Orientation of the Plains Spadefoot Toad, Scaphiopus bombifrons, to Solar Cues

The ability of plains spadefoot toads, Scaphiopus bombifrons, to use solar cues in orientation and learning directional goals was analyzed. Orientational tests were conducted with animals moving toward breeding sites and taken from breeding aggregations. Toads used the sun to guide their migrations...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Herpetologica 1971-12, Vol.27 (4), p.454-461
Main Authors: Landreth, Hobart F., Christensen, Michael T.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amphibians
Animals
Breeding
Breeding seasons
Breeding sites
Compasses
Herpetology
Mazes
Roads
Toads
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Summary:The ability of plains spadefoot toads, Scaphiopus bombifrons, to use solar cues in orientation and learning directional goals was analyzed. Orientational tests were conducted with animals moving toward breeding sites and taken from breeding aggregations. Toads used the sun to guide their migrations to breeding aggregations and used a y-axis mechanism relative to a shoreline while breeding. Training tests revealed that these anurans learn directional goals rapidly when the sun was the only apparent cue. Collection data reveal that this species can migrate at least a mile to breeding sites and that they are often active several days prior to heavy rains in the spring.
ISSN:0018-0831
1938-5099