Saurophagy by Brazilian Anura: Trachycephalus mesophaeus (Hensel, 1867) and Itapotihyla langsdorffii (Duméril & Bibron, 1841) prey on Hemidactylus mabouia (Moreau de Jonnès, 1818)

Resumen

Anurans play different roles in terrestrial and aquatic food chains and are generally described as opportunistic predators of invertebrates. However, some anuran groups also include vertebrates in their diet. In this study, we report two cases of predation on Hemidactylus mabouia, an invasive gecko species, by Itapotihyla langsdorffii and Trachycephalus mesophaeus, two anurans from the Atlantic Forest. On 27 October 2018, at 08:33 h, an individual of I. langsdorffii was observed preying on a juvenile H. mabouia on the external wall of a house in a rural property in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The second case occurred on 26 February 2025, at 21:51 h, in the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil, when a T. mesophaeus was recorded preying on a H. mabouia on a sidewalk. Occasional observations of natural events such as these provide important information for increasing knowledge about interspecific interactions and expand what is known about the ecology and feeding biology of these groups.