Nyctibatrachus sabarimalai

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Nyctibatrachus sabarimalai
Nyctibatrachus sabarimalai (dorsolateral).jpg
With Indian five-rupee coin for scale
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Nyctibatrachidae
Genus: Nyctibatrachus
Species:
N. sabarimalai
Binomial name
Nyctibatrachus sabarimalai
Garg, Suyesh, Sukesan, and Biju, 2017 [1]
India relief location map.jpg
Red pog.svg
Map showing N. sabarimalai's known distribution in the southern Western Ghats

Nyctibatrachus sabarimalai, also known as the Sabarimala night frog [2] or Sabarimala wrinkled frog, [3] 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.

Contents

The species is endemic to the Western Ghats of India, where it is known only from the Periyar Tiger Reserve in the state of Kerala, where the specimens used to describe the species were originally collected. It is found in leaf litter in wet areas at elevations of around 210 m (690 ft). The species has not been assigned a conservation status by the IUCN, but may be threatened by high levels of human activity near its habitat caused by pilgrims to the Sabarimala Temple, which is close to the locality where it was discovered.

Taxonomy

Nyctibatrachus sabarimalai was described in 2017 by the herpetologist Sonali Garg and her colleagues based on an adult male specimen collected from the Periyar Tiger Reserve in the state of Kerala. The species is named after the Hindu pilgrimage site of Sabarimala, which is located close to the locality where the type specimens were collected. [1]

The species is one of 34 species in the night frog genus Nyctibatrachus, in the family Nyctibatrachidae, commonly known as the robust frogs. [4] It is sister (most closely related) to N. anamallaiensis , and these two species are together sister to N. pulivijayani. These three species are further sister to a clade (group formed by all of a common ancestor's descendants) formed by N. manalari and N. robinmoorei . The clade formed by these five species is sister to N. beddomii. [1] [5] Some other studies have found N. anamallaiensis to instead be sister to N. pulivijayani, and N. sabarimalai to be sister to the clade formed by these two species. [6] The following cladogram shows relationships among these species, according to the 2017 study that described the species. [1]

N. beddomii

N. manalari

N. robinmoorei

N. anamallaiensis

N. sabarimalai

N. pulivijayani

Description

Figure illustrating various aspects of N. sabarimalai in life and when preserved Nyctibatrachus sabarimalai (figure).jpg
Figure illustrating various aspects of N. sabarimalai in life and when preserved

N. sabarimalai is a diminutive frog, with a snout–vent length of 12.3–13.2 mm (0.48–0.52 in) for adult males. The head is small and longer than it is wide, and the snout is rounded and longer than the diameter of the eye. Males can be distinguished from females by the presence of the nuptial pads and femoral glands (bulbous glands near the inner thigh). [1]

In adult males, the upperside is dark brown, with a pair of light brown bands running from behind the eyelids to the middle of the back. The snout has a triangular light brown patch, demarcated by a light brown stripe between the eyes. The sides of the head are light greyish-brown, with scattered white spots, and the upper eyelids are dark brown. The underside is greyish-white, and the sides of the abdomen are light grey with scattered white spots. The limbs are light brown with dark grey horizontal bands and the hands and feet are slightly lighter grey than the abdomen. [1]

When preserved in 70% ethanol, the upperside is dark grey, while the light patch on the snout, stripe between the eyes, and stripe over the back become light grey. The underside is greyish-white, the limbs are light grey with grey bands, and the sides of the abdomen become greyish-white. [1]

N. sabarimalai can be distinguished from its congeners by a combination of its small snout–vent length; the head being longer than it is wide; the absence of webbed feet; weakly developed glandular folds on the upper sides, separated by scattered granular projections; the presence of the dorso-terminal groove (groove on the upper side of the tip of the digit) on the third finger and fourth toe; the discs on the third finger and fourth toe being slightly sider than the finger and toe, respectively; a single tubercle on the palm; and the thigh, lower leg, and foot being around the same length. [1]

Vocalisations

Males vocalise by giving pulsed calls; each call is 139.9 milliseconds long and has six pulses, made at a rate of 45.6 per second. Calls are given at a frequency of around 4.4 kiloHertz. [1]

Distribution, ecology, and conservation

N. sabarimalai is endemic to the Western Ghats of India, where it is known only from the Periyar Tiger Reserve, south of the Palakkad Gap in Kerala. All known specimens of the frog have been collected from leaf litter in a shallow forest stream or under the grasses on wet rocky terrain, at an elevation of 210 m (690 ft). [1]

Males are known to vocalise during both the day, from 3 PM to 5 PM, and at night, from 8 PM to 10 PM. One male was seen vocalizing close to the clutch it was guarding. Eggs are large and pigmented, with an average diameter of 2.4 mm (0.094 in), and are deposited in slits inside tree stumps. The only observed clutch was around 0.3 m (1.0 ft) above the ground and had ten eggs. [1] The species has not yet been assessed by the IUCN, [7] although it may be threatened from the high levels of human activity near its habitat caused by pilgrims to the Sabarimala Temple. [1]

Related Research Articles

<i>Nyctibatrachus</i> Genus of amphibians

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.

<i>Micrixalus fuscus</i> Species of amphibian

Micrixalus fuscus is a species of small frog found in dense forested hill streams in the Western Ghats of India. M. herrei was formerly synonymized within this species.

<i>Micrixalus saxicola</i> Species of amphibian

Micrixalus saxicola is a species of frog in the family Micrixalidae, found in forest streams in the Western Ghats of India.This frog has a brown colored dorsum and a white ventral side with irregular white specks on its dark brown throat and chest. Its smooth skin and cryptic coloration allow it to blend into its surroundings while resting or calling. The males of the species are territorial, and will use calling, foot tapping, and foot flagging to warn off competition. M. saxicolais is described by the IUCN as a vulnerable species due to habitat loss, fragmentation, and human interference.The frog also threatened by infection by the fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis.

<i>Micrixalus elegans</i> Species of amphibian

Micrixalus elegans is a species of frog in the family Micrixalidae. It is endemic to the Western Ghats, India, and occurs between the Palakkad Gap and Goa Gap in the states of Kerala and Karnataka. Micrixalus elegans is one of the Micrixalus species showing "foot-flagging" behaviour, hence the common name elegant dancing frog has been proposed. Other common names include elegant torrent frog and elegant bush frog.

<i>Nyctibatrachus beddomii</i> Species of amphibian

Nyctibatrachus beddomii is a species of frog in the family Nyctibatrachidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombay night frog</span> Species of amphibian

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.

<i>Nyctibatrachus major</i> Species of amphibian

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spinular night frog</span> Species of amphibian

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.

<i>Nyctibatrachus anamallaiensis</i> Species of amphibian

Nyctibatrachus anamallaiensis, the Anamallai night frog, is a species of frog in the family Nyctibatrachidae that is endemic to the southern Western Ghats, India. It is only known from the vicinity of its type locality, Valparai in Anaimalai Hills, Tamil Nadu. It was for a long time considered to be a synonym of Nyctibatrachus beddomii.

<i>Micrixalus herrei</i> Species of frog

Micrixalus herrei is a newly redescribed species of frog in the family Micrixalidae. Originally described in 1942, it was synonymized with M. fuscus in 1984. However, morphological differences as well as DNA evidence confirm this species to be valid. It is endemic to the Western Ghats, India, and occurs south of the Shencottah Gap in Kerala and Tamil Nadu states. The common name Kallar dancing frog has been proposed for this species, in reference to Kallar, Trivandrum, its type locality.

Micrixalus kodayari, also known as the Kodayar dancing frog, is a species of frogs in the family Micrixalidae. It is endemic to the Western Ghats south of the Shencottah Gap in Tamil Nadu, India; it is known from Kodayar and Kakkachi.

<i>Micrixalus kurichiyari</i> Species of frogs

Micrixalus kurichiyari is a species of frogs in the family Micrixalidae. It is endemic to the Western Ghats, India, and only known from its type locality, Kurichiyarmala in the Wayanad District, Kerala state. Common name Kurichiyar dancing frog has been coined for it, in reference to the type locality.

<i>Nyctibatrachus pulivijayani</i> Species of frog

Nyctibatrachus pulivijayani, or Vijayan's night frog, is a species of night frogs, family Nyctibatrachidae. The frog is endemic to the Western Ghats, India, and is only known from its type locality, Pandipath, in the Agasthyamalai Hills, Thiruvananthapuram district, Kerala. Smaller than a human fingernail, it is among the smallest frog species in the world. Nyctibatrachus pulivijayani is part of a genus that evolved in India around 70–80 million years ago. The species of frog was discovered by scientists from the University of Delhi.

<i>Indosylvirana indica</i> Species of frog

Indosylvirana indica, the Indian golden-backed frog, is a species of frog in the family Ranidae. It was formerly considered as conspecific with Indosylvirana temporalis but was found to be a distinct species in a 2014 study.

<i>Nyctibatrachus manalari</i> Species of frog

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.

<i>Nyctibatrachus mewasinghi</i> Species of frog

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.

<i>Nyctibatrachus robinmoorei</i> Species of frog

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.

<i>Nyctibatrachus radcliffei</i> Species of frog

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.

<i>Microhyla darreli</i> Species of frog

Microhyla darreli is a species of frog in the family Microhylidae, the narrow-mouthed frogs. It is endemic to the Western Ghats south of the Palghat Gap in southern India. It is named for Darrel Frost, an American herpetologist, in recognition of the online database Amphibian Species of the World that he maintains. Accordingly, common name Darrel's chorus frog has been coined for this species.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Garg, Sonali; Suyesh, Robin; Sukesan, Sandeep; Biju, S. D. (2017-02-21). "Seven new species of night frogs (Anura, Nyctibatrachidae) from the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot of India, with remarkably high diversity of diminutive forms". PeerJ . 5: e3007. doi: 10.7717/peerj.3007 . ISSN   2167-8359. PMC   5322763 . PMID   28243532. Creative Commons by small.svg  This article incorporates text from this source, which is available under the CC BY 4.0 license.
  2. Frost, Darrel R. (2023). "Nyctibatrachus sabarimalai". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. American Museum of Natural History. doi:10.5531/db.vz.0001.
  3. Dinesh, K. P.; Radhakrishnan, C.; Deepak, P.; Kulkarni, N. U. (2023). A checklist of Indian amphibians with common names for the country and their IUCN conservation status (Report) (5th ed.). Zoological Survey of India. p. 9.
  4. Frost, Darrel R. (2023). "Nyctibatrachus". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. American Museum of Natural History. doi:10.5531/db.vz.0001.
  5. Kumar, K.S. Pavan; Vishwajith, H.U.; Anisha, Anand; Dayananda, G.Y.; Gururaja, Kotambylu Vasudeva; Priti, Hebbar (2022-11-15). "A new cryptic species of Nyctibatrachus (Amphibia, Anura, Nyctibatrachidae) with description of its tadpole from the central Western Ghats, India". Zootaxa. 5209 (1): 69–92. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.5209.1.4. ISSN   1175-5334. PMID   37045404. S2CID   253537588.
  6. Hebbar, Priti; Anand, Anisha; K.V, Gururaja (2021-09-02). "DNA barcoding indicates the range extension in an endemic frog Nyctibatrachus jog, from the Western Ghats, India". Mitochondrial DNA Part B. 6 (9): 2470. doi:10.1080/23802359.2021.1955765. ISSN   2380-2359. PMC   8317943 . PMID   34368447.
  7. Dinesh, K. P.; Radhakrishnan, C.; Channakeshavamurthy, B. H.; Deepak, P.; Kulkarni, N. U. (2020). A Checklist of Amphibians of India with IUCN Conservation Statuses (Report) (3rd ed.). Zoological Survey of India. p. 8.