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Earlier studies of the diet of frogs indicate that most adult frogs are mainly insectivorous. Overall, frogs are viewed more as generalists than specialists in terms of their diet. However, despite earlier studies, there are still gaps in our knowledge regarding what frogs tend to eat and the degree of specialization. The aim of this study was to investigate the diet choice of frogs in a tropical ecosystem. The present study was conducted in a well-known hotspot for frogs with 66 of the 156 known frog species in Borneo found in a protected area comprising of primary rainforest.   Frogs were caught in the field and their stomachs were flushed. The stomach content was retrieved, sorted to prey categories, and the diet analysed. In addition, the frogs were identified to species level. The frogs belonged to five families: Bufonidae, Dicroglossidae, Megophryidae, Microhylidae and Ranidae. My results show that the most common food source was ants, which constituted 63.7 % of the total food for all studied frog families. Termites, beetles and spiders made up 11.7 %, 4.2 % and 2.8 % of the total prey, respectively. The results from the analysis of Shannon’s diversity index supported two diet specialist families, the Bufonidae and Megophridae, which had a significantly lower mean diversity index compared to the generalist Dicroglossidae. To better reveal differences in frog’s diet in this ecosystem, further studies using larger sample size are needed.

The kinematics of wiping movements to the back were examined in spinal adult Rana Catesbeiana. The aim was to identify the elements of the back wipe and their functional role. The data show that there are three essential phases of the wiping movement: a placing phase; a flexion of the hip and knee; and a whisk/extension phase. The first phase is the only one which is dependent upon stimulus location. The spinal frog adjusts the hindlimb to account for stimulus location in the rostro-caudal direction. There is no adjustment for stimulus position along the medial-lateral axis of the body. It is proposed that the second phase serves as a preparatory movement for the extension portion of the wipe. When the wipe is partitioned into these phases, the motion was found to be planar for the first and third phases. At the end of the first phase there was a transition between the two planes.

The green and golden bell frog (Litoria aurea) is an Australian hylid, which was once common with a relatively continuous distribution. Historically, this distribution extended from northern New South Wales (NSW), as far as Ballina, to East Gippsland in Victoria; with inland populations as far west as Bathurst and Tumut. Today the species is reported to have disappeared from 80% of its former range and remaining populations are mostly fragmented and typically restricted to the coastline, extending from Yuraygir National Park (northern NSW) to East Gippsland. In this thesis, I report a comprehensive study designed to identify the phylogeographic and conservation genetic parameters of L. aurea. In doing so, I also investigate evolutionary relationships within the ???bell frog??? species group. In this study, microsatellite and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) markers are employed. The development of species-specific microsatellite markers and the collection of samples was a substantial component of the study. These markers and samples should prove useful for future studies of L. aurea and perhaps more generally the ???bell frogs???. Initially, a large-scale assessment of genetic structure and diversity in L. aurea using microsatellite markers was undertaken. Twenty-one locations were sampled from throughout the species range covering 1000 kilometres of the east coast of Australia. Levels of allelic diversity and heterozygosity were high (uncorrected mean alleles/locus and HE: 4.8-8.8 and 0.43-0.8 respectively) compared to other amphibian species and significant differences among sampled sites were recorded. Despite recent population declines, no sites displayed a genetic signature indicative of a population bottleneck. Significant genetic structuring (overall FST = 0.172) was detected throughout the species range, but was relatively low compared to previous amphibian studies that used microsatellites. In addition, some areas sampled within continuous habitat showed evidence of weak genetic structuring (data subset FST = 0.034). Next, relationships among extant bell frogs (Litoria aurea species-group) were investigated, using mitochondrial ND4 nucleotide sequence data. Analyses supported a clade comprised of the temperate members of the species-group, L. aurea, L. cyclorhyncha, L. moorei, and L. raniformis but failed to support the inclusion of the tropical bell frog L. dahlii in this group. Relationships among the four members of the bell frog clade correlated with geographical distribution: the south-western Australian bell frogs (L. cyclorhyncha, L. moorei) and the south-eastern Australian bell frogs (L. aurea, L. raniformis) were reciprocally monophyletic. Results also indicated that divergence of these two lineages occurred during the late Miocene, which was consistent with results of previous studies and with more general assertions that much of the major differentiation and radiation of the Australian biota predated the Quaternary. Following this, intraspecific phylogeography of L. aurea using two mitochondrial genes COI and ND4 was investigated. I examined extant populations from throughout the species??? range, sequencing 263 individuals from twenty-six locations. Recent evolutionary history, as well as the current population structure of L. aurea, was inferred from the resulting pattern of genetic variation amongst haplotypes, in conjunction with demographic and population analyses. Results indicated that there were no phylogeographic divisions within L. aurea, despite a general consensus that amphibians are highly structured. However, I did still detect significant structure amongst extant populations (FST = 0.385). Overall, patterns of haplotype relatedness, high haplotypic diversity (mean h = 0.547) relative to low nucleotide diversity (mean Pi= 0.003), and mismatch distribution analysis supported a Pleistocene expansion hypothesis with continued restricted dispersal and gene flow. Taken together, the results of this thesis indicate that L. aurea is a species with relatively weak population and phylogeographic structure compared to other amphibians. The data provide no support for the existence of distinct evolutionary lineages within L. aurea, implying that there are no historically isolated populations that should be viewed as separate evolutionarily significant units. Nevertheless, remaining populations are still significantly structured but not all populations are genetically distinct. Low phylogeographic structure, coupled with evidence for recent gene flow among many sites would permit ???well managed??? intervention to mediate gene flow amongst currently isolated populations, and I provide some guidelines for the implementation of such conservation strategies. However, there is no evidence to suggest that supplementation through artificial immigration is at this time necessary given current levels of genetic variation within populations. In the short-term, conservation management in L. aurea should focus on the protection of local populations and habitat to promote population connectivity to ensure processes that maintain adaptive diversity and evolutionary potential are conserved. Preservation of the species??? natural range and the maintenance of dense networks of suitable habitat, in conjunction with maximising local carrying capacity and reproductive output, as well as minimising known threats, are key to securing the long-term persistence of the green and golden bell frog.

Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Zoology, 1987. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 198-206).

Thesis (Ph.D.) - James Cook University, 2005. / Typescript (photocopy) Bibliography: leaves 240-256.

Thesis (Ph.D.) - James Cook University, 2006. / Typescript (photocopy) Bibliography: leaves 90-102.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Western Australia, 2007.

Thesis (Ph.D.) in Wildlife Ecology--University of Maine, 2008. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 130-165).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Michigan, 1930. / Thesis note on label mounted on p. [497] of pt. 1. "Sonderabdruck aus Zeitschrift für zellforschung und mikroskopische anatomie ... 16. band, 3. und 4. ... heft." "Literature cited" at end of each part.