An Unstoppable Force Meets an Immovable Object: Worldwide Misdirected Amplexus in Anurans

Study Description

Anurans are a diverse group of vertebrates that occur in several different habitats. Such diversity is accompanied by a diverse range of reproductive behaviors and different types of amplexus (the mating “hug”). Cases of misdirected amplexus are often reported; when a male clasps a nonviable mate which can be individuals of other species, dead individuals, or even objects. We compiled a data set of 378 misdirected amplexus events for 156 amplectant species of 69 genera distributed in 52 countries. Our data set offers a baseline to understand this non-advantageous reproductive behavior and its potential ecological impact.

Photo 1. Anurans breed in several different types of habitats. Examples include agricultural ditches (Atlantic Forest, Brazil), streams and dry streambeds (Amazon Forest, Colombia), and temporary ponds (Cerrado savannas, Brazil), clockwise from the top left. Photo credits: Juan C. Díaz-Ricaurte (top left, top right, and bottom left) and Carolina Farhat (bottom right).

Photo 2. Male anurans regularly clasp their conspecific females in their habitats and on different substrates. These substrates can be arboreal, terrestrial (artificial or natural), or aquatic (temporary or permanent ponds). In the images, four couples of anurans in normal axillary amplexus: on the top left, an amplectant couple of Proceratophrys boiei (Ceratophryidae); on the top right, an amplectant couple of Rhinella icterica (Bufonidae); on the bottom left, an amplectant couple of Teratohyla midas (Centrolenidae) and on the bottom right an amplectant couple of Elachistocleis cesarii (Microhylidae). Photo credits: Juan C. Díaz-Ricaurte (top left, top right, and bottom left) and Carolina Farhat (bottom right).

Photo 3. Examples of misdirected amplexus in anurans. On the left, interspecific amplexus: an individual of Hyperolius marmoratus taeniatus clasping an individual of Hyperolius pusillus in Hluhluwe, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. On the right, amplexus with an object: a male of Rhinella icterica clasping a boot in Monte Verde, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Photo credits: Tyrone Ping (left) and Juan C Díaz-Ricaurte (right).

These photographs illustrate “Finding love in a hopeless place: A global database of misdirected amplexus in anurans” by Filipe C. Serrano, Juan C. Díaz-Ricaurte and Marcio Martins published in Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.3737