The Reproductive Biology of Amphibians

473 Pages·1977·22.72 MB·English

by  Stephen G. Tilley (auth.)

THE
REPRODUCTIVE
BIOLOGY OF
AMPHIBIANS
THE
REPRODUCTIVE
BIOLOGY OF
AMPHIBIANS
Edited by
Douglas H. Taylor
and Sheldon I. Guttman
Miami University
Oxford, Ohio
Springer Science+Business Media, LLC
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles.
The reproductive biology of amphibians.
"Proceedings of a Symposium held at the nineteenth annual meeting of the Society
for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, August
9-10,1976."
Includes bibliographies and indexes.
1. Amphibians - Reproduction - Congresses. 2. Amphibians - Behavior - Con
gresses. 3. Courtship of animals - Congresses. 4. Sexual behavior in animals - Con
gresses. 1. Taylor, Douglas H. II. Guttman, Sheldon 1. III. Title.
QL669.3.S631977 597'.6'0456 77-11004
ISBN 978-1-4757-6783-4 ISBN 978-1-4757-6781-0 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-4757-6781-0
Proceedings of a Symposium held at the Nineteenth Annual
Meeting of the Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles,
Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, August 9-10,1976
© 1977 Springer Science+Business Media New York
Originally published by Plenum Press, New York in 1977
Softcover reprinl of Ihe hardcover 1s i edilion 1977
AII rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted,
in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming,
recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher
Preface
During the course of the developnent of most areas of scien
tific research certain events occur that serve to bring a particular
area into focus. We feel that this symposilHll volume serves that
role with regard to the study of the reproductive biology of amphib
ians. The collection of vnrks contained in this volume provides an
excellent review of a diversity of past contributions to this field
of investigation and brings together in one volume the major ap
proaches that have been utilized to study amphibian reproductive
biology.
The work emphasizes recently-completed studies and therefore
can be considered to be an up-to-date account of the field. Equally
signifi cant, however, the contributors to this volume have excelled
in pointing out directions for future research that will be of im
mense value in integrating the component parts of reproductive bi
ology, i.e., genetics, developnental biology, physiology, behavior,
and ecology, into an eVOlutionary framework.
As can be seen from the bibliographies of each contribution,
studies of reproductive biology are increasing annually. The rea
sons for this are many: amphibians can be easily collected in rela
tively large numbers; intrageneric crosses between most anurans and
some salamanders are feasible; they have relatively large chromo
somes which can be readily karyotyped; sophisticated biochemical and
physiological techniques have been developed which can be utilized
to study eVOlutionary relationships and sensory capabilities; in
particular, an increasing awareness of the importance of behavioral
studies in the developnent of general theories of eVOlutionary re
lationships and processes has resulted in a renewal of interest in
amphibian behavior, a heretofore largely neglected aspect of amphib
ian biology. Additionally, since, in vertebrate eVOlution, amphib
ians are relatively primitive, extrapolations can possibly be made
to reproductive mechanisms in the advanced vertebrates.
As we were planning for the 19th annual meeting of the Society
for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles to be hosted by Miami Uni-
v
vi PREFACE
versity, we decided that research on the reproductive biology of am
phibians had progressed so rapidly that a symposium devoted solely
to this topic was in order. We surveyed the recent reproductive bi
ology literature and assembled a list of individuals who possessed
either an excellent current publication record in the area or were
relatively new to the field but were making significant contribu
tions. The composition of the list was discussed with a variety of
other people but most notably with Kraig Adler (Cornell University)
and Thomas Uzzell (Philadelphia Academy of Sciences) and a consen
sus of opinion on potential participants was reached.
Reactions to the symposium itself, held at Miami University
from August 9 to August 10, 1976, were extremely positive and went
beyond our greatest expectations. This was due in large part to
the excellent contributions of the invited participants. We wish
formally to thank the participants for their contributions at the
symposium sessions and for their promptly-delivered and readily
editable manuscripts. Thomas Uzzell spent many days helping edit
each of the manuscripts and this volume owes much of its quality to
his fine efforts. We felt that outside peer review of the manu
scripts would enhance the quality of the volume and would like to
thank James Bogart, Martha Crump, H. Carl Gerhardt, Robert Inger,
Roy McDiarmid, Craig Nelson, Ronald Nussbaum, and Dennis Ralin for
their assistance in this regard.
During the preparation and presentation of the symposium many
people assisted in making the program a success. The following
students assisted greatly in the running of the symposium: Jill
Auburn, Lynne Lohmeier, Melinda Moore, Debra Christein, Kevin Crof
ton, Sara Woolpy, Michael McLeod, and Karen Blackburn. Jill Auburn
also gave invaluable editorial assistance. Ruth McLeod provided
her usual expertise with the typing of manuscripts. Dean Clarence
K. Williamson of the College of Arts and Science and Chairman Charles
M. Vaughn of the Zoology Department assisted in funding certain as
pects of the meeting and the typing of manuscripts. We thank the
officers and members of the Society for the Study of Amphibians and
Reptiles for their personal and financial assistance. We also wish
to acknowledge the Herpetologists' League for their contributions.
Vice President for Development and Alumni Affairs John E.
Iblibois supported the symposium by subsidizing, through the gener
osity of the Miami University Alumni Fund, the travel and housing
expenses of the foreign participants. We would not have been able
to produce a symposiun, and, therefore, a volume, with such breadth
of participation without his strong and continued support.
PREFACE ~i
To all of the above, and others not mentioned individually,
we wish to express our sincere gratitude. We hope this volume will
provide a contemporary review and synthesis of the present state of
knowledge in the field of amphibian reproductive biology.
Douglas H. Taylor
Sheldon I. Guttman
Miami University
Oxford, Ohio
June 29, 1977
Contents
Studies of the Life Histories and Reproduction in
North American Plethodontid Salamanders 1
Stephen G. Tilley
Life History Patterns and Reproductive Biology
of Neotropical Salamanders • • • • • 43
Lyrme D. Houck
The Reproductive Biology of Caecilians:
An Evolutionary Perspective • 73
Marvalee H. Wake
Aspects of the Reproductive Biology of
Japanese Anurans • • • • • • 103
Toshijiro Kawamura and Midori Nishioka
The Evolution of Courtship Behavior in New World
Salamanders with Some Corrments on Old
World Salamanders • • • • • • • • • • • 141
Stevan J. Arnold
The Courtship of European Newts: An
Evolutionary Perspective 185
T. R. Halliday
The Courtship of Frogs 233
Kentwood D. Wells
long-Range Acoustic Communication in Anurans:
An Integrated and Evolutionary Approach 263
Murray Littlejohn
Acoustic Behavior and Physiology of Vocalization
in the European Tree Frog, Hyla arborea (L.) 295
Hans Schneider --
ix
x CONTENTS
Auditory Processing of Vocal Signals in Anurans 337
Robert R. Capranica
Hormonal Influences on Calling and Reproductive
Behavior in Anurans • . . . . . • • . 357
Hans-Joachim Obert
Systematics and Hybridization in the
Rana esculenta Complex 367
Leszek Berger
Reproduction and Mating Behavior in Rana lessonae
Rana esculenta Mixed Populations •• • • 389
Hansj org Blankenhorn
Cytotaxonomy and Cytogenetics in European
Newt Species . • • • . • 411
Giorgio Mancino, Matilde Ragghianti,
and Stefania Bucci-Innocenti
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Concluding Remarks 449
Thomas Uzzell
Participants 459
Systematic Index 461
. . . . . . . . . . . .
Subject Index 469
STUDIES OF LIfE HISTORIES AND REPRODUCTION IN
NORTH AMERICAN PLETHODCNTID SAlAMNIDERS
Stephen G. Tilley
Department of the Biological Sciences, Smith College
Northampton, Massachusetts
Plethodontid salamanders are among the most abundant verte
brates of many North American ecological communities. Their evi
dent ecological importance (Burton and Likens 1975a, 1975b) and
unique associations of ubiquity, obscurity, and beauty have popu
larized plethodontids as subjects of eVOlutionary and ecological
studies. Their reproductive ecologies and life histories have re
ceived particular attention in recent years, as studies have pro
gressed from scattered anecdotes to detailed investigations. Sal
the and Mecham (1974) reviewed the literature through the 1960s.
Since then, studies of several species have appeared: Gyrinophilus
porphyriticus (Bruce 1969, 1972), Pseudotriton montanus (Bruce 1969,
1974, 1975), Stereochilus marginatus (Bruce 1971), Eurycea quadri
digitata (Harrison 1973), Eurycea neotenes (Bruce 1976), Eurycea
nana (Tupa and Davis 1976), Desmognathus fuscus (Danstedt 1975),
DeSmOgnathus ochrophaeus (Fitzpatrick 1973; Forester 1977; Huheey
and Brandon 1973; Tilley 1972, 1973a, 1973b, 1974~ Tilley and Haus
man 1976), and Plethodon wehrlei (Hall and Stafford 1972). Houck
reviews certain aspects of life histories of terrestrial plethodon
tids in this volume. Much, however, remains to be learned.
Our expanding knowledge of plethooontid life histories has ac
companied a growing interest in life histories in general and in
their adaptive significance. Stearns (1976) and Giesel (1976) re
cently reviewed theories of the evolution of life history patterns,
and several authors (Bruce 1969, 1972, 1975; Tilley 1973a; Danstedt
1975) have attempted to reconcile information on plethodontids with
these theories.
A major strength of life history studies is that they bear
heavily on the phenomenon of adaptation by directly confronting the
2 S.G. TILLEY
components of Darwinian fitness: age-specific fertility and mor
tality. Heritability of variation in these parameters, however,
is nearly always assumed without evidence. Life history and re
productive data are also vital to an understanding of a population's
role in community metabolism, and the roles of plethodontid popu
lations in many North American ecosystems must be far from trivial.
Burton and Likens (1975a, 1975b) estimated that the Plethodon
cinereus population of the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest in
New Hampshire exceeds the biomass of the entire avian community
during the latter's peak breeding season, and fixes about five
times as much energy. These conclusions were reached by assuming
stationary populations and without detailed knowledge of reproduc
tion and life histories. A detailed picture of the role of a popu
lation in ecosystem dynamics requires more information on dispersal,
growth, mortality, and fertility than is presently available.
Reproductive and life history patterns have profound implica
tions for the genetic structure and differentiation of populations.
It is now possible to quantify levels of genetic variation and di
vergence among local populations for that subset of the genome re
vealed by electrophoretic techniques. Investigators in this area
are confronted with a problem exactly the opposite of that faced
by students of reproductive strategies: whereas the heritability
of observed variation is well understood, its relevance to Darwin
ian fitness is obscure. The ensuing debate about the relative
roles of stochastic and deterministic factors in evolution (see re
views in Lewontin 1974; Nei 1975; and Ayala 1976) has underscored
our lack of knowledge of breeding structures and effective breed
ing sizes of populations, important determinants of levels of
genetic variation and divergence. Effective breeding sizes are
influenced by dispersal rates, reproductive cycles, and survival,
and future studies of plethodontids will undoubtedly focus on these
problems.
The strength with which a life history study bears on problems
of general interest depends on obtaining solid data on age at first
reproduction, age-specific survival, and age-specific fertility.
This is best done in the field by following individuals of known
age through time via some sort of capture-recapture program. Few
plethodontids lend themselves to such studies. They are so numer
ous and distributed over such extensive areas that it is usually
possible to capture only a small percentage of a population, doing
considerable violence to the habitat in the process. It may be
difficult or impossible to locate certain classes of individuals,
such as brooding females, or any individuals at all during much of
the year. The detection of recaptured animals is frustrated by
their ability to regenerate toes and limbs rapidly. Mortality and
dispersal rates in some age classes, such as larvae and small juve
niles, may be so great that enormous numbers must be marked to