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Article: What's behind toads' mating behavior? (Purdue Univ researcher Rick Howard discovers that male toads try to emulate deeper calls of older males, which are more attractive to female toads)(Brief Article)
- Article from:
- USA TODAY
- Article date:
- June 1, 1996
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1996 Society for the Advancement of Education. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Male toads appear to be smooth talkers, knowing instinctively how to say the right "words" to woo a mate. Scientists are puzzling over why females respond to calls that, genetically speaking, may amount to sweet nothings.
Research by Purdue University biologist Rick Howard found that female toads seek the deeper calls of older, larger males, and that males may disguise their voices to increase their chances of luring a mate. However, a separate study revealed that, for the offspring, there may be no genetic advantage whether their mother falls for the imitation call or finds the real thing.
When alone, male toads of all sizes will call at a higher frequency ...