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Dryad

Data from: Freeze-tolerant frogs accumulate cryoprotectants using photoperiod: A potential ecological trap

Neptune, Troy1; Koester, Diana1; Benard, Michael1

Published Sep 24, 2025 on Dryad. https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.ffbg79d2n

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Abstract

Climate change is disrupting the reliability of photoperiod as a cue signaling seasonal changes in temperature. Organisms relying on autumn photoperiods to trigger physiological adaptations to survive winter may incorrectly time the onset of winter and exhibit maladaptive responses. Here, we demonstrate that a mid-autumn photoperiod causes a freeze-tolerant amphibian (Hyla versicolor) to accumulate large reserves of cryoprotectants (i.e. “antifreeze”) and exhibit greater cold tolerance. Treefrogs raised under a mid-autumn photoperiod had both higher concentrations of glycogen in liver tissue and larger livers compared to individuals from other photoperiods. This resulted in treefrogs with much greater total liver glycogen reserves. However, treefrogs in the mid-autumn photoperiod also had reduced size-specific growth rates. Photoperiod alone, without decreases in temperature, induced these physiological changes. As global warming continues to expand the growing season, organisms relying on photoperiod may enter an ecological trap where photoperiod no longer accurately signals seasonal changes in temperature.