Males of the glass frog Hyalinobatrachium valerioi engage in diurnal and nocturnal attendance of egg clutches. To study the effect of parental care on embryonic survivorship, we conducted a male removal experiment and measured embryonic survival rates on day 4, 8, and 12 after oviposition in attended and unattended clutches. Embryonic survivorship was significantly higher in the control group than in the male removal group but decreased with time in both groups. Arthropod predation accounted for most of the mortality in both groups. Desiccation of clutches only occurred in unattended clutches. We hypothesize that egg attendance in H. valerioi increases embryonic survivorship by deterring egg predators and preventing desiccation.
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