Female tree frogs look for males with longer, more frequent mating calls

Washington, Aug 29 (ANI): The mating call of the male red-eyed tree frog tells the female everything she needs to know, and it's the rate, frequency, and duration of these calls that determines who the mate would be, according to a new study.

The author recorded 575 mating calls from 30 male tree frogs in the Cayo District of Belize.

Among these frogs, it is predominantly female choice-rather than competition among males-that determines mating partners.

The energy-consuming call that a male frog of large body size is able to emit seems to speak to the women of this species.

The laryngeal apparatus of a larger frog has greater mass, allowing a lower dominant frequency of its call. Its calls are also longer and more frequent.

These are clear signals to females of a male's size and therefore quality as a mating partner. Large size reflects a frog's abilities to survive, feed, grow, and outdo other males.

The study appears in the September 2010 issue of the journal Herpetologica. (ANI)