Convergent Anuran Middle Ear Loss Lacks a Universal, Adaptive Explanation.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Shared selection pressures often explain convergent trait loss, yet anurans (frogs and toads) have lost their middle ears at least 38 times with no obvious shared selection pressures unifying "earless" taxa. Anuran tympanic middle ear loss is especially perplexing because acoustic communication is dominant within Anura and tympanic middle ears enhance airborne hearing in most tetrapods.

Methods

Here, we use phylogenetic comparative methods to examine whether particular geographic ranges, microhabitats, activity patterns, or aspects of acoustic communication are associated with anuran tympanic middle ear loss.

Results

Although we find some differences between the geographic ranges of eared and earless species on average, there is plenty of overlap between

SUBMITTER: Womack MC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10885836 | biostudies-literature | 2023

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature