Hábitos alimentares de Boana raniceps (COPE, 1862) em três montanhas do semiárido brasileiro

Abstract

Understanding the trophic ecology of animals is a relevant tool to describe part of their ecological niche and how they establish relationships with other species. In this context, amphibians play an important role in the food web of environments. Boana raniceps is considered a common and well-distributed species in the Neotropical region, but there are still gaps in knowledge about the natural history of this species. Thus, the present study aimed to describe the feeding habits of B. raniceps, investigating intersex differences in the diet and the relationship between the size of the frogs and the volume of each prey consumed. Furthermore, we investigated prey-predator interactions in species of the genus Boana in Brazil using an ecological network approach. We analyzed the stomachs of 62 specimens of B. raniceps collected in three mountains in the state of Ceará, Northeastern Brazil, and consulted data available in the literature for information on the diet of other Boana species. We identified 82 prey items distributed in 11 categories, with plant material, Coleoptera, and Orthoptera being the most important items for the species’ diet. Overall, we observed that there are no differences in the composition of the diet of B. raniceps between the mountains, males and females tended to eat similar prey items and the size of individuals did not influence the volume of prey consumed. We observed that predator-prey interactions in the genus Boana tend to present low modularity, complementary specialization, and nestedness. Therefore, it can be concluded that species of the genus Boana in Brazil tend to follow the general pattern for the diet of most frog species (generalist and opportunistic habits), being influenced by the availability of prey in the habitat.