territory resident discovers the intruder, the intruder can either initiate a fighting bout or submissively yield to amplexus. Resident males will not attempt to mate with an unresponsive frog, and the resident will leave the submitted invader after a couple of minutes. Female-male interactions Although it is the only semi-arboreal member of the Mantella genus, the forest environment plays an important role in the climbing mantella’s reproductive behavior. Males are highly territorial, claiming a given area of approximately . Each territory contains at least one water-filled well (phytotelmata; often found in tree holes or broken bamboo stalks), and male frogs defend these possible oviposition sites from their rivals. Male climbing mantella choose wells based on the presence of crane flies, which prey on frog eggs, and other frog species. A greater amount of crane flies and other frog species correlates to a less desirable well. Female frogs will approach male frogs who advertise their territory with a two-tone call. Female frogs are either mute or have weak calls. Upon hearing the mating calls, female frogs will approach the well occupied by males. The male frog adopts a softer single-note courtship call, and the female frog proceeds to judge the well. The mating calls only attract female frogs to the male’s territory, and have no bearing on mate selection. Instead, mate selection from the perspective of the female is entirely based on the quality of the male’s well. Female frogs frequently abandon a male frog after inspecting the location. Thus, well sites are a limiting resource. The most desirable well sites often have eggs from multiple different mating pairs. The climbing mantella is the only member of the Mantella genus to use phytotelmata for breeding purposes. Parental care Egg-laying Climbing mantella usually only lay one large large egg (), characteristics common among frogs with a high degree of parental care. Female frogs lay their eggs at the side of wells or above the water line, exhibiting a form of terrestrial oviposition–another indicator of high parental investment. The climbing mantella is the only member of the genus Mantella where parent frogs care for oophagous tadpoles. Site selection for egg-laying Female climbing mantella engage in trophic egg laying, and care for their young by feeding them their unfertilized eggs (a behavior known as oophagy). When engaging in maternal care, female frogs ignore male mating calls and climb wells alone, depositing their unfertilized eggs