Diet assessment of Leptodactylus pentadactylus (Anura, Leptodactylidae) from forest and savanna habitats in the Amazonian domain

Abstract

The diet of fifty Leptodactylus pentadactylus individuals collected through active nocturnal searches at a terra firme forest and Amazonian savanna were assessed using stomach flushing. We revealed 129 prey items, where Hemiptera (IRI = 14.63), Orthoptera (13.94), and Araneae (13.06) were the most important prey items in the forest, and Orthoptera (46.66), Araneae (26.58), and Coleoptera (22.06) were the most important prey items in the savanna. The dietary composition of L. pentadactylus in the savanna was more diverse (16 prey types, Shannon-Wiener index: H’ =2.56) than in the forest (14 prey types, H’ = 2.36). A significant correlation was found between the SVL and the number of prey from the savanna (rs = 0.25, p = 0.019), but there was no relationship in the forest. Overall, the diet of the L. pentadactylus follows a generalist and opportunistic pattern resembling other medium or large-sized Leptodactylus species.