Surface activity of arid-adapted frogs
Document Type
Journal Article
Publisher
Royal Society of Western Australia
Faculty
Faculty of Computing, Health and Science
School
School of Natural Sciences
RAS ID
1779
Abstract
The arid-adapted Neobatrachus sutor and Pseudophryne occidentalis are most surface active immediately after heavy rain. The number of these frogs caught in pit-traps declined rapidly over a four day period after rain ceased. As we found no evidence of breeding, we concluded that N. sutor had come to the surface to feed, most probably on termites which we observed in very large numbers. We estimate the number of occasions that these two species of frogs could have been surface active, based on rainfall data, to be ≥ 9 and ≥ 17 yr-1 respectively.
Comments
Thompson, G. G., Thompson, S. A., & Fraser, J. L. (2003). Surface activity of arid-adapted frogs. Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia, 86, 115-116. Available here