Diet of the giant tadpole Pseudis paradoxa platensis (Anura, Pseudidae) from Argentina

Abstract

97 Pseudis paradoxa platensis is restricted to areas along the Paraguay and Parana Rivers, from Paraguay, Bolivia and Mato Grosso (Brazil) to northeast of Argentina (Cei 1980). In Argentina, this subspecies has been found in Formosa, Chaco, Corrientes, Misiones and Santa Fe provinces (Frost 1985, Gallardo and Varela de Olmedo 1992). The adults are very aquatic, occurring in semipermanent and permanent ponds (Dixon et al. 1995, Dure and Kehr 2001). In Argentina breeding occurs between November and March. Tadpoles of P. paradoxa platensis reach lengths up to 168 mm (Bokermann 1967, Emerson 1988). Studies on the biology of this giant tadpole in nature are extremely scarce. This study describes the tadpole diet of P. paradoxa platensis and presents some behavior data. Tadpoles were collected in a semipermanent pond located 30 km from the city of Corrientes (27o25’S 58o44’W, Province of Corrientes, Argentina) during the summer season (December, January and February). The area corresponds to the Oriental Chaquena phytogeographical region (Carnevali 1994, Burkart et al. 1999). Climatically, this area has a mean annual rainfall of 1100 mm and a mean annual temperature of 20o C. The pond area was Diet of the giant tadpole Pseudis paradoxa platensis (Anura, Pseudidae) from Argentina