Feeding habits of six anuran (Amphibia: Anura) species in a rainforest fragment in Northeastern Brazil (original) (raw)
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Diet of anurans captured in forest remnants in southeastern Brazil
2010
In this study we investigated, during one year of sampling, the diet of anurans captured in pitfalls installed in three forest remnants in northwestern São Paulo State, Brazil. Specimens were separated by age (juveniles and adults), and adults were separated according to sex. Of the ten species (231 individuals) captured in pitfalls, three species, Eupemphix nattereri (63), Leptodactylus podicipinus (50) and Physalaemus cuvieri (43), were abundant (n > 40). The diet of the species studied was, in general, similar to that reported in other localities in Brazil, suggesting that diet, within the niche breadth of each species, is a conservative characteristic. No difference was found between the diets of juvenile and adult P. cuvieri. L. podicipinus, a generalist, drastically changed its diet, juveniles consuming mainly small insects (Insecta larvae, Isoptera and Collembola) while adults consumed large insects (Blattodea and Coleoptera). On the other hand, juveniles of E. nattereri ate more Formicidae (which are smaller) than adults and adults ate more Isoptera (which are larger) than juveniles. Moreover, E. nattereri consumed more prey at the end of the rainy season suggesting that this species accumulates energy reserves to survive the dry season and prepare itself for a period of aestivation or inactivity until the next rainy season.
Biota Neotropica
Anurans are predator and prey, playing an important role in ecosystem functioning. The diet composition is closely related to feeding strategy, and the information about prey items is useful to understand intra and interspecific interactions in trophic webs. Here we determined diet composition, feeding strategy, and relation between prey ingestion and body measures of Crossodactylus timbuhy, a recently described anuran species. We found 466 prey items from 20 prey categories in the stomach of 66 specimens (15 males and 51 females) of C. timbuhy. The diet consists mostly of Formicidae and Coleoptera, the items with the highest number, frequency of occurrence and prey importance. The diet composition was relatively similar to other species of Crossodactylus. Prey volume was positively related to frog size and weight, suggesting frogs may feed upon any prey they can swallow. Diet showed some variation between sexes. Despite females were larger and heavier than males, females had higher consumption of smaller prey, and ingested a larger number of prey categories. We suggest C. timbuhy has an invertebrate-opportunistic feeding habit. It is likely C. timbuhy uses a combination of 'sit-and-wait' and 'active search' strategies due to high consumption of both highly mobile and sedentary prey.
Biota Neotropica, 2012
A Biota Neotropica é uma revista eletrônica e está integral e gratuitamente disponível no endereço http://www.biotaneotropica.org.br Biota Neotropica is an electronic, peer-reviewed journal edited by the Program BIOTA/FAPESP: The Virtual Institute of Biodiversity. This journal's aim is to disseminate the results of original research work, associated or not to the program, concerned with characterization, conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity within the Neotropical region. Biota Neotropica é uma revista do Programa BIOTA/FAPESP -O Instituto Virtual da Biodiversidade, que publica resultados de pesquisa original, vinculada ou não ao programa, que abordem a temática caracterização, conservação e uso sustentável da biodiversidade na região Neotropical.
2007
The diet of six anuran species (Kaloula conjuncta, Philautus acutirostris, Polypedates leucomystax, Occidozyga laevis, Fejervarya cancrivora and Rana granducola) was determined using the gut content analysis. Nineteen food items were identified with Hymenoptera: Formicidae as the most frequently occurring food item appearing in the guts of 5 out of 6 species. Coleoptera, Diptera, and Orthoptera followed appearing in 4 out of 6 species. The constantly frequent occurring food item for each species was: Hymenoptera for K. conjuncta and P. leucomystax; Hemiptera for O. laevis; and Orthoptera for R. grandocula. Degree of food preference (DFP) differed for each food item. Preferential food items (2<DFP<3) were Hymenoptera for K. conjuncta and P. leucomystax and Orthoptera for R. granducola. Presence of accidental occurrence and occasionally preferred food items was prominent in P. acutirostris. The occurrence of tadpole in the gut of O. laevis suggesting batracophagy is reported he...
Diet of three sympatric Physalaemus (Anura: Leptodactylidae) from the Brazilian semiarid region
2021
Studies on the use of food resources and trophic niche of different species can help understand ecological relationships. In this study, we evaluated the diet of three sympatric species of Physalaemus from the Brazilian semiarid. We analyzed a total of 264 individuals, being 100 specimens of Physalaemus albifrons, 93 of P. cicada, and 71 of P. cuvieri. Seven prey categories were recorded: three for P. cicada and P. albifrons, and six distinct categories for P. cuvieri. The orders Coleoptera, Isoptera and the family Formicidae were the most representative categories in the diet of P. cicada, P. cuvieri, and P. albifrons, respectively. Although there is a high trophic niche overlap, differences in preference for food categories may reduce potential competition in these frog species from the Caatinga.
Herpetology Notes, 2017
Comparative studies of the diet of ecologically and phylogenetically close-related species assist in understanding the evolutionary processes underlying feeding specialization. The frogs Physalaemus lisei (Braun’s Dwarf Frog) and P. gracilis (Graceful Dwarf Frog) are good models for comparative diet studies because they occur in sympatry in several forest environments of Brazil. In this study we evaluated the gastrointestinal content of 83 individuals of these two species. We registered 12 prey categories in the diet of P. gracilis, and 19 in the diet of P. lisei. Formicidae was the most important prey category in the diet of both species, followed by Coleoptera and Araneae. Despite the high importance of ants in the diet of both species, as assessed by the Index of Relative Importance, Coleoptera presented the highest volumetric contribution. Both species presented a similar trophic niche breadth and a high diet overlap. Our results indicate similarities in the diet composition and foraging behavior of P. lisei and P. gracilis.
Anurans of the Reserva Ecológica da Michelin, Municipality of Igrapiúna, State of Bahia, Brazil
Biota Neotropica, 2010
We studied the richness and distribution of anuran species on different breeding sites at the Reserva Ecológica da Michelin (13° 50' S and 39° 10' W, approximately 90-400 m above sea level), Municipality of Igrapiúna, Bahia State, Brazil. The reserve includes fragments of Atlantic Rain Forest varying from 140 to 650 ha. Five types of environments were sampled: leaf litter inside forest fragments, streams inside forest fragments, dam on the edge of forest fragment, temporary pond inside forest, and temporary ponds inside banana and rubber groves along the eastern boundary of the reserve. We used active and passive sampling methods for surveys of amphibians, between March 2007 and December 2008. We captured 48 species distributed in 10 families (number of species in parentheses): Aromobatidae (1), Brachycephalidae (4), Bufonidae (2), Craugastoridae (1), Centrolenidae (1), Cycloramphidae (3), Hylidae (29), Leiuperidae (1), Leptodactylidae (3), and Microhylidae (3). Temporary po...
Acta Herpetologica, 2023
Despite the current increase in studies on the diet of neotropical anurans, few of them take a comparative approach between syntopic species. The objective of this study was to compare the diet of four syntopic species of the genus Physalaemus. The collections occurred between November 2014 and January 2016 in a preserved area of the subtropical Atlantic Forest in southern Brazil. We compared the gastrointestinal content of 109 individuals distributed in the species Physalaemus biligonigerus, P. cuvieri, P. gracilis and P. henselii. We measured the Index of Relative Importance of each prey category and calculated trophic niche breadth using the Levins’ index (Bsta) and trophic niche overlap using the Pianka’s index (Ojk). We also applied compositional analysis to evaluate feeding specializations. Formicidae was the most important prey category for P. biligonigerus (IRI = 88.5%) and P. gracilis (IRI = 39.1%). For P. henselii and P. cuvieri, the most important category was Isopoda (IRI = 51.7% and 57.9%, respectively), followed by Formicidae (IRI = 34.9% and 24.8%). Isopoda was also important in the diet of P. gracilis (IIR = 28.6%), followed by Araneae (IIR = 22.6%). The trophic niche breadth of the four species was narrow, all smaller than 0.32, and the lowest was recorded for P. biligonigerus (0.04). The trophic niche overlap was higher between P. biligonigerus and P. cuvieri (96%), and between P. gracilis and P. henselii (95%). Only P. gracilis presented a significant level of feeding specialization. The differences in their diets suggest different uses of the resources, which could relate to different ways of exploring the microhabitat.
Rev. Esp. Herp, 2004
The foraging strategies of amphibians allow them to capture a wide variety of prey, diet variation being generally associated with morphological, physiological, and behavioral traits that facilitate the location, identification, and digestion of food items. Herein we present the diet composition of L. podicipinus and variations regarding the number and type of prey consumed by juveniles, males and females during the wet and dry seasons, in the southern Pantanal, Brazil. Sampling was conducted at three different times during the dry season, and three different times during the wet season between June 1998 and May 1999. The quantitative analysis showed that the diet of L. podicipinus is composed mainly by Coleoptera (51.0%), Hymenoptera (9.1%), Diptera (8.7%), Aranae (5.3%), and Orthoptera (4.7%). In the wet season, males captured more prey than juveniles and females, but in the dry season there were no differences. Males and females ingested larger prey compared to juveniles. The frog L. podicipinus is an opportunist and generalist predator, and the availability of prey in the environment may be an important factor determining its diet composition in the Pantanal.