement calls and encounter calls. This decoupling may be the result of sexual selection favouring those hybrids with pronounced territorial behavior and the associated vocalization, regardless of the structure of their advertisement calls.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

• Get 10 units per month
• Download Article/Chapter or eBook
• 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
• Cancel anytime Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

• Baker MC (1991) Response of male indigo and lazuli buntings and their hybrids to song playback in allopatric and sympatric populations. Behaviour 119:225–242
  Google Scholar
• Barker J, Grigg GC, Tyler MJ (1995) A field guide to Australian frogs. Surrey Beatty, Chipping Norton
• Buchner A, Erdfelder E, Faul F (1997). How to use GPOWER. On line guide to GPOWER software. http://www.psycho.uni-duesseldorf.de/aap/projects/gpower/
• Butlin RK (1987) Speciation by reinforcement. Trends Ecol Evol 2:8–13
  Article Google Scholar
• Butlin RK (1995) Reinforcement: an idea evolving. Trends Ecol Evol 10:432–434
  Article Google Scholar
• Cohen J (1988) Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences, 2nd edn. Erlbaum, Hillsdale, N.J.
• Erdfelder E, Faul F, Buchner A (1996). GPOWER: a general power analysis program. Behav Res Methods Instrum Comput 28:1–11
  Google Scholar
• Given MF (1988) Territoriality and aggressive interactions of male carpenter frogs, Rana virgatipes. Copeia 1988:411–421
  Google Scholar
• Greenhouse SW, Geisser S (1959) On methods in the analysis of profile data. Psychometrika 24:95–112
  Google Scholar
• Harrison PA, Littlejohn MJ (1985) Diphasy in the advertisement calls of Geocrinia laevis (Anura: Leptodactylidae): vocal responses of males during field playback experiments. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 18:67–73
  Google Scholar
• Hotelling H (1953) New light on the correlation coefficient and its transforms. J R Stat Soc B 15:193–232
  Google Scholar
• Keselman HJ, Rogan JC (1980) Repeated measures F tests in psychophysiological research: controlling the number of false positives. Psychophysiology 17:499–503
  Google Scholar
• Littlejohn MJ (1988) Frog calls and speciation. The retrograde evolution of homogamic acoustic signalling systems in hybrid zones. In: Fritzsch B, Ryan MJ, Wilczynski W, Hetherington TE, Walkowiak W (eds) The evolution of the amphibian auditory system. Wiley, New York, pp 613–635
• Littlejohn MJ (1999) Variation in advertisement calls of anurans across zonal interactions. In: Foster SA, Endler JA (eds) Geographic variation in behavior. Oxford University Press, New York, pp 209–233
• Littlejohn MJ, Harrison PA (1985) The functional significance of the diphasic advertisement call of Geocrinia victoriana (Anura: Leptodactylidae) Behav Ecol Sociobiol 16:363–373
  Google Scholar
• Littlejohn MJ, Martin AA (1964) The Crinia laevis complex (Anura: Leptodactylidae) in south-eastern Australia. Aust J Zool 12:70–83
  Google Scholar
• Littlejohn MJ, Watson GF (1973) Mating-call variation across a narrow hybrid zone between Crinia laevis and C. victoriana (Anura: Leptodactylidae). Aust J Zool 21:277–284
  Google Scholar
• Littlejohn MJ, Watson GF (1974) Mating call discrimination and phonotaxis by females of the Crinia laevis complex (Anura: Leptodactylidae). Copeia 1974:171–175
  Google Scholar
• Littlejohn MJ, Watson GF (1976a) Mating-call structure in a hybrid population of the Geocrinia laevis complex (Anura: Leptodactylidae) over a seven-year period. Evolution 30:848–850
  Google Scholar
• Littlejohn MJ, Watson GF (1976b) Effectiveness of a hybrid mating call in eliciting phonotaxis by females of the Geocrinia laevis complex (Anura: Leptodactylidae). Copeia 1976:76–79
  Google Scholar
• Littlejohn MJ, Watson GF, Loftus-Hills JJ (1971) Contact hybridization in the Crinia laevis complex (Anura: Leptodactylidae). Aust J Zool 19:85–100
  Google Scholar
• McDiarmid RW, Adler K (1974) Notes on territorial and vocal behavior of neotropical frogs of the genus Centrolenella. Herpetologica 30:75–78
  Google Scholar
• Noor MA (1995) Speciation driven by natural selection in Drosophila. Nature 375:674–675
  Article Google Scholar
• Pearson SF (2000) Behavioral asymmetries in a moving hybrid zone. Behav Ecol 11:84–92
  Article Google Scholar
• Pearson SF, Rohwer S (2000) Asymmetries in male aggression across an avian hybrid zone. Behav Ecol 11:93–101
  Article Google Scholar
• Ramer JA, Jenssen TA, Hurst CJ (1983) Size-related variation in the advertisement call of Rana clamitans (Anura: Ranidae), and its effects on conspecific calls. Copeia 1983:141–155
  Google Scholar
• Read K, Keogh JS, Scott IA, Roberts JD, Doughty P (2001) Molecular phylogeny of the Australian frog genera Crinia, Geocrinia, and allied taxa (Anura: Myobatrachidae). Mol Phylogenet Evol 21:294–308
  Article Google Scholar
• Robertson JGM (1986) Male territoriality, fighting and assessment of fighting ability in the Australian frog Uperoleia rugosa. Anim Behav 34:736–772
  Google Scholar
• Sanderson N (1989) Can gene flow prevent reinforcement? Evolution 43:1223–1235
  Google Scholar
• Scroggie MP (2001) Zonal hybridization in the Geocrinia laevis complex (Anura, Myobatrachidae): population ecology and male acoustic behaviour. PhD thesis, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
• Sokal RR, Rohlf FJ (1995) Biometry: the principles and practice of statistics in biological research, 3rd edn. W.H. Freeman, New York
• Thomas L (1997) Retrospective power analysis. Conserv Biol 11:276–280
  Article Google Scholar
• Wagner WE (1989a) Social correlates of variation in male calling behaviour in Blanchard’s cricket frog, Acris crepitans blanchardi. Ethology 82:27–45
  Google Scholar
• Wagner WE (1989b) Graded aggressive signals in Blanchard’s cricket frog: vocal responses to opponent proximity and size. Anim Behav 38:1025–1038
  Google Scholar
• Wagner WE (1989c) Fighting, assessment, and frequency alteration in Blanchard’s cricket frog. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 25:429–436
  Article Google Scholar
• Wagner WE (1992) Deceptive or honest signalling of fighting ability? A test of alternative hypotheses for the function of changes in call dominant frequency by male cricket frogs. Anim Behav 44:449–464
  Article Google Scholar
• Wardell-Johnson G, Roberts JD (1993) Biogeographic barriers in a subdued landscape: the distribution of the Geocrinia rosea (Anura: Myobatrachidae) complex in south-western Australia. J Biogeogr 20:95–108
  Google Scholar
• Wells KD (1978) Territoriality in the green frog (Rana clamitans): vocalizations and agonistic behaviour. Anim Behav 26:1051–1063
  Article Google Scholar
• Wells KD (1988) The effect of social interactions on anuran vocal behavior. In: Fritzch B, Ryan MJ, Wilczynski W, Hetherington TE, Walkowiak W (eds) The evolution of the amphibian auditory system. Wiley, New York, pp 433–454

Download references

Acknowledgements

Suzanne Sadedin and Tom Tregenza kindly assisted in the field. Nick Clemann, Graeme Gillespie, Deirdre Lucas, Hamish McCallum and Will Osborne read and commented upon earlier versions of the manuscript. The senior author was supported by an Australian Postgraduate Award. Additional funding and support were provided by the University of Melbourne and the Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research. Animal experimentation was approved by the University of Melbourne Animal Experimental Ethics Committee. Permission to capture and collect frogs was granted by the former Department of Natural Resources and Environment, Victoria, Australia.

Author information

Author notes

1. Michael P. Scroggie
   Present address: Department of Sustainability and Environment, Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, PO Box 137, 3084, Heidelberg , Victoria, Australia

Authors and Affiliations

1. Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne, 3010, Victoria, Australia
   Michael P. Scroggie & Murray J. Littlejohn

Authors

1. Michael P. Scroggie
   You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar
2. Murray J. Littlejohn
   You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence toMichael P. Scroggie.

Additional information

Communicated by A. Mathis

Rights and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Scroggie, M.P., Littlejohn, M.J. Territorial vocal behavior in hybrid smooth froglets, Geocrinia laevis complex (Anura: Myobatrachidae).Behav Ecol Sociobiol 58, 72–79 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-004-0894-2

Download citation

• Received: 10 November 2004
• Accepted: 30 November 2004
• Published: 22 January 2005
• Issue Date: May 2005
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-004-0894-2

Keywords