Seasonal Variation in Populations of Panamanian Litter Frogs and Their Prey: A Comparison of Wetter and Drier Sites

Various species of frogs and toads, belonging to the genera Bufo, Atelopus, Dendrobates, Colostethus, and Eleutherodactylus, occur in the leaf litter in rainforest in Panamá. This study compares the litter communities at two sites in Panamá: Pipeline Road, the drier site, and Carti Road, the wetter...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Oecologia 1980-01, Vol.47 (1), p.34-38
Main Author: Toft, Catherine A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amphibians
Arthropods
Diet
Dry seasons
Food
Frogs
Pipelines
Seasons
Species
Species diversity
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Summary:Various species of frogs and toads, belonging to the genera Bufo, Atelopus, Dendrobates, Colostethus, and Eleutherodactylus, occur in the leaf litter in rainforest in Panamá. This study compares the litter communities at two sites in Panamá: Pipeline Road, the drier site, and Carti Road, the wetter site. At both sites, frog abundance is greater in the dry season, when abundance of their prey, the litter arthropods, is greater. Species diversity does not change seasonally at either site; however, species diversity differs strikingly between sites, with Carti Road having the greater species diversity. Similarity in diet does not vary consistently with seasonal changes in food abundance at a single site or with differences in species diversity between sites. These results suggest that neither moisture nor food abundance alone influences the abundance or the diversity of litter frogs at these two sites in Panamá.
ISSN:0029-8549
1432-1939
DOI:10.1007/BF00541772