Meeting Abstract
The physiology and behavior of amphibians is inextricably linked to ambient temperature. Thermal differences are predicted to mediate plastic responses in growth, developmental rates, cell size, body size, and ultimately life history characteristics. Global warming may affect many biological processes, yet the consequences of global warming on proximate physiological responses are poorly studied. Our experimental design aims to determine the consequences of global warming by measuring several characteristics related to survival and reproduction in amphibians. We hypothesized that in higher temperatures, salamanders will allocate more energy to metabolism and basic cellular processes while maintaining fewer energy stores for reproduction. If this hypothesis is supported, rising global temperatures may have negative implications for reproductive success of ectotherms. We collected gravid Desmognathus ocoee females and maintained them at two different temperature regimes (16°C and 25°C, based on average low and high temperatures during reproductive season in their home range) throughout their yearly ovarian cycle. Measurements indicative of resource allocation (growth, lipid deposition, egg number and size) were recorded to monitor physiological differences between the treatment groups. Our results indicate no difference in somatic or reproductive allocation between temperature treatments. Rather, differences in metabolic demands were mitigated through feeding rate. Although dependent on food availability, such behavioral plasticity indicates the ocoee salamander has some capacity to cope with increased temperatures with little or no fitness costs.
