The Herpetological Journal is the Society's prestigious quarterly scientific journal. Articles are listed in Biological Abstracts, Current Awareness in Biological Sciences,Current Contents, Science Citation Index, and Zoological Record.
ISSN 0268-0130
2021 Impact Factor from Clarivate for the Herpetological Journal is 1.194, an increase of 0.332 from 2020.
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pp. 41-48
Authors: Florina St?nescu, Federico Marangoni, Ivana Reinko & Dan Cog?lniceanu
Abstract: We explored age-related parameters and growth patterns in a population of Dermatonotus muelleri inhabiting the Arid Chaco, at the southern limit of the species’ distribution range using skeletochronology. In addition, we studied sexual size dimorphism and female reproductive investment. Males and females attained sexual maturity at a similar age (2 years) and both had a low reproductive lifespan (3 years). Females were significantly larger than males and had a higher reproductive investment compared to other anurans. The growth rate coefficient (k) was similar in males (1.14) and females (1.07), indicating that the sexual size dimorphism in this species is caused by differentiated growth before sexual maturity. Overall, we suggest that the short reproductive lifespan justifies the high reproductive investment in the studied population.
Key words: age, explosive breeder, growth, reproductive investment, sexual size dimorphism