Abstract
The food habits of adult spadefoot toads (Scaphiopus h. holbrookii and S. h. hurterii) collected in Arkansas were exam ined during this study. Thirty-six adult S. h. holbrookii (29 males and 7 females) and 48 adult S. h. hurterii (23 males and 2 females) were necropsied. Most specimens were collected over a 10-year span oftime (1985-94). Alltoads were taken from breeding aggregations which were visited periodically inany given year (frommid-February to late April).Prey items wer found in the stomachs of 13 (36.1%) of the S. h. holbrookii and 23 (48.0%) ofthe S. h. hurterii. Scaphiopus h. holbrookii and h. hurterii have similar diets. Both subspecies feed on a variety of ground-dwelling arthropods with 19 taxa being ident tied to the order or the familiallevel. The data suggested that there was considerable dietary overlap based upon the fa that beetles and catepillars were the primary food items. The presence ofonly one aquatic insect inall the stomachs inc cated that the toads restrict their feeding activity after arriving at breeding ponds. Additional seasonal collections ai required to better understand dietary diversity.
Recommended Citation
Jamieson, David H. and Trauth, Stanley E.
(1996)
"Dietary Diversity and Overlap Between Two Subspecies of Spadefoot Toads (Scaphiopus holbrookii holbrookii and S. h. hurterii) in Arkansas,"
Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science: Vol. 50, Article 15.
Available at:
https://scholarworks.uark.edu/jaas/vol50/iss1/15
