Olfactory cues elicit species-specific locomotive responses in poison frog tadpoles
Amphibian species rear their larvae in distinct environments that may influence how they respond to different sensory stimuli. Here, we investigated the olfactory-mediated locomotive responses of two poison frog species ( <i>Allobates femoralis</i> and <i>Ranitomeya imitator</i> ) that vary in life history strategies. We found that <i>A. femoralis</i> tadpoles spent more time near an injury cue compared to control, while <i>R. imitator</i> tadpoles increased their movement in response to high concentrations of amino acids. These experiments were done in an undergraduate laboratory course, demonstrating how simple behavior assays conducted in a classroom setting can provide practical research experiences and new insights into animal behavior.
Authors
- Najva Akbari (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5590-159X)
- Lutz Bachmann (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7451-2074)
- BO Diallo
- Jasmine Padilla
- Kelly Huang
- Bryan H. Juarez (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5474-596X)
- Jennifer Jackson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5478-0968)
- Monge Pérez
- Lauren A. O’Connell (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2706-4077)
- Penelope Baker
- Shay Nair Sharma
- Pedro Sequeira (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4304-521X)
- Mina Phipps (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9073-1979)
- Max Madrzyk (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-7973-6364)
- Sadie Mae Sarkisian
- Sofía Ceva
- Soyeon Park (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1462-5071)
- Juliana N Fong
- L.J.A. Quintana
- Eva Tatlock
- M. Carrillo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-6999-3244)
- Malaya Gaerlan
- Katelyn Santa Maria
- Yvette Soto-Hernandez
- Sowmya Chundi
Institutions
- Stanford University (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- PubMed
- Published
- 2025-02-05
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.17912/micropub.biology.001532
- Primary Topic
- Olfactory and Sensory Function Studies
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00