Breeding ecology and oviposition site selection of black-spotted pond frogs () in Ningbo, China

Expand
  • 1.Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences;Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Sciences; 2.Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences;

Published date: 05 Dec 2008

Abstract

The black-spotted pond frog (Rana nigromaculata) is one of the most widely distributed species in China. However, there have been only a few qualitative descriptions of their breeding ecology and oviposition site selection. From 2004 to 2006, we investigated the breeding ecology and oviposition site selection of R. nigromaculata in Ningbo, China, quantitatively. Analyses of breeding ecology show that: (1) mean frog density in the breeding season was 0.0903 ± 0.0029 individuals per meter (n = 11) (mean ± SE); (2) R. nigromaculata was a sexually dimorphic species, with females significantly larger than males in both body weight and snout-vent length; (3) the clutch size averaged 4643.04 ± 235.96 eggs (range 1546–7897, n = 50); and (4) the egg size ranged from 1.50 to 1.74 mm in diameter, with an average egg size of 1.6050 ± 0.0046 mm (n = 226). Oviposition sites differed significantly from random sites in percentages of water, bare ground and vegetation cover, water depth (cm), water temperature (°C) and water turbidity. Rana nigromaculata preferred microhabitats with higher percentages of water and vegetation cover, while it avoided microhabitats with deeper water. The results suggest that microhabitats with higher percentages of water and vegetation cover, but not deeper water, should be priorities for protection and conservation of the breeding habitats of R. nigromaculata.

Cite this article

WANG Yanping, WU Zhengjun, LU Ping, ZHANG Fang, LI Yiming . Breeding ecology and oviposition site selection of black-spotted pond frogs () in Ningbo, China[J]. Frontiers in Biology, 0 : 530 -535 . DOI: 10.1007/s11515-008-0064-4

References

1. Andersson M (1994). Sexual Selection. NewJersey: Princeton University Press 2. Anhui People's Government. (2003). The list of key conservation wildanimals of Anhui Province. 3. Ashton K G (2002). Do amphibians follow Bergmann's rule? Can J Zool, 80: 708–716. doi:10.1139/z02-049 4. Babbitt K J, Jordan F (1996). Predationon Bufo terrestris tadpoles: effectsof cover and prey identity. Copeia, 1996: 488–493. doi:10.2307/1446873 5. Becker P H, Erdelen M (1982). Vegetationsurrounding herring gull (Larus argentatus) nests in relation to wind direction. J Ornithol, 123: 117–130. doi:10.1007/BF01645052 6. Burger J (1993). Colony and nest site selection in lava lizards Tropidurus spp. in the Galapagos Islands. Copeia, 1993: 748–754. doi:10.2307/1447237 7. Burger J, Zappalorti R T (1986). Nestsite selection by pine snakes, Pituophis melanoleucus, in the New Jersey Pine Barrens. Copeia, 1986: 116–121. doi:10.2307/1444896 8. Clifford L D, Anderson D J (2001). Foodlimitation explains most clutch size variation in the Nazca booby. J Anim Ecol, 70: 539–545. doi:10.1046/j.1365-2656.2001.00521.x 9. Cui N F (1998). China Placename Dictionary. Beijing: the Commercial Press, 1650 (in Chinese) 10. Fei L (1999). Atlas of Amphibians of China. Zhengzhou: Henan Science and TechnologyPublishing House (in Chinese) 11. Goin C J, Goin O B, Zug G R (1978). Introduction to Herpetology. 3rded.SanFrancisco: WH Freeman and Company 12. Gosner K L (1960). A simplified table for staging anuran embryos and larvaewith notes on identification. Herpetologica, 16: 183–190 13. Hebei People's Government. (2005). The list of key conservation wildanimals of Hebei Province. 14. Heyer W R, Donnelly M A, McDiarmid R W, Hayek L A C, Foster M S (1994). Measuring and MonitoringBiological Diversity: Standard Methods for Amphibians. Washington and London: SmithsonianInstitution Press 15. Hirai R (2004). Diet composition of introduced bullfrog, Rana catesbeiana, in the Mizorogaike pondof Kyoto, Japan. Ecol Res, 19: 375–380. doi:10.1111/j.1440-1703.2004.00647.x 16. Hirai R, Matsui M (1999). Feedinghabits of the pond frog, Rana nigromaculata, inhabiting rice fields in Kyoto, Japan. Copeia, 1999: 940–947. doi:10.2307/1447969 17. Howard R D (1981). Sexual dimorphism in bullfrog. Ecology, 62: 303–310. doi:10.2307/1936704 18. Huang M H (1990). Fauna of Zhejiang: Amphibia and Reptilia. Hangzhou: Zhejiang Science andTechnology Publishing House (in Chinese) 19. Jaeger R G (1994). Transect sampling. In: HeyerW R, Donnelly M A, McDiarmin R W, HayekL C, Foster M S,eds. Measuring and Monitoring Biological Diversity:Standard Methods for Amphibians.Washington and London: SmithsonianInstitution Press, 103–107 20. Jiangxi People's Government. (2006). The list of key conservation wildanimals of Jiangxi Province. 21. Joern W T, Jackson J F (1981). Homogeneityof vegetational cover around the nest and avoidance of nest predationby mockingbirds. Auk, 100: 497–499 22. Kats L B, Petranka J W, Sih A (1988). Antipredator defenses and the persistenceof amphibian larvae with fishes. Ecology, 69(6): 1865–1870. doi:10.2307/1941163 23. Keating K A, Cherry S (2004). Use andinterpretation of logistic regression in habitat-selection studies. J Wildl Manage, 68(4): 774–789. doi:10.2193/0022-541X(2004)068[0774:UAIOLR]2.0.CO;2 24. Kolbe J J, Janzen F J (2001). The influenceof propagule size and maternal nest-site selection on survival andbehaviour of neonate turtles. Funct Ecol, 15(6): 772–781. doi:10.1046/j.0269-8463.2001.00587.x 25. Laugen A T, Laurila A, Jönsson K I, Söderman F, Merilä J (2005). Do commonfrogs (Rana temporaria) followBergmann's rule?Evol Ecol Res, 7: 717–731 26. Laurila A (1998). Breeding habitat selection and larval performance oftwo anurans in freshwater rock-pools. Ecography, 21: 484–494. doi:10.1111/j.1600-0587.1998.tb00440.x 27. Li F L, Chen H J (1986). Someecological data of Rhacophorus dugritei. Acta Herpetologica Sinica, 5(4): 246–250 (in Chinese) 28. Li Y M, Li D M (1995). The investigationon live wildlife trade across Guangxi Borders between China and Vietnam. In: : China Council for International Cooperationon Environment and Development (CCICED., eds. Conserving China's Biodiversity: Reports of the Biodiversity WorkingGroup (BWG). Beijing: China Environmental Science Press, 112–158 (in Chinese) 29. Li Y M, Niemelä J, Li D M (1998). Nested distribution of amphibiansin the Zhoushan archipelago, China: can selective extinction causenested subsets of species. Oecologia, 113: 557–564. doi:10.1007/s004420050409 30. Lin G H (1958). An investigation on the breeding habits of Rana nigromaculata in the suburbs of Nanchang. Acta Zoologica Sinica, 10(4): 421–430 (in Chinese) 31. McAlpine D F, Dilworth T G (1989). Microhabitatand prey size among three species of Rana (Anura: Ranidae) sympatric in eastern Canada. Can J Zool, 67: 2244–2252 32. Monnet J M, Cherry M I (2002). Sexualsize dimorphism in anurans. Proc R SocLond B-Biol Sci, 269: 2301–2307. doi:10.1098/rspb.2002.2170 33. Moyle P B (1973). Effects of introduced bullfrogs, Rana catesbeiana, on the native frogs of the San JoaquinValley, California. Copeia, 1973: 18–22. doi:10.2307/1442351 34. Pearl C A, Adams M J, Leuthold N, Bury R B (2005). Amphibian occurrence and aquatic invaders in a changing landscape-implications for wetland mitigation in the Willamette Valley, Oregon,USA. Wetlands, 25(1): 76–88. doi:10.1672/0277-5212(2005)025[0076:AOAAII]2.0.CO;2 35. Petranka J W (1990). Observations on nest site selection, nest desertion,and embryonic survival in marbled salamanders. J Herpetol, 24: 229–234. doi:10.2307/1564387 36. Pilliod D S, Peterson C R (2001). Localand landscape effects of introduced trout on amphibians in historicallyfishless watersheds. Ecosystems, 4: 322–333. doi:10.1007/s10021-001-0014-3 37. Pough F H, Andrews R M, Cadle J E, Crump M L, Savitsky A H, Wells K D (2003). Herpetology. 3rd ed.Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall 38. Reznick D N, Butler M J I V, Rodd F H, Ross P (1996). Life-history evolution in guppies (Poeciliareticulata) 6. Differential mortality as a mechanism fornatural selection. Evolution, 50: 1651–1660. doi:10.2307/2410901 39. Sæther B E (1987). The influence of body weight on the covariation betweenreproductive traits in European birds. Oikos, 48(1): 79–88. doi:10.2307/3565691 40. Semlitsch R D, (2002). Critical elements for biologically based recovery plansof aquatic-breeding amphibians. ConservBiol, 16(3): 619–629. doi:10.1046/j.1523-1739.2002.00512.x 41. Sergio F, Marchesi L, Pedrini P (2004). Integrating individual habitat choicesand regional distribution of a biodiversity indicator and top predator. J Biogeogr, 31: 619–628 42. Shine R (1979). Sexual selection and sexual dimorphism in the Amphibia. Copeia, 1979: 297–306. doi:10.2307/1443418 43. Stearns S C, Ackermann M, Doebeli M, Kaiser M (2000). Experimental evolution of aging, growth, and reproduction in fruitflies. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 97: 3309–3313. doi:10.1073/pnas.060289597 44. Tejedo M (1992). Absence of the trade-off between the size and numberof offspring in the natterjack toad (Bufocalamita). Oecologia, 90: 294–296 45. The Conservation Office for Wild Animals andPlants of Guangdong Province. (2002). The list of key conservation wild animals of Guangdong Province. 46. The Standing Committee of Hainan People'sCongress. (1996). The measuresof Hainan Province to implement the Law of the People's Republic ofChina on the Protection of Wildlife. 47. Tian Y Z, Sun A Q, Li S (1998). Studies on reproductive ecology of Tylototriton kweichowensis Fang and Chang. Sichuan Journal of Zoo1ogy, 17(2): 60–64 (in Chinese) 48. Tilley S G (1968). Size-fecundity relationships and their evolutionaryimplications in five desmognathine salamanders. Evolution, 22(4): 806–816. doi:10.2307/2406905 49. Wang J Z (1965). Preliminary observation on depositing habits of Rana nigromaculata in the suburbs of Taiyuan,Shanxi. Chinese Journal of Zoology, 7(6): 264–265 (in Chinese) 50. Wang X C (1957). The development of Rana nigromaculata. Bulletin of Biology, 4: 8–20 (in Chinese) 51. Werner E E, Gilliam J F, Hall D J, Mittelbach G G (1983). An experimental test of the effects of predation riskon habitat use in fish. Ecology, 64(6): 1540–1548. doi:10.2307/1937508 52. Whiles M R, Lips K R, Pringle C M, Kilham S S, Bixby R J, Brenes R, Connelly S, Colon-Gaud J C, Hunte-Brown M, Huryn A D, Montgomery C, Peterson S (2006). The effects of amphibian population declines on thestructure and function of Neotropical stream ecosystems. Front Ecol Environ, 4(1): 27–34. doi:10.1890/1540-9295(2006)004[0027:TEOAPD]2.0.CO;2 53. Wilson D S (1998). Nest-site selection: microhabitat variation and itseffects on the survival of turtle embryos. Ecology, 79(6): 1884–1892 54. Wu Z J, Li Y M, Murray B R (2006). Insular shifts in body size of ricefrogs in the Zhoushan archipelago, China. J Anim Ecol, 75: 1071–1080. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2656.2006.01126.x 55. Wu Z J, Wang Y P, Li Y M (2004). Natural population of bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana) and their potential threatin the east of Zhejiang Province. BiodiversityScience, 12: 441–446 (in Chinese) 56. Zanette L, Clinchy M, Smith J N M (2006). Food and predators affect egg productionin song sparrows. Ecology, 87(10): 2459–2467. doi:10.1890/0012-9658(2006)87[2459:FAPAEP]2.0.CO;2 57. Zhang L F, Gao W (1989). A researchon feeding habits of Rana nigromaculata in the rice field in summer and autumn in Beijing. Journal of Beijing Normal University (Natural Science), 10: 51–55 (in Chinese) 58. Zhao E M, Adler K (1993). Herpetologyof China. Oxford (Ohio): Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles 59. Zhejiang Bureau ofSuveying and Mapping. (1989). Atlas of ZhejiangProvince. Shanghai: China Map Society Press (in Chinese) 60. Zheng R Q, Du W G, Shou L (2002). Sexual dimorphism and female reproductivecharacteristics in the black-spotted pond frog, pelophylax nigromaculata. ChineseJournal of Zoology, 37(4): 14–18 (in Chinese) 61. Zou S C (1993). Study contents and methods for the breeding ecologyin anurans. Bulletin of Biology, 28(2): 9–10 (in Chinese)
Options
Outlines

/