Factors affecting body temperatures of toads

Factors influencing levels and rates of variation of body temperature ( T b ) in montane Bufo boreas boreas and in lowland Bufo boreas halophilus were investigated as an initial step toward understanding the role of natural thermal variation in the physiology and energetics of these ectothermic animals. Body temperatures of boreas can vary 25–30° C over 24-h periods. Such variation is primarily due to both nocturnal and diurnal activity and the physical characteristics of the montane environment. Bufo boreas halophilus are primarily nocturnal except during breeding and are voluntarily active at body temperatures ranging between 10 and 25° C. Despite variation in T b encountered in the field, boreas select a narrow range of T b in a thermal gradient, averaging 23.5 and 26.2° C for fasted individuals maintained under field conditions or acclimated to 20° C, respectively. In a thermal gradient the mean T b of fasted halophilus acclimated to 20° C is 23.9° C. Skin color of boreas varies in the field from very dark to light. The dark skins absorb approximately 4% more radiation than the light ones. Light colored boreas should absorb approximately 5% more radiation than similarly colored halophilus . Evaporative water losses increase directly with skin temperatures and vapor pressure deficit in both subspecies. Larger individuals heat and cool more slowly than smaller ones. Calculation of an enery budget for boreal toads suggests that they could sit in direct sunlight for long periods without fatally overheating, providing the skin was continually moist.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/47722/1/442_2004_Article_BF00344732.pd

Enhancement of chromatic contrast increases predation risk for striped butterflies

Many prey species have evolved defensive colour patterns to avoid attacks. One type of camouflage, disruptive coloration, relies on contrasting patterns that hinder predators' ability to recognize an object. While high contrasts are used to facilitate detection in many visual communication systems, they are thought to provide misleading information about prey appearance in disruptive patterns. A fundamental tenet in disruptive coloration theory is the principle of ‘maximum disruptive contrast’, i.e. disruptive patterns are more effective when higher contrasts are involved. We tested this principle in highly contrasting stripes that have often been described as disruptive patterns. Varying the strength of chromatic contrast between stripes and adjacent pattern elements in artificial butterflies, we found a strong negative correlation between survival probability and chromatic contrast strength. We conclude that too high a contrast leads to increased conspicuousness rather than to effective camouflage. However, artificial butterflies that sported contrasts similar to those of the model species Limenitis camilla survived equally well as background-matching butterflies without these stripes. Contrasting stripes do thus not necessarily increase predation rates. This result may provide new insights into the design and characteristics of a range of colour patterns such as sexual, mimetic and aposematic signals

Extinct Pterygoboa

Members of the Erycinae are small to medium-sized, semi-fossorial snakes in the family Boidae (Squamata, Serpentes) known today from Africa, southwestern Asia, India, and western North America. Erycines were the predominate snakes in faunas of North America during the Paleogene. In North America, only the minute, extinct erycine Pterygoboa is known to have additional wing-like processes situated on the postzygapophyses of the vertebrae. Here we report on Pterygoboa from one latest Oligocene (25-24 Ma) (White Springs) and two early Miocene (≈20-19 Ma) localities (Miller, Thomas Farm) in Florida. These specimens represent a significant chronological and southern geographic range extension for the genus and permit an amendment to the morphological description of this unusual snake

Estufas climatizadas para experimentos ambientais com Rãs, em gaiolas

Foram construídas seis estufas climatizadas, instaladas inicialmente no Ranário Experimental da Universidade Federal de Viçosa e, posteriormente, no Ranário Experimental da Fundação Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, com o objetivo de realizar experimentos para avaliar os efeitos do ambiente sobre o desempenho de rãs em gaiolas de fibra de vidro. Ambientes com temperaturas de 25ºC e fotoperíodo de 12/12 horas de luz/horas de escuridão (h L/E) serviram para adaptação das rãs por 15 dias antes de cada experimento. Os tratamentos consistiram em simular ambientes com temperaturas variando de 20 a 35ºC e fotoperíodos de 8/16, 12/12 e 16/8 h L/E. Foram realizados experimentos com rã-touro (Rana catesbeiana Shaw, 1802) e rã-manteiga (Leptodactylus ocellatus Linnaeus, 1758). Nessas estufas foi possível estimar que: a) os maiores ganhos de peso de rã-touro foram obtidos entre 27,6 e 29,7oC, com melhor crescimento entre 28,2 e 30,1ºC; para rã-manteiga os melhores ganhos e conversão alimentar foram observados a 28,6 e 28ºC, respectivamente; b) a temperatura interage com fotoperíodo sobre o desempenho das rãs e seu desenvolvimento gonadal; c) a 27,7oC (temperatura de conforto térmico) haverá menos rãs dentro d’água; d) a maior temperatura cloacal de rã-touro, 32,1oC no seco e 33,8oC dentro d’água, a 35oC, evidenciou que as rãs se termorregulam; e) os níveis de tetraiodotironina (T4) no plasma decrescem na temperatura de conforto térmico; f) rã-manteiga condiciona-se ao manejo de rotina, reunindo-se ao redor do cocho na hora da alimentaçãoSix acclimatized incubators were initially installed in the Experimental Frog Farm of the Federal University of Viçosa and later in Experimental Frog Farm of the Federal University of Rio Grande, with the objective of accomplishing experiments to evaluate the effects of the environment on frogs performance in cages of fiber glass. Environments with temperatures of 25ºC and photoperiod of 12/12 hours of light/hours of darkness (h L/D) were available to frogs adaptation during 15 days before each experiment. The treatments consisted to simulate environments with temperatures varying from 20 to 35ºC and photoperiods of 8/16, 12/12 and 16/8 h L/D. They were accomplished experiments with bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana Shaw, 1802) and with butterfrog (Leptodactylus ocellatus Linnaeus, 1758). In these incubators it was possible to estimate that: a) the highest weight gain of bullfrog was obtained between 27.6 and 29.7ºC, with better growth between 28.2 and 30.1ºC; for butterfrog the best gain and alimentary conversion were verified at 28.6 and 28ºC, respectively; b) temperature interact with photoperiod affecting the frogs performance and gonadal development; c) at 27.7ºC (temperature of thermal comfort) there will be less frogs inside of water; d) the highest cloacal temperature: 32.1ºC, in the dry part, and 33.8ºC, inside of water, at 35ºC, evidenced the bullfrog thermoregulation; e) the tetraiodotironine (T4) level in the plasm decreases in the temperature of thermal comfort; f) butterfrog was conditioned to the routine handling, coming around feeder at eater tim