Natural History of a Madagascan Gecko

Several aspects of natural history of Blaesodactylus ambonihazo, a gecko distributed in a dry forest of northwestern Madagascar, were investigated in the rainy and dry seasons between 2000 and 2006. There were no significant sexual size differences in snout-vent length, and no sexual dimorphism was detected either in head width or body mass. Females ceased oogenesis during the rainy season and were recrudescent at the beginning of the dry season. They probably lay eggs in the middle of the dry season. Hatchlings were observed at the beginning of the rainy season and probably reach adult size in the subsequent dry season. At night geckos perched on tree trunks and buildings and exhibited typical sit-and-wait foraging. During the day they retreated to shelters, mainly crevices between buttress roots. The gecko was thermally passive to environmental temperatures, showing a wide range of cloacal temperatures (15–30 C), but they selected relatively higher substrate temperatures at low air temperature, possibly for thermoregulation. Because multiple individuals were observed on single trees, home ranges of the gecko were presumably overlapping each other, and no obvious territorial behavior was observed. The absence of male-biased sexual dimorphism, which suggests little male-male competition for mating, also supports the absence of territoriality of B. ambonihazo. Comparison with a syntopic diurnal gecko, Phelsuma kochi, which shows ecological characters similar to B. ambonihazo but has exclusive home ranges, may clarify ecological correlates associated with temporal niche partitioning

Calling activity of an anuran assemblage in a temporary pond in a dry forest of Madagascar

Temporary pools are important resources for animals that have aquatic stages during their life history, and particularly for those living in dry climate regions. We investigated the breeding activity of an anuran assemblage in a small temporary pond in the Ampijoroa dry forest of Ankarafantsika National Park, northwestern Madagascar, during the first half of the rainy season from 2000 to 2001 and during the entire rainy season and the beginning of the dry season from 2003 to 2004. We also surveyed the anuran fauna of Ampijoroa throughout the long-term research conducted from 1999 to 2014. We estimated the breeding activity based on the calling intensity of male frogs. A total of 12 species of frogs was recorded, and eight out of them were confirmed to breed in the temporary pond. These eight species consisted of five families, including one introduced species. The initiation of calling activity seemed to be affected by rainfall in several species. Five of the eight species (Ptychadena mascareniensis, Boophis doulioti, Blommersia wittei, Heterixalus luteostriatus and H. tricolor) were considered prolonged breeders, and the other three (Laliostoma labrosum, Hoplobatrachus tigerinus, and Dyscophus insularis) were considered explosive breeders. Two species (Mantidactylus ulcerosus and Stumpffia sp.) were not observed to use the temporary pond for their breeding sites. Neither calls nor breeding sites of the remaining two species (Scaphiophryne calcarata and Mantella ebenaui) were confirmed, although they have been described to breed in stagnant water. This study indicates that temporary ponds in the Ampijoroa forest, which are quite limited in number, provide important habitat for reproduction of frogs, which are living in a harsh environment