Environmental influences on chorusing patterns in an Australian tropical savanna frog community
Abstract Ecoacoustic methods provide opportunities for ecological studies of vocalizing species within the context of the natural habitats and communities in which they occur. Continuous acoustic monitoring of species assemblages can reveal patterns in breeding phenology, behavior, and interactions....
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Ecosphere |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.70153 |
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| author | Sheryn Brodie Slade Allen‐Ankins Lin Schwarzkopf |
| author_facet | Sheryn Brodie Slade Allen‐Ankins Lin Schwarzkopf |
| author_sort | Sheryn Brodie |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Ecoacoustic methods provide opportunities for ecological studies of vocalizing species within the context of the natural habitats and communities in which they occur. Continuous acoustic monitoring of species assemblages can reveal patterns in breeding phenology, behavior, and interactions. We used long‐duration false‐color spectrograms derived from acoustic indices to detect the nightly chorusing of a community of anurans in a tropical savanna in north Queensland. We described the chorusing patterns of each species over two wet seasons at three breeding sites, and used conditional random forest analysis to investigate the influence of various environmental factors. Frogs in these habitats form multispecies aggregations at water bodies during breeding periods when males form large choruses to attract females. The chorusing patterns revealed the species have different breeding periods, which could be broadly categorized as explosive or prolonged. While rain events were often a trigger for the commencement of the breeding period, species responded differently to environmental conditions. Choruses of explosive breeding species occurred only on the night of, or night after, the first high rainfall event of the wet season. The prolonged breeding species showed idiosyncratic patterns of chorusing, which were generally consistent across sites. Fine‐grained nightly data on patterns of chorusing and the relationship with environmental conditions allow us to understand the detectability of the presence, or absence, of the frog species in these habitats, and provide baseline data for monitoring and management programs. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-8eba04c72c7b4ad4854a628f55a5e2b0 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2150-8925 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecosphere |
| spelling | doaj-art-8eba04c72c7b4ad4854a628f55a5e2b02025-01-30T01:44:38ZengWileyEcosphere2150-89252025-01-01161n/an/a10.1002/ecs2.70153Environmental influences on chorusing patterns in an Australian tropical savanna frog communitySheryn Brodie0Slade Allen‐Ankins1Lin Schwarzkopf2College of Science and Engineering James Cook University Townsville Queensland AustraliaCollege of Science and Engineering James Cook University Townsville Queensland AustraliaCollege of Science and Engineering James Cook University Townsville Queensland AustraliaAbstract Ecoacoustic methods provide opportunities for ecological studies of vocalizing species within the context of the natural habitats and communities in which they occur. Continuous acoustic monitoring of species assemblages can reveal patterns in breeding phenology, behavior, and interactions. We used long‐duration false‐color spectrograms derived from acoustic indices to detect the nightly chorusing of a community of anurans in a tropical savanna in north Queensland. We described the chorusing patterns of each species over two wet seasons at three breeding sites, and used conditional random forest analysis to investigate the influence of various environmental factors. Frogs in these habitats form multispecies aggregations at water bodies during breeding periods when males form large choruses to attract females. The chorusing patterns revealed the species have different breeding periods, which could be broadly categorized as explosive or prolonged. While rain events were often a trigger for the commencement of the breeding period, species responded differently to environmental conditions. Choruses of explosive breeding species occurred only on the night of, or night after, the first high rainfall event of the wet season. The prolonged breeding species showed idiosyncratic patterns of chorusing, which were generally consistent across sites. Fine‐grained nightly data on patterns of chorusing and the relationship with environmental conditions allow us to understand the detectability of the presence, or absence, of the frog species in these habitats, and provide baseline data for monitoring and management programs.https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.70153acoustic monitoringamphibiansanimal chorusesbreeding phenologyrainfall |
| spellingShingle | Sheryn Brodie Slade Allen‐Ankins Lin Schwarzkopf Environmental influences on chorusing patterns in an Australian tropical savanna frog community Ecosphere acoustic monitoring amphibians animal choruses breeding phenology rainfall |
| title | Environmental influences on chorusing patterns in an Australian tropical savanna frog community |
| title_full | Environmental influences on chorusing patterns in an Australian tropical savanna frog community |
| title_fullStr | Environmental influences on chorusing patterns in an Australian tropical savanna frog community |
| title_full_unstemmed | Environmental influences on chorusing patterns in an Australian tropical savanna frog community |
| title_short | Environmental influences on chorusing patterns in an Australian tropical savanna frog community |
| title_sort | environmental influences on chorusing patterns in an australian tropical savanna frog community |
| topic | acoustic monitoring amphibians animal choruses breeding phenology rainfall |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.70153 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT sherynbrodie environmentalinfluencesonchorusingpatternsinanaustraliantropicalsavannafrogcommunity AT sladeallenankins environmentalinfluencesonchorusingpatternsinanaustraliantropicalsavannafrogcommunity AT linschwarzkopf environmentalinfluencesonchorusingpatternsinanaustraliantropicalsavannafrogcommunity |