scholarly journals There is no place like home: Larval habitat type and size affect risk‐taking behaviour in fire salamander larvae ( Salamandra salamandra )

Ethology ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 126 (9) ◽  
pp. 914-921
Author(s):  
Pia Oswald ◽  
Benjamin A. Tunnat ◽  
Luca G. Hahn ◽  
Barbara A. Caspers
Keyword(s):  
Risk Taking ◽  
Habitat Type ◽  
Larval Habitat ◽  
Fire Salamander ◽  
Salamandra Salamandra ◽  
In Fire ◽  
Salamander Larvae

Developmental costs of yellow colouration in fire salamanders and experiments to test the efficiency of yellow as a warning colouration

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 373-385 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara A. Caspers ◽  
E. Tobias Krause ◽  
Isabelle Hermanski ◽  
Christopher Wiesbrock ◽  
Friedrich-Wilhelm Kastrup ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Predation Risk ◽  
Carabid Beetles ◽  
Colour Pattern ◽  
Natural Habitats ◽  
Yellow Colour ◽  
Risk Of Predation ◽  
Fire Salamander ◽  
Food Conditions ◽  
In Fire ◽  
Salamander Larvae

Abstract Warning colouration reduces predation risk by signalling or mimicking the unpleasantness of prey and therefore increases survival. We tested in two experiments the evolutionary costs and benefits of the yellow colour pattern in fire salamanders (Salamandra salamandra), which display a yellow/black colour pattern usually associated with toxic alkaloids. Our first experiment aimed to test whether the development of colouration is condition dependent and thus related to developmental costs, i.e. influenced by resource availability during the developmental process. Therefore, we reared fire salamander larvae under different nutritional conditions and compared the relative amount of yellow they developed after metamorphosis. Fire salamander larvae reared under limited food conditions had a lower proportion of yellow following metamorphosis than control larvae reared under superior food conditions. In a second experiment we tested whether the proportion of yellow has an impact on the risk of being attacked using artificial models. We tested, in salamander-free and salamander-occupied natural habitats, whether artificial clay models with different proportions of yellow and black receive different attack rates from potential predators (birds, mammals, insects). In clay models the proportion of yellow and the site had a significant effect on predation risk. Models with larger amounts of yellow had fewer bite marks from predators such as carabid beetles and birds, but only in sympatry with salamanders. In conclusion, the early expression of conspicuous colouration seems to be condition dependent and therefore potentially costly. Furthermore, the yellow colouration of fire salamanders act as a signal that potentially reduces their risk of being attacked by predators. Thus, the yellow colouration of fire salamanders seems to represent an adaptive trait that reduces the risk of predation, which can be expressed in higher quantity by individuals of a certain condition.

Detection of elusive fire salamander larvae (Salamandra salamandra) in streams via environmental DNA

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen Preißler ◽  
Alexander Dennis Watzal ◽  
Miguel Vences ◽  
Sebastian Steinfartz
Keyword(s):  
Resource Saving ◽  
Natural Fire ◽  
Biodiversity Crisis ◽  
Time Investment ◽  
Pcr Inhibitor ◽  
Natural Streams ◽  
Fire Salamander ◽  
Salamandra Salamandra ◽  
Species Specific ◽  
Salamander Larvae

Abstract In the face of the global biodiversity crisis, the monitoring of species richness and diversity is experiencing an increased demand entailing a raise in cost and time investment. The analysis of species-specific DNA fragments in environmental samples (eDNA) such as from water or soil, facilitate the molecular detection of species without the specific sampling of individuals. The invasive chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal) is infecting natural fire salamander populations (Salamandra salamandra) and causes chytridiomycosis resulting in infrequent regional extinctions of populations across Central Europe. With regard to the expanding distribution of Bsal over the last years, cost-effective monitoring of fire salamanders is important for the conservation of this species. Based on a real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay, we developed a new protocol to detect S. salamandra larvae in streams via eDNA, using species-specific primers of the mitochondrial control region (D-loop). We tested the efficiency of qPCR primer sets for six combinations of DNA extraction kits coupled with subsequent PCR inhibitor removal kits for obtaining qPCR-detectable S. salamandra eDNA from water filters, that were taken both from natural streams and artificial water tanks in the laboratory as positive controls. We found that the DNeasy Blood & Tissue Kit in combination with the DNeasy PowerClean CleanUp Kit performed best for detecting salamander larvae from natural streams. Our experimental protocol paves the way for resource-saving approaches to monitor S. salamandra larvae, but also confirms the limits to this eDNA approach in that it requires optimized laboratory protocols.

Intercohort size structure dynamics of fire salamander larvae in ephemeral habitats: a mesocosm experiment

Oecologia ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 179 (2) ◽  
pp. 425-433 ◽  
Author(s):  
Asaf Sadeh ◽  
Antonina Polevikov ◽  
Marc Mangel ◽  
Leon Blaustein
Keyword(s):  
Size Structure ◽  
Mesocosm Experiment ◽  
Structure Dynamics ◽  
Fire Salamander ◽  
Salamander Larvae ◽  
Ephemeral Habitats

scholarly journals Cranial integration in the fire salamander, Salamandra salamandra (Caudata: Salamandridae)

2020 ◽  
Vol 130 (1) ◽  
pp. 178-194 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margot Bon ◽  
Carla Bardua ◽  
Anjali Goswami ◽  
Anne-Claire Fabre
Keyword(s):  
Influencing Factors ◽  
Significant Relationship ◽  
High Dimensional ◽  
Phenotypic Integration ◽  
Geometric Morphometric ◽  
Complex Interactions ◽  
Fire Salamander ◽  
Salamandra Salamandra ◽  
Static Level ◽  
Cranial Shape

Abstract Phenotypic integration and modularity are concepts that represent the pattern of connectivity of morphological structures within an organism. Integration describes the coordinated variation of traits, and analyses of these relationships among traits often reveals the presence of modules, sets of traits that are highly integrated but relatively independent of other traits. Phenotypic integration and modularity have been studied at both the evolutionary and static level across a variety of clades, although most studies thus far are focused on amniotes, and especially mammals. Using a high-dimensional geometric morphometric approach, we investigated the pattern of cranial integration and modularity of the Italian fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra giglioli). We recovered a highly modular pattern, but this pattern did not support either entirely developmental or functional hypotheses of cranial organisation, possibly reflecting complex interactions amongst multiple influencing factors. We found that size had no significant effect on cranial shape, and that morphological variance of individual modules had no significant relationship with degree of within-module integration. The pattern of cranial integration in the fire salamander is similar to that previously recovered for caecilians, with highly integrated jaw suspensorium and occipital regions, suggesting possible conservation of patterns across lissamphibians.

scholarly journals Environmental factors determining growth of salamander larvae: A field study

2015 ◽  
Vol 61 (3) ◽  
pp. 421-427 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Limongi ◽  
Gentile Francesco Ficetola ◽  
Giuseppe Romeo ◽  
Raoul Manenti
Keyword(s):  
Field Study ◽  
Environmental Variables ◽  
Larval Growth ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
Development Rate ◽  
Biotic Factors ◽  
Natural Conditions ◽  
Fire Salamander ◽  
Salamander Larvae

Abstract Larval growth and survival of organisms are strongly influenced by abiotic and biotic factors, as demonstrated by experimental studies performed under controlled laboratory or semi-natural conditions. Even if they have many advantages, experiments cannot cover the full complexity of natural conditions and field studies are needed for a better understanding of how environmental variation determines growth and development rate. Fire salamander Salamandra salamandra females give birth to larvae in a variety of habitats, both epigean and subterranean. In caves, salamander larvae successfully grow and metamorphose, but their growth is more than three times longer than in epigean streams and factors determining these differences require investigation. We performed a field study to understand the factors related to the growth of fire salamander larvae in different environmental conditions, evaluating the relationship between environmental features and larval growth and differences between caves and epigean spring habitats. Both caves and epigean larvae successfully grew. Capture-mark-recapture allowed to individually track individuals along their whole development, and measure their performance. Growth rate was significantly affected by environmental variables: larvae grew faster in environments with abundant invertebrates and few conspecifics. Taking into account the effect of environmental variables, larval growth was significantly lower in caves. Food availability plays a different effect in the two environments. Larval growth was positively related to the availability of invertebrates in epigean sites only. The development rate of hypogeous populations of salamanders is slower because of multiple parameters, but biotic factors play a much stronger role than the abiotic ones.

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