Adaptive plasticity; Growth compensation; Life cycles; Life-history; Metamorphosis; Complex life cycle; Body size; Compensatory growth; Survival; Locomotor performance; Jumping; Gape size; Payoffs; Cost; Development; Alternative phenotypes; Amphibians; Anurans; Horned frog; Ceratophryidae; Ceratophrys stolzmanni
Abstract :
[en] Background: In species with complex life cycles, size at metamorphosis is a key life-history trait which reflects the complex interactions between costs and benefits of life in the aquatic and terrestrial environments. Whereas the effects of a deteriorating larval habitat (e.g. pond desiccation) on triggering an early metamorphosis have been extensively investigated in amphibians, the consequences of the resulting reduced size at metamorphosis on fitness in the post-metamorphic terrestrial stage remain poorly understood. We tested the hypothesis that a smaller size at metamorphosis negatively affects performance and survival in the ensuing terrestrial stage. Using as model a tropical amphibian (Ceratophrys stolzmanni) showing a large phenotypic plasticity in metamorphosing traits, we evaluated the effects of size at metamorphosis on fitness-related trophic and locomotor performance traits, as well as on growth and survival rates.
Results: Our results support the hypothesis that a larger size at metamorphosis is correlated with better survival and performance. The survival rate of large metamorphosing individuals was 95%, compared to 60% for those completing metamorphosis at a small size. Locomotor performance and gape size were positively correlated with body size, larger animals being more mobile and capable to ingest larger prey. However, smaller individuals achieved higher growth rates, thus reducing the size gap.
Conclusions: Overall, size at metamorphosis affected profoundly the chances of survival in the short term, but smaller surviving individuals partly compensated their initial disadvantages by increasing growth rates.
Research center :
FOCUS - Freshwater and OCeanic science Unit of reSearch - ULiège
Disciplines :
Zoology Environmental sciences & ecology
Author, co-author :
Székely, Diana ; Université de Liège - ULiège & Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja
Cogalniceanu, Dan; Ovidius University Constanța
Székely, Paul; Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja
Armijos-Ojeda, Diego; Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja
Espinosa-Mogrovejo, Valentina; Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja
Denoël, Mathieu ; Université de Liège - ULiège > Département de Biologie, Ecologie et Evolution > Laboratoire d'Écologie et de Conservation des Amphibiens
Language :
English
Title :
How to recover from a bad start: size at metamorphosis affects growth and survival in a tropical amphibian
Publication date :
April 2020
Journal title :
BMC Ecology
eISSN :
1472-6785
Publisher :
BioMed Central, United Kingdom
Volume :
20
Pages :
24
Peer reviewed :
Peer Reviewed verified by ORBi
Funders :
F.R.S.-FNRS - Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique [BE] WBI - Wallonie-Bruxelles International [BE] UTPL - Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja [EC]
Funding text :
DSz benefited from a research Grant from Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja (Convocatoria Estancias Cortas de Investigacion 2019). The collaboration between Ovidius University Constanța and University of Liège was supported by Wallonie-Bruxelles International (W.B.I.) and CCCDI-UEFISCDI (A.N.C.S.: Autoritatea Nationala pentru Cercetare Stiintifica)–project no. 105 BM/2017.
MD is a Research Director at Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique–FNRS
(Belgium).
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