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Time to feed: How diet, competition, and experience may influence feeding behaviour and cannibalism in wood frog tadpoles Lithobates sylvaticus
Wood frog Lithobates sylvaticus tadpoles develop in temporary wetlands where high population densities can force tadpoles into aggregations that intensify competition and can lead to cannibalism. However, chemical alarm cues released from injured conspecifics could also dissuade cannibalism. The purpose of this study was to test mechanisms that may influence can- nibalistic behaviour. We tested whether the tendency of tadpoles to consume conspecifics would increase with the presence of competition and/or cues of profitable diets. Tadpoles placed in 1L experimental containers were tested for feeding initiation times of multiple diets, including conspecific tissues and conspecific tissues combined with chemical cues from the alternative diets (brine shrimp and comrneal). Tadpoles were tested in the presence and absence of a competitor, and at multiple times over the course of the study. Tadpoles exhibited an altered response to diets over time; however the presence of a competitor reduced re- sponse times to all diets including conspecific tissues. Similarly, the presence of specific diets also reduced the response time of tadpoles to conspecific tissues. These results suggest competition among feeding tadpoles could result in aggressive behaviour leading to indiscriminate predation and cannibalism [Current Zoology 60 (5): 571-580, 2014 ].Dale M. JEFFERSON,Keith A. HOBSON,Douglas P. CHIVERS - 动物学报(英文版)文章来源： 万方数据 -
A survey for Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans in Chinese amphibians
For the last decade, chytridiomycosis was considered to be caused by a single species of fungus, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), but a second chytrid species, Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bs), was recently isolated from an in- fected Salamandra salamandra in the Netherlands. To date, Bs has only been found in the Netherlands. To assess whether Bs is present in China, we analyzed a total of 665 samples, including 425 wild samples, 41 preserved specimens, and 199 captive sam- pies, from 30 different species, including both urodeles and anurans. Our sample sites covered 15 provinces in China. All of the samples tested negative for Bs, resulting in a 95% confidence limit for a prevalence of 0.6%. The absence of Bs observed in this large-scale survey in China has significant implications for amphibian conservation and for border trade management strategies intended to control amphibian diseases. We strongly recommend the continued close monitoring of Bs to verify the status of this potentially devastating amphibian fungus in China .Wei ZHU,Feng XU,Changming BAI,Xuan LIU,Supen WANG,Xu GAO,Shaofei YAN,Xianping LI,Zetian LIU,Yiming LI - 动物学报(英文版)文章来源： 万方数据
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