Trophic ecology of East African caecilians (Amphibia: Gymnophiona), and their impact on forest soil invertebrates

Abstract

AbstractDiets of the syntopic caecilian amphibians Boulengerula boulengeri and Scolecomorphus vittatus were studied from gut content analyses of 108 specimens collected from Nilo Forest Reserve, East Usambara Mountains, Tanzania. Head length and width relative to body length is greater in male B. boulengeri than in females, but no such dimorphism is apparent in S. vittatus. No differences, other than females consuming disproportionately more ants and invertebrate eggs and fewer termites than males, occur in the diets of B. boulengeri. The gut contents of S. vittatus are dominated by large, surface‐active earthworms, in contrast to those of B. boulengeri which contained smaller, endogeic earthworms and a much greater number and diversity of soil arthropods (particularly termites, ants and Diptera larvae). These dietary characteristics underline differences in microhabitat use between these caecilian species and thus corroborate a previously proposed hypothesis of niche separation. The ecological impact of caecilians and other limbless endogeic vertebrates is little studied and poorly known. Approximations based on current knowledge are not clear, but are interpreted as indicating that predation by caecilians is unlikely to be among the most important factors influencing population densities of soil‐dwelling termites and perhaps also ants: two groups recognized as soil ecosystem engineers.