FEEDING HABIT

Amphibians play vital roles in our ecosystem as both predator and prey, contributing to insect population control and serving as a bio-indicator of the environmental health. This study was done to examine the food and feeding habits of anurans (Sclerophyrs maculata, Hoplobatrachus occipitalis, and Ptychadena pumilio) around the Faculty of Life Science towards the Department of Anatomy at the University of Benin, Edo state, Nigeria. A total of 62 specimen were captured and analyzed using the stomach-flushing method to obtain the stomach content and the prey items were identified. The result revealed that the anurans mainly consumed insects in the Order Hymenoptera, which was the most abundant and frequently occurring prey item (73.43%). Sclerophyrs maculata had the highest dietary diversity, while H. occipitalis showed a preference for Araneae (spiders) and Ptychadena pumilio showed the lowest prey diversity probably due to the number of specimens captured. This study provides insight into the adaptability of these species to their environment, demonstrating their opportunistic feeding habits and the factors influencing their diet. The high consumption of hymenoptera suggests that crawling insects are a readily available and preferred type of food. The presence of empty stomach might indicate low availability of food or fast digestion rate.

A one month (August, 2023) study was conducted in Okomu Oil Palm plantation (an altered rainforest habitat) located in Ovia South-West L.G.A., Edo state Nigeria in order to investigate the dietary and feeding habit of the ground dwelling anurans in the study area. The paucity in available information on the food and feeding habit of ground dwelling anurans from the rainforest ecological zone necessitated this study. The specimens were collected at night using the visual and acoustic sampling technique. They were euthanized by exposure to chloroform in a killing jar, injected and fixed with 10% formalin to arrest digestion and preserve stomach content. The gut contents were introduced into properly labeled vials and their prey items fixed in 70% alcohol for microscopic examination and identification. The dietary composition of 28 ground dwelling anurans belonging to 3 families (Bufonidae, Pipidae and Ranidae), 4 genera (Sclerophrys, Silurana, Ptychadena and Hoplobatrachus) and 5 species were recorded. The species encountered included: Sclerophrys maculata, Silurana tropicalis, Hoplobatrachus occipitalis, Ptychadena bibroni and Ptychadena longirostris. A total of 325 prey items belonging to 8 Orders, were recovered from their stomach of which Hymenoptera had the highest abundance of 92.9%, was the most dominant prey item recorded while the least prey item recorded were Dermaptera, Orthoptera and Geophilomorpha which had the lowest abundance of 0.31% each.