Size-related boldness is not altered by stomach flushing in a terrestrial salamander

Abstract Animal personality is a relatively neglected field in amphibian research. In this study we assessed the influence of stomach flushing, non-lethal technique used dietary studies, on boldness behaviour cave salamander Speleomantes strinatii . The time emergence from shelter located an unfamiliar environment (a proxy for individual boldness) was measured 26 salamanders before and after while 14 non-flushed were tested as controls. Boldness repeatable larger individuals emerged their more rapidly than smaller ones. Linear mixed model analysis showed that sex body condition had no effect behaviour. These findings are promising framework personality. particular, our results will be useful when exploring relationship between trophic strategy boldness, aggression or exploration behaviours terrestrial salamanders.