On my recent trip to Trinidad and Tobago, I was studying the potential benefits of paternal care in the Tobago glass frog (Hyalinobatrachium orientale). My student Jessica Pringle, was the first to show that fathers who provide parental care to their offspring (in the form of egg attendance) get benefits in the form of increased embryo survival.
Why might this be? In following up on Jessica’s work, I found that eggs without male egg attendance were more likely to be eaten by predators and also more likely to dry out. More on this study soon!