Territorial Behavior in Dendrobatid Frogs

2005/09/01 by Heike Pröhl · 124 citations
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Environmental Science · #Amphibian and Reptile Biology #Animal Behavior and Reproduction #Biology #Demography #Ecology #Limiting #Plant and animal studies #Polygyny #Resource (disambiguation) #Territoriality #Zoology

paper · doi:10.1670/162-04a.1

published in Journal of Herpetology 39(3), 354-365 (The Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles)

openalex publication_date 2005/09/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/26

Abstract

One or both sexes exhibit territorial behavior in all dendrobatids that have been studied. Two types of territoriality are identified. In some Colosthethus species only females or both sexes defend small nonreproductive territories that offer access to water, food, and shelter. In other species, only males defend large reproductive territories against conspecific calling males, suggesting that females are the limited resource. However, in no case has the defended resource been unambiguously identified. I hypothesize that, in at least some species, males compete for calling sites in areas with high female density and with favorable sound transmission features. I found little support for the hypothesis that dendrobatids exhibit resource defense polygyny. More research is necessary to understand the function of territoriality and to identify limiting resources in poison frogs.

Citations

• The social behaviour of anuran amphibians
• From Sender to Receiver: Propagation and Environmental Effects on Acoustic Signals
• Territoriality and Homing Behavior in the Poison Dart Frog (Dendrobates pumilio)

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• A Review of Chemical Defense in Poison Frogs (Dendrobatidae): Ecology, Pharmacokinetics, and Autoresistance
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• Relying on known or exploring for new? Movement patterns and reproductive resource use in a tadpole-transporting frog. [europepmc]
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• From habitat use to social behavior: natural history of a voiceless poison frog, Dendrobates tinctorius . [europepmc]
• Reproductive behavior drives female space use in a sedentary Neotropical frog. [europepmc]
• Experience shapes accuracy in territorial decision-making in a poison frog. [europepmc]
• Aposematism facilitates the diversification of parental care strategies in poison frogs. [europepmc]
• Regardless of personality, males show similar levels of plasticity in territory defense in a Neotropical poison frog. [europepmc]
• Personality traits differentially affect components of reproductive success in a Neotropical poison frog. [europepmc]
• Lethal combats in the forest among wild western gorillas. [europepmc]
• Exploring links between personality traits and their social and non-social environments in wild poison frogs. [europepmc]
• Repeatable Territorial Aggression in a Neotropical Poison Frog. [europepmc]
• Histological and Gene Expression Analyses of the Arm and Finger Macroglands of Two Hyloxalus Frogs (Dendrobatidae). [europepmc]

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