International Doctoral Dissertation Research: Behavioral ecology of complex maternal care in a Neotropical frog

University Of Miami, Coral Gables FL

Investigators

Abstract

Parental behavior in amphibians is exceptionally diverse, but it is relatively understudied and poorly understood. Using Oophaga pumilio, a Neotropical dendrobatid frog that feeds its offspring with unfertilized eggs, this doctoral dissertation research project will test the following hypotheses about the mechanisms behind parental behavior in an amphibian: 1. mothers discriminate between offspring and unrelated young during parental care; 2. the sensory mode of mother-offspring communication is suited to the habitat of the species; 3. mothers use honest begging signals from offspring to allocate their provisioning resources; and 4. mothers provision offspring with an effective defense against predators. This research is conducted at La Selva Biological Station in Costa Rica in collaboration with Dr. Ralph Saporito from John Carroll University and Dr. Mahmood Sasa from the University of Costa Rica. The project has an extensive field setup of 1000 artificial tadpole-rearing sites, using twelve motion-activated IR video cameras placed above cups containing tadpoles to provide unique and efficient observation of mother-offspring interactions in the field. This study will broaden the comparative understanding of amphibian parental care by elucidating the behavioral mechanisms behind a complex amphibian parental care system. Features of this system allow for fresh ways to explore hypotheses that are of interest to a wide-ranging audience about offspring discrimination, multi-modal sensory integration, honest signaling, and chemical antipredator defenses. The experiments and observations should help answer many important questions relating to parent-offspring behavior more generally. This project also involves outreach, mentoring and environmental education activities with U.S. students participating in undergraduate research programs at La Selva as well as with Costa Rican students and public visitors. Involving U.S. students in first-rate research experiences with international collaborators in a foreign setting helps train a globally engaged work force and is an important goal of NSF's Office of International Science and Engineering.