INVESTIGADORES
VERA CANDIOTI Maria Florencia
artículos
Título:
Morphology and metamorphosis of Eupsophus calcaratus tadpoles (Anura: Leptodactylidae)
Autor/es:
MARIA FLORENCIA VERA CANDIOTI; CARMEN UBEDA; ESTEBAN ORLANDO LAVILLA
Revista:
JOURNAL OF MORPHOLOGY
Editorial:
WILEY-LISS, DIV JOHN WILEY & SONS INC
Referencias:
Año: 2005 vol. 264 p. 161 - 177
ISSN:
0362-2525
Resumen:
Eupsophus calcaratus, a leptodactyloid frog
from the austral Andean forests of Argentina and Chile,
has endotrophic, nidicolous tadpoles. We studied a metamorphic
series from Stages 31 to 46 of Gosners developmental
table (1960). Other than the scarce pigmentation,
proportionately large eyes, and massive developing hindlimbs,
the remaining external characters are similar to
those of generalized, exotrophic larvae. At the same time,
internal morphology does not reveal any character state
attributable to the endotrophic-nidicolous way of life; conversely,
structures such as the hyobranchial skeleton and
the mandibular cartilages are similar to those of
exotrophic-macrophagous tadpoles. The metamorphic process
is characterized by the delayed development of diverse
structures (e.g., ethmoid region, palatoquadrate,
and hyobranchial apparatus), and the retention of some
larval characters (e.g., parietal fenestrae, overall absence
of ossification) with the absence of development of some
juvenile characters (e.g., adult otic process, several
bones) in metamorphosed individuals. These heterochronic
processes and truncation of larval development
are related to a shorter larval life (when compared to other
species of the austral Andean region) and to the small size
at metamorphosis.