Aims
Some population of amphibians emerge over a short time period at the same place. This reproductive strategy, also known as explosive breeding, is particularly striking in the tropics where thousands of individuals of more than ten species may invade a temporary pond. These massive aggregations generate very complex acoustic communities. Here, we aimed at understanding the acoustics of the explosive breedings found on the Kaw mountain in French Guiana. We could monitor five ponds with digital recorders and weather loggers and detect automatically the explosive breeding events that were tightly linked with specific rainfall patterns. The acoustic communities significantly differed among ponds and, unexpectedly, revealed a lower sound diversity than the communities preceding the explosive events. Our data provides a baseline against which future changes, possibly linked to climate change, can be measured, contributing to a better understanding on the causes, patterns and consequences of these unique assemblages
Participants and collaborations
Juan S. Ulloa (PI), Thierry Aubin, Antoine Fouquet, Philippe Gaucher, Elodie Courtois, Diego Llusia, Sandrine Pavoine
Funding
Localization
Sound sample
Pictures
Weather monitoring station 
Team 
Recorders at work 
Pond without water yet…
Publications
. Ulloa JS, Aubin T, Llusia D, Courtois EA, Fouquet A, Gaucher P, Pavoine S, Sueur J (2019) — Explosive breeding in tropical anurans: environmental triggers, community composition and acoustic structure. BMC Ecology, 19: 28. link
. Fouquet A, Tilly T, Pasukonis A, Courtois EA, Gaucher P, Ulloa JS, Sueur J (2020) — Simulated chorus attracts conspecific and heterospecific Amazonian explosive-breeding frogs. Biotropica, 53: 63-73. link