Behavioral response to conspecific alarm cues in tadpoles of Rhinella arenarum: the involvement of the olfactory and vomeronasal organs.

JUNGBLUT LD; AG POZZI; PAZ DA

Huerta Grande, Córdoba

Congreso; XXVI Congreso de la SAN; 2011

Sociedad Argentina de Neurociencia

Early warning about the presence of a predator and triggering of the appropriate avoidance behavior is crucial for prey survivorship. Chemical signals released by disturbed or injured conspecifics may provide decisive information to prey animals. In the present work we found that tadpoles of the common toad, Rhinella arenarum, show an alarm reaction when an extract from injured conspecifics is presented. Activity (measured as time spend moving) decreases in a dose-dependent manner in tadpoles exposed to the extract. In contrast, tadpoles of R. arenarum exposed to extract from injured heterospecific tadpoles (Hypsiboas pulchellus) do not change their behavior. Moreover, in order to assess the involvement of the olfactory and/or the vomeronasal organ in alarm cues detection, we evaluate activation of the chemosensory neurons of these sensory systems. Taken together, the results show that a species-specific alarm cue exists in R. arenarum. The dose-dependent response observed demonstrates that the stimulus (or stimuli) detected by animals is specific, and codifies imperative information for animals? survivorship. Finally, measurements of neuronal activity suggest that the olfactory, and not the vomeronasal organ, would participate in this alarm cue detection.