| Eungella torrent frog | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Anura |
| Family: | Myobatrachidae |
| Genus: | Taudactylus |
| Species: | T. eungellensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Taudactylus eungellensis | |
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The Eungella torrent frog or Eungella day frog (Taudactylus eungellensis) is a species of stream dwelling frog endemic to Australia. It is restricted to ranges west of Mackay in mid-eastern Queensland. [1] [3] [4]
It is a relatively small frog reaching 35mm in length. The head and body are slender and the limbs are long and lean. The dorsum ranges from yellowish-tan to dark brown in colour with darker mottling. There is an X-shaped marking on the back. The front half of the head is usually lighter than the back half and the arms and legs have banding. The toes and feet have wedge-shaped pads and no webbing. The back is smooth or granular with a few low warts. The belly is smooth and deep yellow. The irises restrict horizontally and are golden. The tympanum is indistinct.
This frog inhabits montane rainforest and tall open forests. It is found in and around flowing creeks. If alarmed the Eungella torrent Frog may jump into the creek where it will hide beneath rocks until the danger has passed. Breeding may occur all year round but is most intense from November to December. Males make a soft tinkering sound barely audible over the sound of cascading water. Eggs are laid in clumps of 30–50. They are attached to the under the surface of submerged rocks or logs. The Eungella torrent frog is the only Myobatrachidae that is known to advertise its presence by the movement of its body and limbs. It is suspected that these movements are a form of courtship. These movements include: flicking and waving of legs, head bobbing, and distinctive hops.
This species is the only known Australian frog to go through an apparent period of absence, only to later reappear. The Eungella torrent frog was first noted to be in decline in the 1980s. From 1987 to 1992 the frog was not encountered, despite surveys. From 1992 onwards it has since been rediscovered at nine sites and populations appear to be slowly on the rise. Although these results are encouraging, populations have not rebounded to what they were before the decline, when they were still considered common. The cause for decline is believed to be the chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis , however the frogs now seem to be able to coexist with the fungus that once caused their near extinction.
It is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, [1] and as Endangered under Queensland's Nature Conservation (Animals) Regulation (2020). [4]
Conondale National Park is 130 km north of Brisbane in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland near the town of Conondale in the south east Queensland bioregion. The park covers an area of 35,648 hectares protecting large areas of subtropical rainforest, woodlands, wet and dry sclerophyll forest including Queensland's tallest tree. The park contains areas of regenerating forest which have been previously logged; areas of forest plantations also border the park. The park is currently managed by the Queensland Government under the Nature Conservation Act 1992.
Eungella National Park is a protected area in Queensland, Australia. It is on the Clarke Range at the end of the Pioneer Valley 80 km west of Mackay, and 858 km northwest of Brisbane. Eungella is noted for the national park which surrounds it. It is considered to be the longest continual stretch of sub-tropical rainforest in Australia. The original inhabitants are the Wirri people. The park is covered by dense rainforest and is known for its platypuses.
Taudactylus is a genus of frogs in the family Myobatrachidae. These frogs are endemic to rainforest areas of coastal eastern Australia, most of this genus inhabit fast flowing streams in highland area. Most members of this genus have suffered serious declines, in which the disease chytridiomycosis appears to have played a significant role: T. diurnus is believed to be extinct, while all others except T. liemi are listed as critically endangered by the IUCN. These listings are conservative, and it is likely T. acutirostris, presently listed as critically endangered, already is extinct.
Rheobatrachus, whose members are known as the gastric-brooding frogs or platypus frogs, is a genus of extinct ground-dwelling frogs native to Queensland in eastern Australia. The genus consisted of only two species, the southern and northern gastric-brooding frogs, both of which became extinct in the mid-1980s. The genus is unique because it contains the only two known frog species that incubated the prejuvenile stages of their offspring in the stomach of the mother.
The peppered tree frog is a species of frog in the subfamily Pelodryadinae. It has a green back speckled with black, a cream-coloured belly and a dark stripe running from the shoulder. It is endemic to a very small area of the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia where it is known from five stream systems. It has not been observed in the wild since the 1970s, but a frog of very similar appearance has been observed in an area slightly further north, and it is not clear whether these are examples of the peppered tree frog or an outlying population of Pearson's green tree frog. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed the peppered tree frog's conservation status as being "data deficient".
The armoured frog, or armoured mist frog, is a species of tree frog in the torrent frog complex, a group restricted to north-eastern Queensland, Australia.
Amphibians of Australia are limited to members of the order Anura, commonly known as frogs. All Australian frogs are in the suborder Neobatrachia, also known as the modern frogs, which make up the largest proportion of extant frog species. About 230 of the 5,280 species of frog are native to Australia with 93% of them endemic. Compared with other continents, species diversity is low, and may be related to the climate of most of the Australian continent. There are two known invasive amphibians, the cane toad and the smooth newt.
The common mist frog is a species of tree frog native to north-eastern Queensland, Australia. It is a medium-sized frog and a member of the Australian torrent treefrog group. The common mist frog is found in remote, mountainous areas, and near rocky, fast-flowing rainforest streams such as those in north-eastern Queensland, Australia. They are generally sedentary frogs, and remain in the stream environments that they are born into, preferring sections of the stream with riffles, many rocks, and overhanging vegetation.
The green-eyed treefrog is a species of Australasian treefrog in the subfamily Pelodryadinae that occurs in the Wet Tropics of Australia.
The Bale Mountains tree frog is a species of frogs in the family Brevicipitidae. It is the only species in the monotypic genus Balebreviceps and endemic to the Bale Mountains of Ethiopia. Its natural habitats are tree heath woodland near the timberline as well as partly cleared mixed forest further down. Despite its entire range being within the Bale Mountains National Park, it is threatened by habitat loss and deterioration (deforestation) caused by cattle grazing, firewood collection, fencing, and settlement development.
The sharp snouted day frog, or sharp-nosed torrent frog, is an extant species of frog in the family Myobatrachidae. It is endemic to upland rainforest streams in north-eastern Queensland in Australia.
The Mount Glorious day frog, also known as Mount Glorious torrent frog and southern day frog, is an extinct species of frog native to south-east Queensland. It has not been recorded in the wild since 1979.
The Eungella tinker frog, also known as Eungella tinkerfrog, Liem's frog, or Liem's tinker frog, is a species of frog in the family Myobatrachidae. It is endemic to the Eungella area in Queensland, Australia. It lives in rocky margins of fast-flowing creeks and seepages in montane rainforest at elevations of 180–1,250 m (590–4,100 ft) above sea level, but it is more common above 600 m (2,000 ft). It is commonly heard but rarely seen. In contrast to other amphibians in the area, such as Taudactylus eungellensis, no adverse effects of the chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis have been reported on this species. It is currently facing no major threats, although its habitat could be impacted by grazing and trampling of streamside vegetation by livestock. Also invasive cane toads are a potential future threat. Its range is with the Eungella National Park.
The Kroombit tinker frog, also sometimes referred to as Pleione's torrent frog, is a species of frog in the family Myobatrachidae. It is endemic to Central Queensland in Australia. It lives among rocks and leaf litter near small flowing streams.
The northern tinker frog, northern timber frog, or tinkling frog is a species of frog in the family Myobatrachidae. It is endemic to humid mountainous areas of north-eastern Queensland in Australia. It lives among rocks and logs at small fast-flowing streams. Adults are nocturnal.
Du Toit's torrent frog, the Mt. Elgon torrent frog, or the Kenya rocky river frog is a species of frog in the family Petropedetidae endemic to Mount Elgon in Kenya; it has not been found on the Ugandan part of the mountain. It is one of many, often taxonomically unrelated, frogs referred to as torrent frogs.
Torrent frogs are a number of unrelated frogs that prefer to inhabit small rapid-flowing mountain or hill streams with a lot of torrents. They are generally smallish neobatrachians with a greyish-brown and usually darkly mottled back, giving them excellent camouflage among wet rocks overgrown with algae; their well-developed feet make them agile climbers of slippery rocks.
Amolops torrentis, commonly known as the torrent sucker frog or the little torrent frog is a species of frog in the family Ranidae and genus Amolops that is endemic to China, specifically only on the island of Hainan. They are most likely to be found in streams and surrounding wetland areas. Males have high-pitched mating calls, which are favored by females. Glands on this species' skin can secrete toxins. This species suffers from parasitism and habitat loss. Currently it is listed as vulnerable by the IUCN and is protected by law in China.
Rheobatrachus vitellinus, commonly called northern gastric-brooding frog, is an extinct species of gastric-brooding frog native to Australia.
