Reproductive Activity of Three Pristimantis Species from Cloud Forest Remnants in the Serranía de los Yariguíes, Colombia

Temporal variations in reproductive activity of cooccurring and closely related frog species can facilitate their coexistence. We investigated whether reproductive activity temporally varies among three coexisting Pristimantis species by analyzing monthly variation in body size, presence of reproductive individuals and juveniles, and gonadal development. We found female-biased sexual dimorphism in body size across all three species. Males reached sexual maturity at smaller sizes than females. A male-skewed sex ratio was evident in Pristimantis merostictus and Pristimantis bacchus, whereas a higher number of females was observed in Pristimantis miyatai. Males of all three species exhibited continuous reproductive activity. Whereas P. merostictus females reproduced year-round, reproduction in P. miyatai and P. bacchus was concentrated in the first half of the year, ceasing during the period of highest rainfall before the driest season. Therefore, we identified two patterns of reproductive activity: continuous in P. merostictus, with juvenile recruitment occurring every month, and prolonged in P. miyatai and P. bacchus with reproductive peaks during the dry seasons and juvenile recruitment from April to December and from July to October, respectively. Although reproductive activity of the three species coincided temporally, differences in reproductive patterns and timing of juvenile recruitment suggest subtle reproductive variation among these species that share the same habitat.