Gender differences in refugia selection by gray treefrogs (Hyla versicolor) [abstract]

Abstract

The Gray Treefrog (Hyla versicolor) is a nocturnal, insectivorous species found throughout the Eastern half of the United States. H.versicolor lives in deciduous forests, converging on breeding ponds from March to early August. This study attempts to determine if there is a gender difference in distance from a breeding pond for non-breeding individuals. Breeding individuals were excluded because they will be centralized in and around the pond. Most of the year treefrogs are dispersed away from breeding habitat. We placed 100 paired simulated tree holes at 20 m intervals spanning four transects around a breeding pond. Transects were checked twice weekly. There was no difference (t =-0.117, p=0.454, n=24). in the average distance from the pond for the first capture of males and females (124.3±27.0 m and 120.0±24.6 m respectively). This indicates that males and females may disperse equal distances from the core breeding pond. This contradicts previous studies reporting that females were found farther from ponds (Johnson et al., 2006). We speculate that the size of the dispersing population, as well as annual and local variation in habitat quality, may affect the distance dispersed from the pond.