Raorchestes ochlandrae

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Raorchestes ochlandrae
Raorchestes ochlandrae - Davidraju IMG 3473 - Copy.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Rhacophoridae
Genus: Raorchestes
Species:
R. ochlandrae
Binomial name
Raorchestes ochlandrae
(Gururaja, Dinesh, Palot, Radhakrishnan, and Ramachandra, 2007)
Synonyms

Philautus ochlandraeGururaja, Dinesh, Palot, Radhakrishnan, and Ramachandra, 2007 [2]

Contents

Raorchestes ochlandrae (common name: Ochlandrae reed frog) is a species of shrub frog in the family Rhacophoridae. [2] [3] [4] It is endemic to the Western Ghats, India. This species of the oriental shrub frog was first described from Kakkayam Reserve Forest of Calicut district, Kerala state, in the southern Western Ghats in 2007 but has since been recorded at many other sites along the Western Ghats. [2] The specific name ochlandrae refers to microhabitat of the species, bamboo Ochlandra setigera . [2]

Description

Males measure 22–26 mm (0.87–1.02 in) and females, based on only one measured specimen, 23 mm (0.91 in) in snout–vent length. The female was observed in amplexus and was larger than the male it was paired with. [2]

This species is distinguished from congeners by the combination of characters such as body small, elongate, squat and flat; head arched, wider than long; snout short rounded, equal or sub equal to diameter of eye; canthus rostralis rounded; tympanum indistinct but visible; eyes protruding, pupil with striking golden yellow dentition like marks; belly granular; vocal sac unpigmented; fleshy brown to cream yellow dorsum with two distinct golden yellow lateral bands bordered by dark brown from upper eyelid to the posterior part of flanks. [2]

Distribution

The species is endemic to the Western Ghats mountains, reported from parts of the Nilgiris and Anaimalai Hills. It is reported from evergreen forests with bamboos around 600 to 1000 metres above mean sea level. [5]

Taxonomy

Genetic studies indicate that the Ochlandra reed frog is part of an evolutionary clade comprising five lineages including R. ochlandrae, R. chalazodes , R. manohari , R. uthamani , and a lineage described as Raorchestes flaviocularis. [6]

Raorchestes ochlandrae Raorchestus ochlandra.jpg
Raorchestes ochlandrae

Habitat and conservation

Raorchestes ochlandrae eating a slug Ochlandrae reed frog DSCN5747.jpg
Raorchestes ochlandrae eating a slug

This species inhabits dense stands of the bamboo Ochlandra setigera , growing on forest edges and in more in open habitats. The frogs reside in the hollow tube of internodal region of bamboo about two to three metres above the ground. [1] [2]

The species occurs in the Western Ghats mostly along forest streams and other sites where Ochlandra stands remain. [1]

Breeding

The Ochlandrae reed frog has a unique breeding habit of nesting within the hollow internodes of Ochlandra bamboo culms. Although they have been recorded in internodes of different Ochlandra species, breeding has been recorded so far in Ochlandra setigera . [5] The frogs enter the hollow culms through small holes. Calling males may sit outside the entrance holes. While the entrance holes are towards the bottom of the internodes, eggs are deposited on the inside wall of the bamboo towards the upper side. A clutch size of six eggs has been reported. The presence of frogs in the bamboo indicates parental care by males in this species as in the similar Raorchestes chalazodes , with both species also showing direct development of eggs into juveniles. [7] [5]

Related Research Articles

<i>Raorchestes chalazodes</i> Species of frog from India

Raorchestes chalazodes is a species of critically endangered frog in the family Rhacophoridae. Raorchestes chalazodes is a nocturnal and arboreal species found in the understorey of tropical moist evergreen forest and is endemic to the Western Ghats of India. The specific name chalazodes is composed of the Greek word χάλαζα (chalaza) meaning "lump" and -odes for the derived adjective, reflecting white granulation of the body.

<i>Raorchestes flaviventris</i> Species of amphibian

Raorchestes flaviventris is a species of arboreal, nocturnal, frog of the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to the Western Ghats, South India. Its common name is yellow-bellied bush frog.

<i>Raorchestes</i> Genus of amphibians

Raorchestes is a genus of frogs in the subfamily Rhacophorinae that are found in mountainous regions of South Asia, Southeast Asia, and southern China. A recent study places Raorchestes as a sister taxon of Pseudophilautus. Before the description of the genus in 2010, species now in Raorchestes had been assigned to genera Ixalus, Philautus, and Pseudophilautus.

<i>Raorchestes kakachi</i> Species of amphibian

Raorchestes kakachi is a species of frogs in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to the southern Western Ghats of India. The specific name kakachi refers to the type locality from where the species was described.

<i>Raorchestes jayarami</i> Species of frog

Raorchestes jayarami, also known as Jayaram's bush frog, is a species of frog from the subfamily rhacophoridae found in Valparai in the Western Ghats of Tamil Nadu in India, roughly 1000 meters above sea level. Individuals of this species from the genus Raorchestes have morphs that range from plain green to variations with splotches and dots of darker greens and in some cases yellow. Anuran's from the genus Raorchestes, show direct-development while allows them to be independent from a waterbody for the development of tadpoles.

<i>Raorchestes johnceei</i> Species of amphibian

Raorchestes johnceei is a species of frog of the genus Raorchestes found in Bonacaud in the Western Ghats of Kerala in India. It has been observed roughly 600 meters above sea level.

<i>Raorchestes manohari</i> Species of amphibian

Raorchestes manohari is a species of frog of the genus Raorchestes found in Bonacaud in the Western Ghats of Kerala in India. The species is named after T. M. Manoharan, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Kerala.

Raorchestes thodai is a species of frog of the genus Raorchestes found in Ooty in the Nilgiris district of the Western Ghats of Tamil Nadu in India. Scientists have observed it in the type locality, 1980 meters above sea level. The species is named after the Thoda tribe who dwell in the region.

Raorchestes theuerkaufi is a species of frog of the genus Raorchestes found in the tea estates of Kadalar near Munnar, Idukki district, in the Western Ghats of Kerala in India. The species is named after Wolfgang Theuerkauf, a botanist and director of the Gurukula Botanical Sanctuary in Wayanad, Kerala.

<i>Raorchestes uthamani</i> Species of amphibian

Raorchestes uthamani is a species of frog of the genus Raorchestes found in Gavi, Pathanamthitta district, in the Western Ghats of Kerala in India. Scientists have observed it exclusively in the type locality, near a cardamom farm in Gavi, 1000 meters above sea level. The species is named after two naturalists, bird photographer, P.K. Uthaman, and Deputy Conservator of Forests, K.V. Uthaman.

<i>Beddomixalus</i> Genus of amphibians

Beddomixalus is a monotypic genus of frogs in the family Rhacophoridae. The only described species, Beddomixalus bijui, is endemic to the Western Ghats, India. Its name is derived from a combination of the cognomen of Richard Henry Beddome, in honour of his work on the amphibian diversity of the Western Ghats, as well as Ixalus, which is often used as a suffix for names of rhacophorid genera.

<i>Raorchestes archeos</i> Species of amphibian

Raorchestes archeos is a species of frog endemic to the Western Ghats of India. It is known from wet evergreen forests in the Agasthyamalai and Devarmalai ranges between Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

Raorchestes primarrumpfi is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to India and has been observed high in the Nilgiri Massif mountains.

Raorchestes archeos is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to India, where it has been observed in the Western Ghat mountains at about 1524 meters above sea level.

Roarchestes leucolatus is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to India. Scientists have observed it in the Western Ghat mountains, between 894 and 958 meters above sea level.

Roarchestes blandus is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to India. Scientists have observed it in the Western Ghat mountains, between 45 and 806 meters above sea level.

<i>Raorchestes echinatus</i> Species of frog

Roarchestes echinatus is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to India. It has been observed in the Western Ghat mountains, between 1464 and 1864 meters above sea level.

<i>Raorchestes indigo</i> Species of frog

Roarchestes indigo is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to India. It has been observed high in the mountains in scrub tree habitats, above 1700 meters.

<i>Raorchestes flaviocularis</i> Species of frog

Roarchestes flaviocularis is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to India. It has been observed between 1459 and 1569 meters above sea level in the Western Ghat mountains.

References

  1. 1 2 3 IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group (2022). "Raorchestes ochlandrae". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2022: e.T136074A166113316. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Gururaja, K. V.; Dinesh, K. P.; Palot, M. J.; Radhakrishnan, C.; Ramachandra, T. V. (2007). "A new species of Philautus Gistel (Amphibia: Anura: Rhacophoridae) from southern Western Ghats, India". Zootaxa. 1621: 1–16. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.1621.1.1.
  3. ↑ Frost, Darrel R. (2016). "Raorchestes ochlandrae (Gururaja, Dinesh, Palot, Radhakrishnan, and Ramachandra, 2007)". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  4. ↑ "Raorchestes ochlandrae". AmphibiaWeb: Information on amphibian biology and conservation. [web application]. Berkeley, California: AmphibiaWeb. 2016. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 Seshadri, Kadaba Shamanna; Gururaja, Kotambylu Vasudeva; Bickford, David Patrick (1 January 2015). "Breeding in bamboo: a novel anuran reproductive strategy discovered in Rhacophorid frogs of the Western Ghats, India". Biological Journal of the Linnean Society. 114 (1): 1–11. doi: 10.1111/bij.12388 . ISSN   0024-4066.
  6. ↑ Vijayakumar, S. P.; Dinesh, K. P.; Prabhu, Mrugank V.; Shanker, Kartik (10 December 2014). "Lineage delimitation and description of nine new species of bush frogs (Anura: Raorchestes, Rhacophoridae) from the Western Ghats Escarpment". Zootaxa. 3893 (4): 451–88. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3893.4.1. ISSN   1175-5334. PMID   25544534. S2CID   46572350.
  7. ↑ Seshadri, K.S. (2015). "Rhacophorid Frogs Breeding in Bamboo: Discovery of a Novel Reproductive Mode from Western Ghats". FrogLog. 23(4) (116): 46–49.
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