Abstract

ZEGADA-HERBAS, Leslie J. et al. Water loss by evaporation in Gastrotheca marsupiata and Pleurodema cinereum in a dry high Andean valley. Rev. Mex. Biodiv. [online]. 2021, vol.92, 923218.  Epub Nov 29, 2021. ISSN 2007-8706.  https://doi.org/10.22201/ib.20078706e.2021.92.3218.

Amphibians are one of the most diverse and successful groups on the planet, but they did not manage to become completely independent of water bodies and are subject to a constant loss of water through evaporation, which depends on factors determined by the habitat occupy. Gastrotheca marsupiata and Pleurodema cinereum are anuran amphibians that share the same habitats in the La Paz Valley. The purpose of this work was to compare the loss of water by evaporation for those species, both under laboratory conditions for living individuals, as well as in different natural microhabitats, using agar models. The results show that G. marsupiata individuals lose more water than those of P. cinereum, both in laboratory conditions and simulated models in different microhabitats. Our results suggest that the apparent decline of the populations of G. marsupiata in the La Paz Valley may be influenced by the loss of water by evaporation, since regardless of the microhabitat and the time of day, G. marsupiata loses more water than P cinereum.

Keywords : Amphibians; Ecophysiology; Skin evaporation; Agar models; Microhabitat.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )