Behavioral Energetics and the Architecture of Performance: A Perspective on the Influence of Taigen and Wells (1985)...

AbstractIn 1985, two seminal publications redefined the study of acoustic communication in frogs. By demonstrating that male frogs expend energy at rates surpassing those of vigorous locomotion when calling (Taigen and Wells 1985) and that these extreme demands are sustained by trunk muscles with oxidative enzyme profiles rivaling endothermic vertebrates (Taigen et al. 1985), they revealed what was then seen as a physiological paradox through an integrative approach that continues to inspire research. Here, we evaluate the scientific legacy of these studies four decades later using curated citation datasets and thematic analyses. We show that their influence has persisted through sustained citation across disciplines. This broad impact appears rooted in their novel integration of behavioral ecology and comparative physiology, two fields they engaged in complementary ways. Early citations emphasized mechanisms such as oxygen consumption, muscle biochemistry, and performance limits, while later work expanded toward processes and patterns, including sexual selection, ecological trade-offs, and environmental modulation of signaling. Subsequent reframings situate frog calling as an evolved strategy embedded in endocrine regulation, phenology, social responsiveness, and ecological change. The Wells-Taigen collaboration thus stands as a rare example of transdisciplinary integration where mechanistic physiology and ecological realism were jointly advanced, catalyzing enduring conceptual synthesis in evolutionary physiology. By revisiting these papers, we highlight how their intellectual lineages continue to scaffold inquiry into performance, adaptation, and the integrated study of animal behavior and its physiological bases.