Predator-induced plasticity in early life history and morphology in two anuran amphibians

Abstract.

Predation pressure during early life stages is often high, but few studies have examined antipredator responses at these stages. We studied the effects of an egg predator (leech, Haemopis sanguisuga) and two tadpole predators (dragonfly larvae, Aeshna spp.; and threespine stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus) on the timing of hatching and morphology of hatchlings and young tadpoles in two anuran amphibians [Rana arvalis (RA) and R. temporaria (RT)] in a factorial laboratory experiment. We also compared the responses of two geographically separated RA populations on the Baltic island of Gotland and in Uppland on the Swedish mainland. We found inconsistent evidence for the predictions that the presence of an egg predator induces earlier hatching, and the presence of a larval predator delays hatching. RT hatched later in the presence of stickleback than in the control treatment, but RA hatched earlier, less developed and at smaller size in the leech, dragonfly, and stickleback treatments. There was no indication of predator-induced morphology in hatchlings of either of the species. However, young RA tadpoles had shorter tails and deeper bodies in the stickleback treatment and RT had shorter tails in the leech, dragonfly and stickleback treatments. Irrespective of treatment, RA from Gotland hatched with relatively longer bodies than Uppland individuals and had relatively deeper and short tails as young tadpoles. Our results highlight the diversity of induced responses to predators in anuran amphibians: predator presence affects the timing of hatching and morphology of young tadpoles, but these responses vary depending on the species and predator considered.