Stress response of fire salamander larvae differs between habitat types

Abstract

Different habitats can impose varying selection pressures on individuals of the same species. Larvae of the European fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra) can inhabit two different habitats: streams and ponds. Streams are characterised by lower predation risk and intraspecific density and higher food availability than ponds. Thus, ponds are considered a less suitable habitat. To investigate the differential impacts of the two habitats on larval physiology, we measured the stress response of larvae living in the two different habitats. After successfully validating the measure of water-borne corticosterone (CORT) concentrations in fire salamander larvae, we measured the baseline and stress-induced CORT of 64 larvae from two pond and two stream locations in the field. We found larvae in ponds to be more stressed than larvae in streams. Additionally, we performed a reciprocal transplant experiment and tested whether larvae can adapt their stress response to changing habitat conditions. After two weeks of transfer, we did not find an increase in CORT when comparing stress-induced CORT values with baseline CORT values in larvae transferred into ponds. However, larvae transferred into streams exhibited an increase in the stress-induced CORT response. Moreover, transfer into ponds as well as larvae originating from ponds showed reduced growth rates, indicating that ponds might be the more stressful habitat, as it negatively affected larval physiology. These results show that noninvasive hormone measurements can provide information on habitat quality and potential adaptation and thus emphasis the potential for its use in conservation efforts.