LUCS seminar: April 2nd, 10.15, Eva Ringler

Parenting is considered a key evolutionary innovation that contributed to the diversification and expansion of vertebrates. Amphibians are an ideal group in which to identify the ecological factors that have facilitated or constrained the evolution of different forms of social behaviour, including parental care. In my research group we aim to better understand the ecological factors that have shaped highly specialised and complex social behaviours, assess causes and consequences of individual differences in behavioural profiles, and also identify cognitive abilities associated with distinct behavioural traits. We use dendrobatid frogs, glassfrogs, as well as Tokay geckos as models to answer diverse questions regarding their reproductive behaviour, parental care, space use, learning and memory. We study these animals in their natural habitat as well as in the lab, by combining a diverse set of methodological approaches, including behavioural experiments, molecular parentage analysis, bioacoustics and GIS analyses. Our research has shown that tropical frogs and geckos are very thoughtful parents, exhibit excellent spatial navigation skills, as well as behavioural flexibility across various contexts