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Stress response of fire salamander larvae differs between habitat types
Laura Schulte1, Pia Oswald1, Max Mühlenhaupt1
1Behavioural Ecology Department, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld 33615, Germany.
Royal Society Open Science
|April 5, 2024
Summary
European fire salamander larvae in ponds show higher stress hormone levels. Transplant experiments suggest limited adaptation to less suitable pond habitats, highlighting hormone monitoring for conservation.
Area of Science:
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
- Environmental Physiology
- Amphibian Conservation
Background:
- European fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra) larvae inhabit streams and ponds, with ponds presenting a less suitable habitat due to higher predation risks and lower food availability.
- Larval physiology, particularly stress responses, can be indicative of habitat quality and potential adaptive capacity.
- Water-borne corticosterone is a validated non-invasive biomarker for assessing stress responses in amphibian larvae.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the differential impacts of stream versus pond habitats on the physiological stress response of European fire salamander larvae.
- To assess the adaptive potential of larval stress responses to changing habitats using a reciprocal transplant experiment (RTE).
- To evaluate the utility of non-invasive hormone measurements for assessing habitat quality and conservation needs.
Main Methods:
- Measurement of baseline and stress-induced corticosterone levels in 64 wild-caught European fire salamander larvae from stream and pond habitats.
- Validation of water-borne corticosterone release rate measurements in fire salamander larvae.
- Implementation of a reciprocal transplant experiment (RTE) where larvae were moved between stream and pond habitats for two weeks to assess stress response plasticity.
Main Results:
- Larvae inhabiting ponds exhibited significantly higher baseline and stress-induced corticosterone levels compared to larvae in streams.
- Following a two-week transplant, larvae moved to ponds showed no significant increase in corticosterone upon stress induction, regardless of origin.
- Larvae transferred to streams maintained an elevated stress-induced corticosterone response compared to their baseline levels.
Conclusions:
- Pond habitats impose a greater physiological stress on European fire salamander larvae compared to streams.
- Larval stress responses show limited plasticity or adaptation to the less favorable pond environment within a two-week period.
- Non-invasive corticosterone measurements are valuable tools for evaluating habitat quality and informing conservation strategies for amphibians.
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