Feeding habits of Boana raniceps (Cope, 1862) in three mountains of Brazilian semiarid

Abstract

Studying the trophic ecology of animals helps us understand their life history, their relationship with the environment and other species, and their role in ecosystems. In this sense, we describe the feeding habits of the hyalid frog Boana raniceps in three high-altitude mountain ranges of Northeastern Brazil, investigating intersex differences in the diet and the relationship between the size with the volume of prey consumed. Furthermore, we investigated prey-predator interactions in the Boana genus with an ecological network approach. We analyzed the stomach contents of 62 B. raniceps specimens collected in three mountains in the state of Ceará (Northeastern Brazil) and consulted data available in the literature for information on the diet of other Boana species. We identied 82 prey items distributed in eleven categories. Overall, there were no differences in the composition of B. raniceps diet among the three mountains. Although males and females shared the majority of prey items consumed, they tended to consume prey volumetrically differently, and predator size did not influence prey volume. In addition, predator-prey interactions in the genus Boana revealed low modularity, complementary specialization, and nestedness. Therefore, species of the genus Boana follow the general pattern for  the diet of most Brazilian frog species (generalist and opportunistic habits), being likely influenced by the availability of prey in the habitat. Overall, the present study constitutes a complete review of the prey items consumed by the genus Boana in Brazil, describing the general pattern of anuran-prey networks in these hylids.