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Coloration in the polymorphic frog Oophaga pumilio associates with level of aggressiveness in intraspecific and interspecific behavioral interactions

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Abstract

Intraspecific morphological variation may correspond to behavioral variation that helps determine the nature of species interactions. Color variation among populations of variably toxic organisms has been shown to associate with alternative anti-predator behaviors. However, the effects of these alternative behavioral tendencies on the outcomes of interspecific interactions other than predator–prey remain largely unexplored. We investigated how coloration and body size variation in Oophaga pumilio, one of the most phenotypically diverse amphibians known, associated with territorial aggressiveness and how this association influenced the outcome of agonistic male–male interactions with conspecifics and heterospecifics of two sympatric species (Andinobates claudiae and Phyllobates lugubris). Irrespective of body size, resident frogs from more conspicuous, red-colored O. pumilio populations responded to same-morph conspecifics and P. lugubris more quickly and exhibited more aggressive behaviors and more energetically expensive behaviors than resident frogs from green populations under these same treatments. Furthermore, red-colored resident frogs dominated most of the interactions in which they were involved, whereas green residents dominated only a few of the interactions, despite their status as residents. Because conspecific and heterospecific intruders did not behave more aggressively toward red resident frogs, aggressiveness of red residents does not appear to be a response to higher aggression being directed toward them. These results suggest that coloration in O. pumilio is a good indicator of aggressiveness that associates with the outcome of intraspecific and some interspecific behavioral male–male interactions, providing support for a positive association among anti-predator traits, agonistic behavior, and dominance in both intraspecific and interspecific, intraguild interactions.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to M. Caldwell, J. Cronin, J. Davis, B. Elderd, C. Richards-Zawacki, and R. Stevens for their helpful suggestions during the development and execution of this study. Many thanks to C. Richards-Zawacki for providing equipment and to L. Freeborn for providing information about frog localities. For their assistance in the field, we thank D. Gonzales, C. Harris, M. Alvarez, and A. Cuervo. The Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute provided logistical support, and we especially thank G. Jacome, P. Gondola, C. Jaramillo, and the Bocas del Toro Research Station staff. We thank M. Dugas, K. Hovanes, M. Klock, J. Touchon, A. Stuckert, K. Summers, members of the Richards-Zawaki Lab, and two anonymous reviewers for their comments on drafts of the manuscript and D. Blouin for providing statistical advice. This study was supported by the Sigma Xi Chapter of Louisiana State University and by two grants from the Louisiana Environmental and Education Commission from the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.

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  1. Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, 70803, USA

    Sandra P. Galeano & Kyle E. Harms

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  1. Sandra P. Galeano
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Correspondence to Sandra P. Galeano.

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All applicable international, national, and institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed. Experiments reported in this article comply with the current laws of Panama (ANAM permit No. SC/A-41-12). All procedures performed were in accordance with the ethical standards of Louisiana State University (IACUC No. 13-006) and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (IACUC No. 2012-1015-2015).

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Communicated by K. Summers

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Galeano, S.P., Harms, K.E. Coloration in the polymorphic frog Oophaga pumilio associates with level of aggressiveness in intraspecific and interspecific behavioral interactions. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 70, 83–97 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-015-2027-5

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