Interesting findings: Colorful colors help frogs

(scienceinfo.net) - Frogs are known to be one of the loudest amphibians, but a new study also shows that the development of this trait is following a different trait: vivid colors.

Scientists have found that the colors of some frogs are poisonous, warning that they are an unattractive bait for predators, before frogs develop complex songs. them. The result is early warning signals that allow different frogs to diversify their cries over time.

Zoologists at the National Evolutionary Synthesis Center (NESCent) Research Center , University of British Columbia and other university researchers have collected audio data that includes more than 16,000 hours. call of 172 species of frog family with poison Dendrobatidae . The results of the study are being presented online and will be published in December in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

This study includes bright colored frogs and camouflage-based frogs to protect themselves. Each piece of music that calls the frog's partners is checked for strength and length, and researchers also consider the size of frogs and their ability to be detected by predators. They found that, thanks to the warning colors that protect frogs from some predators, they can be more attractive to females with a lower pitched tone, rhythmic and easier to detect than relatives. have a darker, orderly body color than them.

Poison frogs often have very colorful colors

"This allows the frog to have a distinctive style - a very noisy style , " said lead author Juan C. Santos, formerly of the NESCent center and now at the University of British Columbia. "The noise of this call, in general, is what female frogs really enjoy."

Scientists already know, predators will stay away from brightly colored frogs because of this visual warning signal, but Santos and colleagues also hypothesize that some species have grown. both audible warning signals.

Such a warning system is not unprecedented: Tiger moths emit an ultrasonic cry to convey their unpleasant taste to the bats. Without a similar ability, frogs face a dilemma, that is, they can be detected by predators or give up the opportunity to flirt with female frogs.

Initially the researchers predicted that sound warnings were preceded by color, but the research results showed the opposite. Using molecular data and statistical analysis, they were able to produce a genealogical tree and determine which characteristics appeared first. Their results show that visual characteristics warn frogs to be poisonous and this paved the way for more and more complex calls for partners.

Species that rely on self-protection camouflage will not be much attracted by loud noises, while their relatives are protected - including frogs that are not poisonous to simulate the looks of congeners with poison - can be loud and more nuanced."The color of poisonous frogs lies in the same band as the noisy ones , " Santos said. "When you are imitating someone who is protected, you have a bit of freedom to find potential partners."

The calls to these partners consume a lot of energy, but the benefits of attracting female frogs without being threatened by predators make it a worthwhile practice for male frogs. The reasons children are attracted to noisy males and how they evaluate the different sounds of male frogs are still a mystery. Santos explains that if females are really picky, it will promote male diversity by pushing the male frogs to make even more complicated calls.

"What do the females get from this information? Maybe the females - by being very haughty - increase the diversity of males," Santos said. A pond with a variety of potential partners increases the likelihood that their offspring will have a better genetic sequence over time.