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Evolutionary, molecular and comparative zoology
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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 56(4)

Geographic variation in the advertisement call of Crinia signifera (Anura : Myobatrachidae) on Kangaroo Island and across southern south-eastern Australia

Murray J. Littlejohn
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Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic. 3010, Australia. Email: murray@unimelb.edu.au

Australian Journal of Zoology 56(4) 223-232 https://doi.org/10.1071/ZO08018
Submitted: 19 September 2008  Accepted: 1 October 2008   Published: 22 December 2008

Abstract

The male advertisement call of anuran amphibians has a major role in mate choice, and regional variation in this attribute can act as an indicator of speciation and a marker for genetic differentiation. As part of a regional study of geographic variation in the male advertisement call of Crinia signifera across south-eastern Australia and adjacent larger continental islands, samples of advertisement calls from two populations on Kangaroo Island and two populations on the adjacent Fleurieu Peninsula were compared. Four call attributes were considered: pulse number, call duration, pulse rate and dominant frequency. Pulse number is considered the most reliable for comparative purposes because it is not influenced by effective temperature or audio recording and analysis. The two island populations (central and eastern, ~24 km apart) differ significantly in pulse number, with contact but no overlap of interquartile ranges. The eastern sample differs markedly from those on the nearby Fleurieu Peninsula – which are both similar to the more distant central island sample. Geographic variation in pulse number in these four samples and 11 others from two recent publications is then interpreted in the light of land bridges and lower temperatures of the late Pleistocene and early Holocene.


Acknowledgements

These studies were carried out under Animal Experimentation Ethics Approval No. 28/2000 (extended), and Scientific Research Permit No. U24382-1/2/3, both issued by the Department for Environment and Heritage, South Australia. Equipment for field recording and acoustic analyses was provided by the Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne. The assistance of Patsy Littlejohn (2000–02) and Tim Littlejohn (1990) with the field work is greatly appreciated. Angus Martin kindly read earlier drafts of the manuscript, and his comments are greatly appreciated. The author also thanks the Editorial Board and a reviewer for their helpful suggestions for revision of the manuscript.


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