Comparative life histories of a low- and a high-elevation population of the common frog Rana temporaria

1996 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 183-195 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Ryser
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Life Histories ◽  
Rana Temporaria ◽  
High Elevation ◽  
Swiss Alps ◽  
Life History Pattern ◽  
Frog Rana Temporaria ◽  
The Alps ◽  
Breeding Pond ◽  
The Common

AbstractCommon frogs from a breeding pond in the Swiss Alps (1930 m) were studied by skeletochronology and life history traits were compared to a previously described lowland population. Snout-vent lengths ranged from 63 to 85 mm (males) and 65 to 94 mm (females). Ages varied from 4 to 13 years with means of 6.6 (males) and 8.3 years (females). Growth of immature frogs was slow. Immature males grew faster than females, but the reverse was true for adult frogs. Egg numbers ranged from 784 to 1616 and were not correlated with snout-vent length. Egg diameters (1.83-2.19 mm) were positively correlated with snout-vent length. Frogs from the Alps differed from the lowland population in slower growth to maturation, resulting in higher ages, but similar sizes, at first reproduction. I argue that the alpine life history pattern was shaped by two environmentally determined traits, slow growth and high annual survival.

Predation-induced effects on hatchling morphology in the common frog (Rana temporaria)

2001 ◽  
Vol 79 (5) ◽  
pp. 926-930 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anssi Laurila ◽  
Pierre-André Crochet ◽  
Juha Merilä
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Rana Temporaria ◽  
Morphological Changes ◽  
Early Life History ◽  
Life Stages ◽  
Common Frog ◽  
Amphibian Larvae ◽  
Frog Rana Temporaria ◽  
The Common

As mortality due to predation is often high at early independent life stages in many animals, it can be expected that predation-induced modifications of early life history and morphology will be common when predation risk varies spatially or temporally. However, studies of such effects are still rare. Predation-induced changes in life history and morphology have often been described in amphibian larvae, but the focus has been on older larvae and little is known about responses of hatchlings or very young larvae. We examined whether predator presence influenced timing of hatching and hatchling morphology in the common frog, Rana temporaria. In a paired design, eggs from 10 clutches were allowed to develop from fertilization to hatching, with or without the nonlethal presence of a larva of the large diving beetle Dytiscus marginalis. We found no evidence that predator presence affected timing of hatching. However, hatchlings raised in the presence of the predator had relatively shorter bodies and deeper tail fins than their full-sibs raised in the absence of the predator, indicating that predation induces morphological responses in R. temporaria hatchlings. This is one of the very few studies showing that predators, or chemical cues released during a predation event, can induce a plastic morphological changes in vertebrates at very early life stages.

scholarly journals The Ecology and Life History of the Common Frog (Rana temporaria temporaria)

Copeia ◽  
1962 ◽  
Vol 1962 (3) ◽  
pp. 667 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard G. Zweifel ◽  
R. Maxwell Savage
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Rana Temporaria ◽  
Common Frog ◽  
Frog Rana Temporaria ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Common

Small woods positively influence the occurrence and abundance of the common frog (Rana temporaria) in a traditional farming landscape

2015 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 417-424 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandre Boissinot ◽  
Pierre Grillet ◽  
Aurélien Besnard ◽  
Olivier Lourdais
Keyword(s):  
Western Europe ◽  
Rana Temporaria ◽  
Common Frog ◽  
Traditional Farming ◽  
Critical Determinant ◽  
Southern Margin ◽  
Frog Species ◽  
Frog Rana Temporaria ◽  
The Common ◽  
Extensive Farming

Traditional farming landscape in western Europe is made of a complex mosaic of pastures, cultures, ponds and hedgerows connected with woods. Previous observations in the common frog species suggest that lowland populations are closely associated to wood cover and our aim was to test the validity of this assumption. We studied common frog occurrence and abundance in western central France (Deux-Sèvres department) close to the southern margin of lowland distribution. Our results pointed out that the proportion of woods surface around sampled areas (1 ha) was a critical determinant of common frog presence and abundance. Extensive farming, which maintains a mosaic of small woods, may provide a robust conservation tool for this species.

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