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Variable Alkaloid Defenses in the Dendrobatid Poison Frog Oophaga pumilio are Perceived as Differences in Palatability to Arthropods

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Abstract

Conspicuously colored dendrobatid frogs sequester alkaloid defenses from dietary arthropods, resulting in considerable alkaloid variation among populations; however, little is known about how variation is perceived as a defense against predators. Previous studies have found variable alkaloids in the dendrobatid Oophaga pumilio to be associated with differences in toxicity to laboratory mice, suggesting variable defenses are important. Arthropods are natural predators that use chemoreception to detect prey, including frogs, and may therefore perceive variation in alkaloid profiles as differences in palatability. The goal of the present study is to determine how arthropods respond to variable alkaloid defenses in O. pumilio. Frog alkaloids were sampled from individual O. pumilio from ten geographic locations throughout the Bocas del Toro region of Panama and the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica. Alkaloid extracts were used in feeding bioassays with the vinegar fly Drosophila melanogaster and the ant Ectatomma ruidum. Both species of arthropods fed significantly less on frog alkaloid extracts when compared to controls, and differences in alkaloid palatability were observed among frog populations, as well as between sexes and life stages within a population. Differences in alkaloid quantity, richness, and type were the main predictors of arthropod palatability. Our findings also represent the first direct evidence of a palatability spectrum in a vertebrate that sequesters chemical defenses from dietary sources. Further, the presence of a palatability spectrum suggests that variable alkaloid defenses in O. pumilio are ecologically relevant and play an important role in natural predator-prey interactions, particularly with respect to arthropod predators.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the Organization for Tropical Studies La Selva Biological Research Station, Canadian Organization for Tropical Education and Rainforest Conservation Caño Palma Biological Station, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Bungalows Kiré, and Hotel Río Palmas, Samasati Retreat, and Emily Khazan, Scott McKenzie, and Andres Vega for their support in carrying out this research. We would also like to thank the Panamanian and Costa Rican governments for permitting this research. We thank C. Anthony, N. Bezca, A. Blanchette, R. Drenovsky, M. Gade, K. Hovey, M. Russell, E. Seiter, and N. Woodcraft for editorial comments to the manuscript, and M. Viloria and M. Russell for their help in frog collection. John Carroll University and the Exploration Fund Grant provided support for this study from The Explorers Club (SKB). All collection of O. pumilio was approved by the Convention on International Trade and Exportation of Species (CITES) research and collection permit (SEX/A-129-06) issued by the Panamanian government and by CITES research and collection permit 2015-CR1420/SJ(#S1487) issued by the Costa Rican government. The John Carroll University Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC protocol #1101) approved all methods used in the study.

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  1. Department of Biology, John Carroll University, 1 John Carroll Boulevard, University Heights, OH, 44118, USA

    Sarah K. Bolton & Ralph A. Saporito

  2. Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California at Berkeley, 130 Mulford Hall #3114, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA

    Kelsie Dickerson

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  1. Sarah K. Bolton
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Correspondence to Ralph A. Saporito.

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Bolton, S.K., Dickerson, K. & Saporito, R.A. Variable Alkaloid Defenses in the Dendrobatid Poison Frog Oophaga pumilio are Perceived as Differences in Palatability to Arthropods. J Chem Ecol 43, 273–289 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10886-017-0827-y

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