Comparison of breeding area characteristics between two frog species breeding at rice fields of the Midwest region of South Korea

Abstract

Rice field is an important habitat of amphibians, and has attracted increasing attention owing to the loss of natural wetlands. This study evaluated the breeding characteristics of Korean brown frogs ( Rana coreana ) and Korean large brown frogs ( Rana uenoi ) inhabiting the rice fields of the Midwest region of South Korea between March and April in 2016 and 2017. The breeding preference of the two species was observed at 40 sites in this region, and the landscape, atmospheric, physical, and water environmental factors of these sites were evaluated. The results revealed that among the 40 investigated sites, the breeding of both species was observed at 11 sites, and the eggs of both species were observed at only 5 sites. There was a negative correlation between the number of eggs of R. coreana and that of R. uenoi at the five sites. In addition, the two species exhibited significantly different altitude preferences; however, there was no significant difference in most of the environmental factors of the breeding sites of both species. The results confirmed that the breeding of R. coreana occurred at a lower altitude than that of R. uenoi .