Fighting scars: heavier gladiator frogs bear more injuries than lighter frogs

Candaten, Aline; Possenti, Angélica Gabriela; Mainardi, Álvaro Augusto; Rocha, Marcelo Carvalho da; Palaoro, Alexandre V.

doi:10.1007/s10211-019-00333-7

Cited by 11 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 12 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Because we performed most of our experiments in the middle-late reproductive season (January-May), and given the constraints of in-situ experimental designs, if some males had previously mated, they are less likely to engage in costly confrontations with other males. The second explanation deals with the low frequency of scars in males: very few males used in the experiments had scars, contrasting to species such as Boana curupi (Garcia, Faivovich & Haddad, 2007), in which 90% of the males exhibited fighting scars (Candaten et al 2020). This could mean that either B. goiana is inherently less aggressive than other gladiator frogs or, alternatively, that resources were not limited enough to motivate aggression (Arnott and Elwood 2008).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This could mean that either B. goiana is inherently less aggressive than other gladiator frogs or, alternatively, that resources were not limited enough to motivate aggression (Arnott and Elwood 2008). For example, males of B. curupi fight to monopolize a few oviposition sites along a stream, while oviposition in B. goiana occurred along the entire stream area (Dias et al 2017, Candaten et al 2020. However, to further test these hypotheses, comparisons among different populations and experiments controlling for previous matings are necessary.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Reproductive ecology and territorial behavior of Boana goiana (Anura: Hylidae), a gladiator frog from the Brazilian Cerrado

Dias¹,

Prado²

2021

Zoologia

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Anuran males and females adopt different reproductive and behavioral strategies in different contexts. We investigated the reproductive ecology and territorial behavior of the treefrog Boana goiana (B. Lutz, 1968) from the Brazilian Cerrado. We hypothesized that competitor density/proximity would increase the behavioral responses of B. goiana males, and that mating would be assortative. We also tested if the number of eggs correlates with female size and if there is a trade-off between clutch size and egg size. We conducted two territoriality experiments to test the effects of male size, competitor proximity and competitor density. Larger males called more in the presence of a second male. In the second experiment, the largest males emitted more calls and the distance to the nearest male increased as resident males called more. In both experiments, the number of calls was influenced by either male size or spacing between males. Some males behaved as satellites, probably to avoid fights. Our analyses indicate that females choose males with similar sizes to their own, corroborating our hypothesis of size-assortative mating. We found no relationships between female size and clutch size/volume, and between egg size and number of eggs per clutch. We also report multiple spawning for this species. The low incidence of physical combats and the spacing pattern indicate that this species relies almost solely on calls to resolve contests, which could be explained by low motivation, or simply because males avoid combats to decrease injury risks. Thus, acoustic or even multimodal communication seems crucial for social interactions of B. goiana.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reproductive ecology and territorial behavior of Boana goiana (Anura: Hylidae), a gladiator frog from the Brazilian Cerrado

Dias¹,

Prado²

2021

Zoologia

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Sharp, spine-like weapon components are common in many species, such as Gladiator frogs, which possess a spine on their forelegs that are used to injure opponents during contests (Candaten, Possenti, Mainardi, Carvalho, & Palaoro, 2020). Similarly, male T. neocalifornicus with double tibial spines may be able to inflict more damage to opponents compared to males with single spines, increasing their chance of winning a contest.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Performance, but not size, of hindleg weaponry is sexually dimorphic in the giant mesquite bug (Thasus neocalifornicus)

Graham

Kaiser

Palaoro³

2020

Preprint

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In many species, males possess specialized weaponry that have evolved to confer a benefit during aggressive interactions. Because male weaponry is typically an exaggerated or extreme version of pre-existing body parts, females often possess reduced or weaponry. Although much research has investigated sexual dimorphism in the sizes of such weapons, other weapon components, such as weapon performance or alternative weapon forms can also explain the evolution of weapon sexual dimorphisms. Here, we investigated the allometry and variation of multiple weapon components of hindleg weaponry in the male and female giant mesquite bugs, Thasus necalifornicus. Despite theory predicating greater allocation in male weaponry, we found that females allocated more into the lengths of their hindlegs compared to males. Despite this allocation, males possess relatively wider hindlegs, which likely increase area of muscle mass. Indeed, the squeezing performance of male hindlegs was much greater than that of female hindlegs. Lastly, we also described the allometry and variation in a male weapon component, prominent tibial spines, which likely are used to damage competitors during aggressive interaction. Overall, our findings highlight the intricacies of weapon sexual dimorphism and demonstrate the importance of measuring multiple weapon components and not a single measure.

show abstract

“…For instance, gladiator frogs typically use their prepollex spines during contests. These prepollex are a muscleless weapon that leave deep gashes on rivals (Candaten, Possenti, Mainardi, da Rocha, & Palaoro, 2020) - some even report frogs blinded or deafened during contests (Dyson, Richert, & Halliday, 2013).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The importance of animal weapons and fighting style in animal contests

Palaoro

Peixoto

2020

Preprint

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

SUMMARYIn many species that fight over resources, individuals use specialized structures to overpower their rivals (i.e. weapons). Despite their similar roles for contest settlement (i.e. affecting the winning chances), weapons are highly diverse morphological structures across species. However, the comprehension on how this diversity evolved is still open for debate.Unfortunately, most studies on how weapons are used during contests focus on size asymmetries between winners and losers. Although such information is important to understand, it does not provide much information regarding the mechanisms promoting weapon diversification. In addition, in many situations, the effect of weapon size on contest resolution may be confounded with the effect of body size due to allometric correlations.One way to decompose the relative importance of weapon and body size on contest outcome is to focus on the functional role of weapons. That is, investigate the function of the weapon during contests, and how size should affect its function.We propose two hypotheses that explicitly associate how weapon function may determine the relative importance of weapon and body size in affecting rivals during contests. One based on the internal morphology of the weapon – whether muscles are within the weapon or not – and the other based on fighting style – whether the weapon is used to injure the rival or not.To test our hypotheses, we developed a meta-analysis spanning 31 genera across the animal kingdom.We found that internal morphology and fighting style are important to determine the relative importance of weapon and body size on contest resolution. Weapons that do not have muscles within them (e.g., horns) affect more the chance of winning than weapons that have muscles within them (e.g., claws). Similarly, weapons used to throw/push rivals away (e.g., oversized mandibles) affect more the chance of winning than those used to make the rival flee (e.g., jaws).Overall, we have shown that weapon usage (i.e. weapon function) may affect weapon evolution in predictable ways: weapons without muscles and using for pushing may be selected for size, while muscled weapons used for injuring may be selected for strength.

show abstract

Fighting scars: heavier gladiator frogs bear more injuries than lighter frogs

Cited by 11 publications

References 12 publications

Reproductive ecology and territorial behavior of Boana goiana (Anura: Hylidae), a gladiator frog from the Brazilian Cerrado

Reproductive ecology and territorial behavior of Boana goiana (Anura: Hylidae), a gladiator frog from the Brazilian Cerrado

Performance, but not size, of hindleg weaponry is sexually dimorphic in the giant mesquite bug (Thasus neocalifornicus)

The importance of animal weapons and fighting style in animal contests

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About