Inter-Pond Migration During the Aquatic Phase by Male <i>Triturus ivanbureschi</i>

Abstract

Amphibian migrations are mainly associated with seasonal movements between terrestrial and aquatic (breeding) habitats, but inter-pond migrations during the breeding season present a rarely observed and understudied phenomenon. In 2018 and 2019, a total of 501 individual newts (168 females and 333 males) from two ponds were captured using funnel traps, the ventral side of each newt was photographed and recaptures were identified using the image recognition software Hotspotter ver. 1.0. The distance between ponds was 200 m, with a slight downward slope from pond 1 to pond 2 and terrestrial vegetation consisting of shrubs, grassy patches and trees. All recorded inter-pond migrations were males (three and two individuals in 2018 and 2019, respectively). Between years, ten males were recorded to move between ponds, three of which were identical to individuals that also migrated between ponds within a single season. The observed behavior is discussed in terms of rarity, distance and time of migration.