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1 June 2010 Fungal Pathogen Changes the Feeding Kinematics of Larval Anurans
Matthew D. Venesky, Richard J. Wassersug, Matthew J. Parris
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Abstract

Pathogens can alter host life-history traits by affecting host feeding activities. In anuran tadpoles, keratinized mouthparts (teeth and jaw sheaths) are essential for feeding. Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) is a pathogenic fungus of amphibians that can infect these mouthparts and reduce tadpole survival. However, the precise way that Bd-induced changes in tadpole mouthparts impact tadpole feeding is unknown. We use high-speed (500 frames/sec) videography to study how Bd-induced mouthpart deformities affect the feeding kinematics of Fowler's toad (Anaxyrus [ =  Bufo] fowleri) and grey tree frog (Hyla chrysoscelis) tadpoles. We tested for species-specific patterns of Bd-induced mouthpart deformities to assess how deformations to specific areas of tadpole mouthparts alter feeding kinematics. The teeth of tadpoles from the Bd-exposed treatment slipped off of surfaces on which tadpoles graze and were in contact with an algal-covered substratum for a shorter duration in each gape cycle compared to teeth of control tadpoles. We also found that the jaw sheaths had significantly more deformations than labial teeth; however, how this relates to feeding kinematics is unclear. Our data show explicitly how Bd infection reduces foraging efficiency of anuran tadpoles by altering feeding kinematics and elucidate a mechanistic link between the pathogen infection and reduced host fitness.

Matthew D. Venesky, Richard J. Wassersug, and Matthew J. Parris "Fungal Pathogen Changes the Feeding Kinematics of Larval Anurans," Journal of Parasitology 96(3), 552-557, (1 June 2010). https://doi.org/10.1645/GE-2353.1
Received: 6 October 2009; Accepted: 1 January 2010; Published: 1 June 2010
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