Developmental plasticity allows organisms to adjust life-history traits to varying
environmental conditions, which can have concomitant effects across life stages. Many
amphibians are suitable model systems to study plasticity because their larvae can
adjust growth and differentiation under fluctuating environments. It is unknown, however,
whether somatic and gonadal differentiation are equally affected by environmentally
induced plasticity or whether their decoupling alters gonadal maturation postmetamorphosis,
which may affect fitness. We tested if developmental acceleration in response to warming
and desiccation risk results in shifts in gonadal maturation during metamorphosis
and postmetamorphic growth in western spadefoot toads (Pelobates cultripes). We found
additive effects of increased temperature and desiccation risk on development and
growth at metamorphosis, which largely constrained gonadal maturation in metamorphic
and postmetamorphic individuals of both sexes. Furthermore, the conditions experienced
by larvae incurred sex-specific carryover effects on the gonadal maturation of juveniles
5 months after metamorphosis. In females, high temperature delayed ovarian maturation
regardless of the water level. In males, exposure to high temperature and high water
levels slightly delayed the testes' maturation. These results highlight the relevance
of larval plasticity in the gonadal maturation of species undergoing metamorphosis,
which may have implications for population demographics and the evolution of life
histories.
