The reproductive biology of two sympatric West African savanna reed frogs (genus Hyperolius) in Marahoué National Park, Ivory Coast

Abstract

We studied the reproductive behaviour of the sympatric Hyperolius concolor and H. guttulatus in the humid savanna of the Marahoué National Park, central-western Ivory Coast. Males congregated in large choruses around a large stagnant swamp. Clutch size in H. concolor ranged from 50–305 eggs, while H. guttulatus clutches comprised between 212–340 eggs. Hyperolius concolor deposited their eggs within vegetation a few centimeters above water level, while H. guttulatus deposited their eggs on the underside of floating aquatic plants. These egg deposition behaviours in the two species are interpreted as an adaptation to the specific environmental conditions, possibly to reduce the desiccation and/or predation risk. For both species we could show that both sexes reproduce repeatedly during a given rainy season and that at least some individuals survive and breed again in the consecutive rainy season.