AGE, BODY SIZE, AND GROWTH OF BOANA CORDOBAE (ANURA: HYLIDAE) ALONG AN ALTITUDINAL GRADIENT IN ARGENTINA

BARAQUET, MARIANA; OTERO, MANUEL ALEJANDRO; VALETTI, JULIÁN ALONSO ; GRENAT, PABLO RAUL; MARTINO, ADOLFO LUDOVICO

Herpetological Conservation and Biology

HCB

Año: 2018 vol. 13 p. 391 - 398

1931-7603

Life-history traits of individuals organisms (e.g., longevity, age at sexual maturity, body size, and growth rate) often vary among populations in different environments, including along altitudinal gradients. We investigated altitudinal variation in the above variables for Boana cordobae using skeletochronology from 158 individuals in six populations along of an altitudinal gradient (930 to 2,310 m elevation) in central Argentina. Body size (snout-vent length) was the only variable that differed significantly between sexes, with females larger than males. Males were generally larger and older at higher elevations females were not analyzed for populations differences due to small sample sizes). Specifically, body size was significantly positively correlated withaltitude of the populations, with males from the highest altitude population significantly larger than those at lower altitudes. Males at the highest site were also significantly older than individuals at lower elevation. Moreover, the oldest individual was 7 y old in the highest population, and 4 to 6 y old in the other populations, and age at sexualmaturity was estimated at 3 y in the highest population and 2 y in the other five populations.