The Western Ghats, also known as the Sahyadri mountain range, is a mountain range that covers an area of 160,000 km2 (62,000 sq mi) in a stretch of 1,600 km (990 mi) parallel to the western coast of the Indian peninsula, traversing the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is one of the 36 biodiversity hotspots in the world. It is sometimes called the Great Escarpment of India. It contains a very large proportion of the country's flora and fauna, many of which are endemic to this region. The Western Ghats are older than the Himalayas. They influence Indian monsoon weather patterns by intercepting the rain-laden monsoon winds that sweep in from the south-west during late summer. The range runs north to south along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau and separates the plateau from a narrow coastal plain called the Western Coastal Plains along the Arabian Sea. A total of 39 areas in the Western Ghats, including national parks, wildlife sanctuaries and reserve forests, were designated as world heritage sites in 2012 – twenty in Kerala, ten in Karnataka, six in Tamil Nadu and four in Maharashtra.
Nyctibatrachus is a genus of frogs endemic to the Western Ghats of southwestern India. Their common name is night frogs. Their scientific name also means "night frog", in reference to their habits and dark color. They are the only extant members of the monotypic subfamily Nyctibatrachinae. Currently, 35 species belong to Nyctibatrachus.
The state of Karnataka in South India has a rich diversity of flora and fauna. It has a recorded forest area of 38,720 km2 which constitutes 22% of the geographical area of the state. These forests support 25% of the elephant population and 20% of the tiger population of India. Many regions of Karnataka are still unexplored and new species of flora and fauna are still found. The mountains of the Western Ghats in the western region of Karnataka are a biodiversity hotspot. Two sub-clusters of the Western Ghats, Talacauvery and Kudremukh, are on a tentative list of sites that could be designated as World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. The Bandipur and Nagarahole national parks which fall outside these subclusters were included in the Nilgiri biosphere reserve in 1986, a UNESCO designation. In the Biligiriranga Hills the Eastern Ghats meet the Western Ghats. The state bird and state animal of Karnataka are Indian roller and the Indian elephant. The state tree and state flower are sandalwood and lotus. Karnataka is home to 524 tigers.
Nyctibatrachus beddomii is a species of frog in the family Nyctibatrachidae.
The Bombay night frog, also known as Abdulali's wrinkled frog, Abdulali's night frog or Humayun's wrinkled frog, is a species of frog in the family Nyctibatrachidae. It is endemic to the Western Ghats of Maharashtra state, India. The species is found near torrential hill streams in tropical moist evergreen and semi-evergreen forests, a habitat that is threatened by habitat loss and pollution. Its name honours Humayun Abdulali, an Indian biologist.
The giant wrinkled frog is a species of frogs in the family Nyctibatrachidae endemic to the Western Ghats of India in the Kudremukh region. Its natural habitats are tropical moist lowland forests and rivers. It is threatened by habitat loss.
The Kempholey night frog is a species of frog in the family Nyctibatrachidae.
Nyctibatrachus major, the Malabar night frog, large wrinkled frog, or Boulenger's narrow-eyed frog, is a species of frog in the family Nyctibatrachidae, commonly known as the robust frogs. It was described in 1882 by the zoologist George Albert Boulenger, and is the type species of the genus Nyctibatrachus. It is a large frog for its genus, with an adult snout–vent length of 31.5–52.0 mm (1.24–2.05 in) for males and 43.7–54.2 mm (1.72–2.13 in) for females. It is mainly brownish to greyish in colour, with a dark greyish-brown upperside, a greyish-white underside, and light grey sides. It also has a variety of grey or brown markings. When preserved in ethanol, it is mostly greyish-brown to grey, with whitish sides. Sexes can be told apart by the presence of the femoral glands in males.
Nyctibatrachus sanctipalustris is a species of frog in the family Nyctibatrachidae from India. The specific name, sanctipalustris, "holy swamp" in Latin, refers to the type locality, "the sacred swamps of the Cauvery (river)...Coorg, India".
Rhacophorus lateralis is a rhacophorid tree frog endemic to the Western Ghats in South India. It has several common names: small tree frog, Boulenger's tree frog, small gliding frog, and winged gliding frog. After its original description in 1883 by George Albert Boulenger, the frog was rediscovered in Coorg in 2000 and has since been found in many parts of the Western Ghats around southern Karnataka and northern Kerala. Along with R. malabaricus, it is one of the few anuran amphibians in India that constructs its nest above the ground using leaves.
Nyctibatrachidae is a small family of frogs found in the Western Ghats of India and in Sri Lanka. Their common name is robust frogs. Recognition of Nyctibatrachidae as a family is fairly recent. These frogs were previously placed in the broadly defined family Ranidae, which was more recently divided into three subfamilies: Lankanectinae, Nyctibatrachinae, and Astrobatrachinae.
The spinular night frog, also known as the spinular wrinkled frog, is a species of frog in the family Nyctibatrachidae, commonly known as the robust frogs. It was described in 2011 as one of 12 new species in its genus by the herpetologist Sathyabhama Das Biju and his colleagues. A large frog for its genus, it has an adult male snout–vent length of 52.9–66.2 mm (2.08–2.61 in). It has a brownish-grey back, a grey underside, dark brown limbs, and dark grey feet. When preserved in ethanol, it is black above with greyish-brown undersides. The species is endemic to the Western Ghats of India, where it is known from the states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu, where the specimens used to describe the species were originally collected. It is found under rocks in streams in forests. The species has not been assigned a conservation status by the IUCN.
The Jog night frog or Jog's night frog is one of 34 species of nocturnal frogs in the genus Nyctibatrachus. It is found exclusively in the Western Ghats, India, and both sexes share the responsibility of watching over the eggs.
Nyctibatrachus manalari, the Manalar night frog, is a species of frog in the robust frog family Nyctibatrachidae. It was described in 2017, along with six other species in its genus, by the herpetologist Sonali Garg and her colleagues. A small frog, it has an adult male snout–vent length of 13.1–15.4 mm (0.52–0.61 in). It is mainly reddish-brown in color, with a pale patch on the snout, lighter undersides, and dark brown horizontal lines on the limbs. When preserved in ethanol, it is mostly grey to greyish-brown, with grayish-white undersides.
Nyctibatrachus mewasinghi, also known as Mewa Singh's night frog or the Peruvannamuzhi wrinkled frog, is a species of frog in the robust frog family Nyctibatrachidae. It was described in 2017 by the herpetologist Keerthi Krutha and her colleagues. A small frog, it has an adult snout–vent length of 21.4–23 mm (0.84–0.91 in). It is mainly light greyish-brown above and off-white below, with a triangular light brown patch on the snout, light brown limbs with off-white undersides, and dark grey fingers and toes. It has scattered greyish-brown spots on the throat and the underside of the limbs. When preserved in ethanol, it has a more faded colour.
Nyctibatrachus robinmoorei, also known as Robin Moore's night frog or the Tirunelveli wrinkled frog, is a species of frog in the family Nyctibatrachidae, commonly known as the robust frogs. It was described in 2017, along with six other species in its genus, by the herpetologist Sonali Garg and her colleagues. A small frog, it has an adult male snout–vent length of 12.2–13.4 mm (0.48–0.53 in). It is mainly reddish-brown, with a light grey underside, light orangish-brown bands running from the eyes to the middle of the back, light brown limbs, and darker brown hands and feet. When preserved in ethanol, it is mostly brown, with light greyish-white undersides and light greyish-brown limbs.
Nyctibatrachus radcliffei, also known as Radcliffe's night frog or the Thiashola wrinkled frog, is a species of frog in the robust frog family Nyctibatrachidae. It was described in 2017, along with six other species in its genus, by the herpetologist Sonali Garg and her colleagues. A medium-sized frog for its genus, it has an adult male snout–vent length of 32.8–38.3 mm (1.29–1.51 in). It is mainly reddish-brown, with a light flesh-red coloured underside, light brown limbs, and dark grey hands and feet. When preserved in ethanol, it is mostly dark grey, with grayish-white undersides.
Nyctibatrachus sabarimalai, also known as the Sabarimala night frog or Sabarimala wrinkled frog, is a species of frog in the family Nyctibatrachidae, commonly known as the robust frogs. It was described in 2017, along with six other species in its genus, by the herpetologist Sonali Garg and her colleagues. A small frog, it has an adult male snout–vent length of 12.3–13.2 mm (0.48–0.52 in). It is mainly brown, with a dark brown back, a greyish-white underside, light brown bands running from the eyes to the middle of the back, light brown limbs, and light grey hands and feet. When preserved in ethanol, it is mostly grey, with greyish-white undersides and light grey limbs.
The femoral gland is a specialised gland found in some male frogs that plays a role in chemical communication and reproductive signalling. Particularly prominent within the frog family Mantellidae, these glands are located on the underside of the hindlimbs, usually on the inner thighs or shanks. Femoral glands can be identified by their swollen appearance and distinct colouration, which differ from the surrounding skin. Femoral glands are classified into four distinct morphological types, varying from minute granular structures to conspicuous patches characterised by large granules and prominent central indentations.
