Sex and habitat differences in size and coloration of an amphibian’s poison glands match differential predator pressures  

作　　者：Francisco Javier ZAMORA-CAMACHO 

机构地区：[1]Department of Phisical,Chemical and Natural Systems,Pablo de Olavide University,Seville,Spain [2]Department of Biodiversity,Ecology and Evolution,Complutense University of Madrid,Madrid,Spain

出　　处：《Integrative Zoology》2022年第5期764-776,共13页整合动物学（英文版）

摘　　要：Chemical defenses are frequently accompanied by salient color patterns actively avoided by predators,a phe-nomenon referred to as aposematism.However,the production of both chemical defenses and pigments is costly,and is thus expected to be reduced under mild predator pressure.In this work,I compared the size and coloration of parotoid glands(2 dorsal,external swollen structures that secrete toxins in toads)of male and female Epidalea calamita toads from agrosystems and from pine groves.I also quantified the predator attacks received by plas-ticine toad models,whose“parotoid glands”differed in size and color conspicuousness,exposed in each habitat.Predators avoided models with large and conspicuous parotoid glands,but models in agrosystems were more of-ten attacked.Concerning actual toads,agrosystem and male individuals had larger parotoid glands,presumably implying greater production of chemical defenses than in pine grove and female conspecifics.Thesefindings are aligned with previous research suggesting that both agrosystem toads and males in this system are subjected to a more intense predator pressure.Difference between parotoid gland and dorsum coloration was greater in agrosys-tem toads.A marked internal pattern could function as an aposematic signal,which could counteract increased predator pressure.

关 键 词：ANURAN agrosystem APOSEMATISM Epidalea calamita plasticine model 

分 类 号：Q95[生物学—动物学]