Ecogeographical Adaptation Revisited: Morphological Variations in the Plateau Brown Frog along an Elevation Gradient on the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau

Abstract

Several anurans have broad elevational and latitudinal distribution ranges; distinct species and populations may face various environmental and selection stresses. Due to their environmental sensitivity, adaptation is critical for the long-term persistence of anurans. Previous studies have tried to identify the ecogeographical pattern and its mechanism in anurans, suggesting different patterns, but the related explanatory mechanisms are yet to be generally supported and are suggested to be complicated. To explore the elusive mechanisms, we studied the morphological variation of the plateau brown frog (Rana kukunoris) along an elevational gradient on the eastern margin of the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau. Using body size, extremity length, and the ratio between them (extremities/body size) as testing indicators, we examined potential ecogeographical adaptations and investigated how environmental and biological factors could shape the morphological development in R. kukunoris. We found that males and females showed different variations in body size and extremities along the elevational gradient, whereas both of them showed a decreasing extremities/body size ratio along elevation. Together with the strong correlations between environmental and biological factors and the morphometrics, we identified ecogeographical adaptation and a sexual difference in the selective pressures on the extremities and body size of the plateau brown frog. Our results imply that geographic variations in anuran morphological traits should be understood as an outcome of environmental and biological factors. Furthermore, ecogeographical adaptation in anurans can manifest as an interactive change between body size and extremities.