Evolutionary Ecology of Amphibians

About this book

Amphibians are the oldest tetrapod group and show an astonishing diversity in lifestyles, many of them being unique. However, globally, they are on a decline. Hence, their study is fundamental to understanding the evolution of diversity and conserving them. This book, authored by experts from around the world, summarizes the current knowledge on the evolutionary ecology of amphibians. The book treats biological concepts related to the evolution, ecology, physiology, immunology, behaviour, and morphology of amphibians in their different states. This book constitutes an actualized work indispensable for evolutionary ecologists and herpetologists.

Contents

- Introduction to the Book / Gregorio Moreno-Rueda and Mar Comas
- Origin, Evolution and Diversification of Extant Amphibians / Diego San Mauro, Ainhoa Agorreta and Joan Garcia-Porta
- Amphibian Ecophysiology / Pablo Burraco and Caitlin Gabor
- Eco-Immunology of Amphibians / Mar Comas and Gregorio Moreno-Rueda
- Amphibian Crisis and the Impact of Emerging Pathogens / Barbora Thumsová, Jaime Bosch and Gonçalo M. Rosa
- Thermoregulation and Hydric Balance in Amphibians / Zaida Ortega, Carolina Cunha Ganci and Marga L. Rivas
- The Biogeography of Body Size in Amphibians / Miguel Á. Olalla-Tárraga
- Evolution and Ecology of Locomotion in Amphibians / Francisco Javier Zamora-Camacho
- Diversity of Reproductive Strategies in the Amphibia / Balázs Vági and Tamás Székely
- Chemical Communication and Deterrence in Amphibians / Maider Iglesias-Carrasco and Bob B.M. Wong
- Acoustic Communication in Anurans / Sandra Goutte
- Amphibian Coloration: Proximate Mechanisms, Function, and Evolution / Bibiana Rojas, J.P. Lawrence and Roberto Márquez

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Biography

Dr Gregorio Moreno-Rueda (University of Granada, Spain) is an evolutionary ecologist with more than one hundred publications dealing with vertebrate ecology. He mainly studies the evolution of trade-offs determining life history traits, in particular how the immune system trades off with other physiological traits.

Dr Mar Comas (Dartmouth College, USA) is a herpetologist specialising in amphibian evolutionary ecology. Mar Comas works mainly on how amphibians deal with parasites and the trade-offs of these antiparasitic strategies with other physiological traits.