Maintaining energy balance and reproducing are important for fitness, yet animals have
evolved mechanisms by which the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal/interrenal (HPA/HPI) axis …

Climate change is causing increases in temperature and in the frequency of extreme
weather events. Under this scenario, organisms should maintain or develop strategies to …

Anthropogenic disturbances have been implicated in the rapid decline of amphibians.
Disturbances, such as disease and poor water quality, might cause changes in the …

Chronic exposure to stressors has been shown to suppress immune function in vertebrates,
making them more susceptible to pathogens. It is less clear, however, whether many natural …

Predators kill and consume prey, but also scare living prey. Fitness of prey can be reduced
by direct killing and consumption, but also by non-consumptive effects (NCEs) if prey show …

Among a multitude of stressors to which wildlife is exposed, environmental pollution is a
pervasive one that poses a serious threat. The permeable skin of amphibians is likely to …

Predators kill prey thereby affecting prey survival and, in the traditional top-down view of
predator limitation, that is their sole effect. Bottom-up food limitation alters the physiological …

Evolutionary ecology aims to better understand how ecologically important traits respond to
environmental heterogeneity. Environments vary both naturally and as a result of human …

Organisms are exposed to multiple environmental factors simultaneously to which they often
respond behaviorally, morphologically and/or physiologically. Amphibian larvae are quite …

The larvae of the European fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra) can inhabit two
different habitats: streams and ponds. Streams are characterized by lower predation risks …