Variability of colour pattern and genetic diversity of Salamandra salamandra (Caudata: Salamandridae) in the Czech Republic

Brejcha, Jindřich; Kodejš, Karel; Benda, Pavel; Jablonski, Daniel; Holer, Tomáš; Chmelař, Jan; Moravec, Jiří

doi:10.25225/jvb.21016

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…The fact that smaller and thus likely younger individuals tend to be yellower suggests that predation pressure could be stronger in the early phases after metamorphosis. This observation is confirmed by studies showing that the yellow pattern of adult fire salamander can change through time, with a reduction of the amount of yellow and the split of yellow spots 33 .…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 64%

“…In this study we used a widespread, aposematic, European amphibian, the fire salamander ( Salamandra salamandra , considering just one lineage) to understand the relative role played by trophic resources availability and potential selective forces on the variation of aposematic coloration. Spatial variation of salamander coloration is well known 32 , 33 , but very limited information exists on whether these differences are determined by plastic variation or local adaptations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Factors determining the dorsal coloration pattern of aposematic salamanders

Barzaghi

Melotto

Cogliati

et al. 2022

Sci Rep

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Aposematic bright colors have a key role for animal defense and can be expressed through metabolic production or by acquiring pigments from diet. Aposematic coloration can be related to both local adaptations and availability of trophic resources. The European fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra) shows significant color variability and occurs across a broad range of habitats. Here we combined field observations with common rearing experiments to disentangle the role of environmental conditions and local adaptations in determining aposematic coloration of salamander populations. We assessed color variation and measured habitat features and food availability in adults from 25 populations. Furthermore, we reared newborn larvae from 10 populations under different food availability and analyzed color of metamorphs. To assess color pattern, we measured the percentage of yellow covering the body, and the Hue, Saturation and Value of yellow coloration. Adult showed strong variation of color pattern; variation was strongly related to the individual's size, to habitat productivity and to food availability. Under common garden conditions, differences between populations were not anymore evident, and coloration was only affected by resource availability during larval development. Our results suggest that environmental conditions and food availability are more important than local adaptations in determining differences in aposematic color pattern.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 64%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors determining the dorsal coloration pattern of aposematic salamanders

Barzaghi

Melotto

Cogliati

et al. 2022

Sci Rep

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“…Samples of salamanders after metamorphosis usually consist of relatively small numbers, and determining the relationship between the morphological Open Journal of Animal Sciences variance and molecular variability of several markers is problematic [5] [21] [22] [23]. The color pattern of S. salamandra has been relatively well-described in many articles (see for review [24]). The arrangement of the colored segments on the black back varies from two yellow lines on S. terrestris to variously shaped yellow spots on S. salamandra, and there is great variability among individual details, including the mixing of these two models [5] [24].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The color pattern of S. salamandra has been relatively well-described in many articles (see for review [24]). The arrangement of the colored segments on the black back varies from two yellow lines on S. terrestris to variously shaped yellow spots on S. salamandra, and there is great variability among individual details, including the mixing of these two models [5] [24]. The differences between the color-pattern phenotypes in S. salamandra and S. terrestris are very large-not only between species, but also among individuals.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Yellow Spot Pattern of Salamander (<i>Salamandra infraimmaculata</i>) in Various Habitats at the Southern Border of Its Distribution in Israel

Degani¹,

Ish²,

Ish³

et al. 2023

OJAS

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The present study describes the different color-pattern phenotypes of yellow spots on the black back of Salamandra infraimmaculata in various habitats at the southern border of its distribution in Israel. At Tel Dan, we photographed 454 salamanders in moist habitats where water flows year round; 100 of these were sampled to measure the percentage of yellow and black color on the back, and the number of spots on the head. At Kibbutz Sasa, 201 salamanders were photographed, of which 62 were sampled for the measurements. In Kibbutz Yehiam, 200 salamanders were photographed, and 60 were sampled for the measurements. At all sites, about a third of the salamanders were photographed more than once. For all three populations, yellow spots on the salamander back were found in one row, two rows or scattered. For two indices (proportion of yellow/black and number of spots on the head), the Dan population (under wet, running water all year round conditions) differed from the two other populations of salamanders (under semi-arid mountain conditions). The number of yellow spots on the head of the salamanders in the three populations varied from 1 to 7. In all populations, 4 spots pattern was the most common. In the Dan population, there were significantly more salamanders with 1 to 3 spots on their head than in the Sasa or Yehiam populations. No difference was found in the number of head spots for Sasa vs. Yehiam salamanders. The percentage of yellow on the black back was significantly larger for the Dan salamanders vs. the two other populations.

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A methodological workflow for quantitative colouration and colour pattern comparison reveals taxonomic and habitat‐level differences in the polymorphic fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra)

Alarcón‐Ríos,

Álvarez,

Velo‐Antón

2024

Journal of Zoology

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The study of colour, including physical properties and patterns, is an essential step in comprehensively understanding the role, evolution and diversification of this trait involved in functions like survival, performance, reproductive success and communication. While quantitative studies on colour have primarily focused on colour attributes, such as hue or brightness, the quantitative assessment of how colours are distributed across an organism's body (i.e. pattern) has received less attention despite its high functionality irrespective and together with colour. This gap is particularly noticeable in amphibians, especially in highly polymorphic, continuously variable species. In this study, we use the urodele Salamandra salamandra as a study model to apply an analytical approach for extracting and quantifying colour proportions and patterns variation using the recently developed R packages patternize and recolorize to precisely describe and compare colour distribution at both taxonomic and habitat levels. We first assessed the potential application of this workflow in taxonomic studies by examining its accuracy and sensitivity in differentiating morphs, using S. s. bernardezi and S. s. gallaica subspecies. Subsequently, we applied the same analytical approach to compare colour and colour pattern shifts among population of S. s. bernardezi within an urban–forest system. Our results demonstrated that this methodological workflow effectively detects differences in colour patterns at the taxonomic and habitat levels, confirming its utility in different fields, from systematics to eco‐evolutionary studies. Furthermore, our results revealed an increased prevalence of melanistic colouration and a less homogeneous colour pattern within urban settings, contributing to the limited number of studies about amphibian colouration in anthropic habitats. We outline and discuss alternative hypotheses to explain these patterns, although further investigation is necessary to address several new questions that arise from our results.

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Variability of colour pattern and genetic diversity of Salamandra salamandra (Caudata: Salamandridae) in the Czech Republic

Abstract: BioOne Complete (complete.BioOne.org) is a full-text database of 200 subscribed and open-access titles in the biological, ecological, and environmental sciences published by nonprofit societies, associations, museums, institutions, and presses.

Cited by 5 publications

References 28 publications

Factors determining the dorsal coloration pattern of aposematic salamanders

Factors determining the dorsal coloration pattern of aposematic salamanders

The Yellow Spot Pattern of Salamander (<i>Salamandra infraimmaculata</i>) in Various Habitats at the Southern Border of Its Distribution in Israel

A methodological workflow for quantitative colouration and colour pattern comparison reveals taxonomic and habitat‐level differences in the polymorphic fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra)

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Variability of colour pattern and genetic diversity of Salamandra salamandra (Caudata: Salamandridae) in the Czech Republic

Abstract: BioOne Complete (complete.BioOne.org) is a full-text database of 200 subscribed and open-access titles in the biological, ecological, and environmental sciences published by nonprofit societies, associations, museums, institutions, and presses.

Cited by 5 publications

References 28 publications

Factors determining the dorsal coloration pattern of aposematic salamanders

Factors determining the dorsal coloration pattern of aposematic salamanders

The Yellow Spot Pattern of Salamander (&lt;i&gt;Salamandra infraimmaculata&lt;/i&gt;) in Various Habitats at the Southern Border of Its Distribution in Israel

A methodological workflow for quantitative colouration and colour pattern comparison reveals taxonomic and habitat‐level differences in the polymorphic fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra)

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The Yellow Spot Pattern of Salamander (<i>Salamandra infraimmaculata</i>) in Various Habitats at the Southern Border of Its Distribution in Israel