# Monogamy like behavior?



## rburnj (Aug 19, 2004)

Hi all,

I've been working on some proposals and I figured I would throw out a question about the relationships that your darts exhibit. I study mate choice, speciation, and reproductive ecology and have been looking heavily into monogamous systems as of late. I was wondering for those of you that keep groups of a particular dart in a given tank, if you have noticed repeat breeding with the same individual (whether that be a couple breeding episodes in a row, a season, or over seasons). I know that colonies can be somewhat hard to track in terms of individual interactions. I question it because lower taxa are often dismissed in terms of the social bonds they can form. I haven't had the first hand experience of studying their natural behaviors in the wild yet but I have seen some interesting things in captivity. We already know some are highly territorial, have skewed sex ratios, and advanced parental care so there may be more to it then just polygamy/polygyny and all its assorted departments. If any experienced frogger has observations (longer term) of the breeding habits of their frogs, it would be most insightful. I have more to say but got to get back to lab.

Thanks in advance,

Ryan


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## stchupa (Apr 25, 2006)

rburnj said:


> Hi all,
> 
> I've been working on some proposals and I figured I would throw out a question about the relationships that your darts exhibit. I study mate choice, speciation, and reproductive ecology and have been looking heavily into monogamous systems as of late. I was wondering for those of you that keep groups of a particular dart in a given tank, if you have noticed repeat breeding with the same individual (whether that be a couple breeding episodes in a row, a season, or over seasons). I know that colonies can be somewhat hard to track in terms of individual interactions. I question it because lower taxa are often dismissed in terms of the social bonds they can form. I haven't had the first hand experience of studying their natural behaviors in the wild yet but I have seen some interesting things in captivity. We already know some are highly territorial, have skewed sex ratios, and advanced parental care so there may be more to it then just polygamy/polygyny and all its assorted departments. If any experienced frogger has observations (longer term) of the breeding habits of their frogs, it would be most insightful. I have more to say but got to get back to lab.
> 
> ...


In many cases (available/non species) this will never be known in captivity as in many lines all the frogs share a relation. For those that do share a relation to each other housed together they won't unveil their 'true' preferences and will more or less 'settle' for what comes best.
'cherry' Amazonicus is a good example of this.

As far as non-relative introduction/housing of colonies together, they will pick and choose. They may play around from here to there a bit but many times a monogamous relationship will form for life or until seperation.
Pumilio if kept in a large enclosure can be observed this way.

Frogs do show recognition patterns and are programmed to react accordingly either showing agression, disinterest or the complete opposite depending on what is recognized visually and is imprinted instinctively. Familiar=ok, too familiar(related)=look elsewhere, unknown=show agression/display territory.

Darts deffinately have their unique 'tastes' and seem to 'instinctively' know that they had to have come frome somewhere.


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## Ben_C (Jun 25, 2004)

Hi Ryan,



> was wondering for those of you that keep groups of a particular dart in a given tank, if you have noticed repeat breeding with the same individual (whether that be a couple breeding episodes in a row, a season, or over seasons).


we've observed sexual selection by female Dendrobates auratus in groups >= 2.1 as well as possible evidence for male choice in groups >=2.1.
e-mail me if you are interested in the female choice data: [email protected]

Also, we've observed egg-eating and mate guarding (social monogamy? See Summers, 1990).

also, see:
"Pair Bonding in the Spotted Poison Frog." Nature 385 (1997): 211
It is a brief communication discussing monogamy in _Dendrobates vanzolini_

and

Summers, K. Paternal care and the cost of polygyny in the green dart-poison frog. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 27(5) 307-313


I hope this helps,
B


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