Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: A dvertisement calls are the most frequently studied type of anuran vocalizations; these are most frequently emitted by males to attract potential mates and convey territorial information to conspecifics (Toledo et al. 2015;Köhler et al. 2017).In contrast, distress calls are rarely reported sound emissions used for defensive purposes (Mendoza-Henao 2021, 2024), which typically are accompanied by stereotypical behaviors (e.g., open mouths and hissing noises or screams; see Toledo et al. 2015;Köhler et al. 2017).Distress calls differ from aggressive calls because aggressive calls include an intraspecific behavioral context (Köhler et al. 2017).I herein describe the distress call of a Masked Treefrog, Smilisca phaeota (Hylidae), in the Pacific region of Colombia.The Masked Treefrog is a medium-sized frog (SVL = 40-78 mm) commonly found in humid and dry tropical forests from Honduras to Panama in Central America and Colombia and Ecuador in South America (Cochran and Goin 1970;Duellman 1970).The recording of the distress call was made during a series of academic activities with students at 2200 h on 20 October 2023, in a secondary forest in the Jardín Botánico del Pacífico, Mecana, Bahía Solano, Chocó, on the Pacific Coast of Colombia (6.270635, -77.381440; elev.15 m asl).The frog was perched on a palm tree ca.150 cm above the ground.During handling, the individual inflated its body and emitted a long, high-pitched sound, a video of which was recorded by Diego Esquivel with a Nikon p900 camera (video available at FigShare: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.26815285and YouTube:
Source: Reptiles & Amphibians
Author: Juan Pablo Durango Cardona
Institution: Universidad EAFIT
Language: English
Subfield: Developmental Biology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
Funder: Universidad EAFIT
OpenAlex ID: W4405603287