Genetic factors influence behavioural repeatability in juvenile poison frogs

Abstract

Individual behaviour is a combination of previous experiences and genetic factors whose interaction can be adaptively adjusted to respond to changes in the surrounding environment. Understanding the continuity of behaviours both within and among individuals can help us disentangle the ecological and evolutionary significance underlying patterns of aggression, activity, boldness, and cooperation. In this study, we examined whether there is repeatability in the activity levels of juvenile dyeing poison frogs (Dendrobates tinctorius). This tropical species, known for its striking coloration and skin toxins, changes upon metamorphosis from an aquatic to a terrestrial habitat where individuals must immediately become active foragers to acquire their chemical defences. We did not find individual behaviour to be repeatable, however, we detected repeatability in activity at the family level, suggesting that behavioural variation may be explained, at least partially, by genetic factors in addition to a common environment. The assumption that activity level is very important for the survival of individuals after metamorphosis is supported by our results in that genetic factors seem to play a role in the formation of activity level. Further experiments are needed to investigate to what extent other areas of the individuals lives are affected by the respective activity levels, and what significance this has for the survival of a population.