Ryan Dougherty

Many previous studies have addressed how subtle differences in the calling behavior of male frogs alter attractiveness to females under laboratory conditions. However, there are only a handful of studies that have looked at determining best predictors of mating success in a natural context. Previous data have shown that male red-eyed treefrogs hold territories around a breeding pond across subsequent nights, but that this calling site fidelity does not necessarily influence the probability of males succeeding in amplexus. Further, these frogs do not sleep at their calling sites, but instead leave and often return to the same location the following night. These results lead to the following questions:

1. Where are frogs coming from (e.g., do they arrive over land or always descend from the canopy)? Is there a difference between males and females?

2. How do frogs move toward and around the pond?

3. Is there a difference in arrival time or canopy descension between males and females?

4. At what rate and time do males establish territories?

5. How much do frogs move after establishing their territory?