Phenotypic responses to water level change in Bufo gargarizans and Duttaphrynus melanosticus tadpoles at Lishui,Zhejiang

Habitat drying caused by global warming will raise a challenge for anuran larvae living in water. We investigated the phenotypic response to six different patterns of water level change in Bufo gargarizans and Duttaphrynus melanosticus tadpoles under laboratory conditions. The aim of this study was to examine the heritable basis and environmental proximate causes of phenotypic plasticity of these two species tadpoles. This showed the inter-specific differences and hereditary of the phenotypic plasticity. During the early development of the two toad tadpoles, the common phenotypic variations in their SVL were associated with lack of genetic basis of environmental proximate causes. The response to constant low or decreasing water level in D. melanosticus tadpoles was negative, and the response degree was directly related to the strength of the environmental signals.