Diet of anurans captured in forest remnants in southeastern Brazil (original) (raw)

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.