Study of karyology and reproductive capacity of populations of water frog (Pelophylax bedriagae) in the northern and southern regions of Khuzestan province

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahwaz, Iran

Abstract

Water frogs are an important part of the food chain in ecosystems and natural pest control. Khuzestan province, due to climatic diversity, can be a suitable area for biosphere studies. In this regard, in the present study, the karyology of P. bedriagae was studied and the reproductive capacity was compared, along with the amplitude of male voice fluctuations in the breeding season in the northern and southern regions of Khuzestan province. Twenty-one specimens of adult swamp frogs were caught live during the spring and autumn of 1995-96 and transferred to the laboratory. Species karyology, like other reports, was n = 262 and had sex chromosomes, which were divided into two groups: 5 pairs of metacentric type and 8 pairs of sub-metacentric type. Sex x chromosomes were the largest chromosome in the group y were the smallest chromosome in the group, and both types were metacentric. In the section on comparing reproductive capacity, the populations of both sexes in the northern and southern regions had the highest reproductive capacity in spring. In addition, males with higher callus weight and diameter and also females with higher weight had higher reproductive capacity. . The amplitude of the male acoustic sounds also showed that the males of the southern regions have an average intensity and amplitude of more sounds than the males of the northern regions.

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