Meeting Abstract

1.11  Sunday, Jan. 4  Reassessment of the environmental mechanisms controlling developmental polyphenism in spadefoot toad tadpoles part II STORZ, Brian/L*; HEINRICHS, Jessica; YAZDANI, Arash; PHILLIPS, Ryan/D; MULVEY, Brett/B; ARENDT, Jeff/D; MOERLAND, Timothy/S; TRAVIS, Joseph; Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL; Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL; Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL; Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL; Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL; University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA ; Kent State University, Kent, OH; Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL bstorz@bio.fsu.edu

Understanding the environmental regulation of polyphenism, the expression of multiple, discrete phenotypes from one genotype, is important for linking the environment to development, the genotype to phenotype, and understanding the evolutionary process. Spadefoot toads can either develop as typical filter-feeding tadpoles (omnivores) or be transformed, in both morphology and behavior, into carnivores that actively prey on microcrustaceans and cannibalize conspecifics. In the most exhaustive analysis to date of the environmental factors potentially regulating spadefoot-toad developmental polyphenism, we used 2 different species, 27 different treatments, and over 1000 tadpoles to re-examine the current model of carnivore environmental induction. Forty-four carnivores were induced in the current study, but these were spread among different temperature, food-type, density, and substrate treatments. Our results suggest that induction of the carnivore phenotype is much more complex than the existing one-cue-one phenotype model presently in the literature.