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The evolution of 'earlessness' in the true toad family (Bufonidae)

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dc.contributor.authorWomack, Molly Corinne, author
dc.contributor.authorHoke, Kim L., advisor
dc.contributor.authorDavies, Patricia L., committee member
dc.contributor.authorMueller, Rachel L., committee member
dc.contributor.authorNaug, Dhurba, committee member
dc.date.accessioned2017-01-04T22:59:12Z
dc.date.available2018-12-30T06:30:24Z
dc.date.issued2016
dc.description.abstractAnurans (frogs and toads) have a tympanic middle ear to transmit airborne sound from the environment to their inner ear sensory cells. Yet, many bufonid (true toad) species have independently evolved earlessness, the lack of a tympanic middle ear, despite the importance of acoustic communication in most toad mating systems. My thesis aims to determine why middle ear structures are so evolutionarily labile in the Bufonidae family by comparing development, sensory, and morphological data of eared and earless toads within a phylogenetic context. I show that the middle ear forms very late in the development of toads and takes many months past metamorphosis to become fully functional. Adult earless species are typically less sensitive to high frequency sound and more sensitive to low frequency vibrations compared to eared toads. I also find the skulls of eared and earless are very similar, indicating the middle ear is lost without change to other developmentally or genetically linked skull features. I conclude that alternative hearing pathways allow earless species to retain some hearing sensitivity, and discuss roles for development and behavior in shaping the evolutionary lability of ear structures.
dc.format.mediumborn digital
dc.format.mediumdoctoral dissertations
dc.identifierWomack_colostate_0053A_13922.pdf
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10217/178880
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisherColorado State University. Libraries
dc.relation.ispartof2000-2019
dc.rightsCopyright and other restrictions may apply. User is responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. For information about copyright law, please see https://libguides.colostate.edu/copyright.
dc.subjectcomparative morphology
dc.subjectearless
dc.subjectsensory loss
dc.subjectdevelopmental constraint
dc.subjectanurans
dc.subjectevolutionary development
dc.titleThe evolution of 'earlessness' in the true toad family (Bufonidae)
dc.typeText
dcterms.embargo.expires2018-12-30
dcterms.embargo.terms2018-12-30
dcterms.rights.dplaThis Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights (https://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/). You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
thesis.degree.disciplineBiology
thesis.degree.grantorColorado State University
thesis.degree.levelDoctoral
thesis.degree.nameDoctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

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