Raorchestes resplendens

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Raorchestes resplendens
Raorchestes resplendens.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. resplendens
Binomial name
Raorchestes resplendens
Biju, Shouche, Dubois, Dutta, and Bossuyt, 2010 [2]

Raorchestes resplendens, the resplendent shrubfrog, is a critically endangered species of frog belonging to the family Rhacophoridae endemic to the high altitude region around the south Indian peak of Anaimudi. [3] It has extremely short limbs and numerous macroglands and was discovered from the Anamudi summit (2695 m asl) in the Western Ghats of Kerala, India and is known only from the Eravikulam National Park. [2] [4]

Contents

Description

Within the generally small Raorchestes , Raorchestes resplendens qualify as medium-sized frogs: males grow to a snout-vent length of 23–25 mm (0.91–0.98 in) and females to 25–28 mm (0.98–1.10 in). Individuals of the species are distinguishable from all members of the genus by their bright reddish orange colour and multiple prominent glandular swellings present laterally behind the eyes, on the side of the dorsum, on the anterior side of the vent, on the dorsal side of forearm and shanks and on the posterior side of the tarsus and metatarsus. The limbs are much shorter than in other Raorchestes. The iris is red. [2]

Distribution

The species was initially thought to live within three km2 on the Anamudi summit within the Eravikulam National Park, India [2] but researchers found another site about 20 km away within the same national park. [3] [5] This frog has been observed between 1896 and 2695 meters above sea level, largely in grassland habitats. [3] [6]

Etymology and systematics

The genus Raorchestes is named in honour of C. R. Narayan Rao in recognition of his contribution to Indian batrachology. The scientific nomen Orchestes is based on the first generic nomen coined for frogs of the Philautus group, Orchestes Tschudi 1838. The specific epithet resplendens is a Latin term meaning 'bright coloured, glittering, resplendent' referring to the bright red or orange pigmentation. [2]

While Raorchestes resplendens are morphologically striking and different from other Raorchestes, molecular phylogenetics place them clearly within that genus. This suggests rapid morphological evolution in Raorchestes resplendens. [2]

Behaviour

Raorchestes resplendens have very short limbs, and the species is characterized by pronounced crawling behaviour. It is a ground-dwelling species, [2] while most Raorchestes are typically found on vegetation above the ground, some of them being arboreal. [7]

Raorchestes resplendens females burrow their eggs under the moss-covered forest floor, deep inside the base of bamboo clumps. As mature eggs were found in the oviduct of a female after oviposition, females of this species may mate with more than one male and breed more than once in a single season. Parents do not tend their eggs after oviposition. As is typical for the genus, development is direct, without a free-swimming larval stage. Hatching takes place after about 3–4 weeks. Upon hatching, froglets are fully mobile and measure about 4.5 mm (0.18 in) in snout-vent length. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhacophoridae</span> Family of amphibians

The Rhacophoridae are a family of frogs that occur in tropical sub-Saharan Africa, South India and Sri Lanka, Japan, northeastern India to eastern China and Taiwan, south through the Philippines and Greater Sundas, and Sulawesi. They are commonly known as shrub frogs, or more ambiguously as "moss frogs" or "bush frogs". Some Rhacophoridae are called "tree frogs". Among the most spectacular members of this family are numerous "flying frogs".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eravikulam National Park</span> National park in India

Eravikulam National Park is a 97 km2 national park located along the Western Ghats in the Idukki and Ernakulam districts of Kerala in India. The park is situated between 10º05'N and 10º20' north, and 77º0' and 77º10' east and is the first national park in Kerala. It was established in 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhacophorinae</span> Subfamily of amphibians

The Rhacophorinae are a subfamily of frogs in the family Rhacophoridae. They range from tropical Africa and Asia to temperate China and Japan.

<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 glandulosus</i> Species of amphibian

Raorchestes glandulosus, also known as glandular bush frog, rough-skinned bush frog, southern bubble-nest frog, and with many other names, is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to the Western Ghats, India, and known from the states of Karnataka and Kerala.

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

Raorchestes griet is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to the Western Ghats south of the Palghat Gap in Kerala and Tamil Nadu states, India. The specific name griet honours Griet Decock, spouse of Franky Bossuyt, the scientist who described the species. The common name Griet bush frog has been coined for it.

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

Raorchestes luteolus is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to the Western Ghats, India, where it is only known from the state of Karnataka. Many of the known populations are from the Kodagu district, known also by its anglicised former name of Coorg—hence the common name. It is also known from the Shimoga district in the Sharavathi basin where it was described as a new species, Philautus neelanethrus, but this is now considered to be a junior synonym of Raorchestes luteolus.

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

Raorchestes nerostagona is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to the Western Ghats, India. It has been called as the Kalpetta yellow bush frog or lichen bush frog for its patchy lichen like patterning that make it cryptic. First described in 2005 based on a specimen obtained in Kalpetta, the species has subsequently been found in many parts of the Western Ghats.

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

Raorchestes ponmudi is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to the Western Ghats, India.

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

Raorchestes tinniens, also known as the spotted bush frog, black bush frog, and Rao's bubble-nest frog, is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to the Nilgiri Hills, a part of the Western Ghats, in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, southern India. It has a rather complicated taxonomic history, and there is still an open issue whether Ixalus montanusGünther, 1876 from Kudremukh (Karnataka), now in synonymy with Raorchestes tinniens, is indeed a valid species.

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

Raorchestes anili is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae.

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

Raorchestes dubois or the Koadaikanal bush frog is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae.

<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 akroparallagi</i> Species of amphibian

Raorchestes akroparallagi is a species of frogs in the family Rhacophoridae.

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

Raorchestes kaikatti, sometimes known as the Kaikatti bushfrog or Kaikatt's bush frog, is a critically endangered frogs found only in the Nelliampathi Hills within the Western Ghats of Kerala, India. The species is named after Kaikatti, its type locality.

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

The Mark's bushfrog is a critically endangered frog found only in the Nelliampathi Hills within the Western Ghats of Kerala, India. The species is named after Mark Wilkinson of the Natural History Museum, London.

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

Raorchestes coonoorensis, also known as the Coonore bushfrog or Coonoor bush frog, is a species of frogs endemic to the Western Ghats, India. It is reported from its type locality, Sim's Park in Coonoor, with an additional observation from Kothagiri; both locations are in the state of Tamil Nadu. Its altitudinal range is 1,780–1,850 m (5,840–6,070 ft) asl.

<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.

References

  1. ↑ IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group. (2023). "Raorchestes resplendens". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2023: e.T189814A86897335. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2023-1.RLTS.T189814A86897335.en . Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Biju S.D.; Y. Shouche; A. Dubois; S. K. Dutta; F. Bossuyt (2010). "A ground-dwelling rhacophorid frog from the highest mountain peak of the Western Ghats of India" (PDF). Current Science . 98 (8): 1119–1125.
  3. 1 2 3 Frost, Darrel R. (2016). "Raorchestes resplendens Biju, Shouche, Dubois, Dutta, and Bossuyt, 2010". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  4. ↑ "New species of frog found in Eravikulam National Park". The Hindu . 5 May 2010. Retrieved 15 May 2010. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  5. ↑ Joseph, Jobin; Jobin, K.M.; Nameer, P.O. (2012). "Additional record of Resplendent Bush Frog Raorchestes resplendens (Anura: Rhacophoridae) from the Western Ghats, India". Journal of Threatened Taxa. 4 (11): 3082–3084. doi: 10.11609/JoTT.o3214.3082-4 .
  6. ↑ Katia Goldberg; Jaime Menendez; Mia Reed (22 July 2022). Ann T. Chang; Michelle S. Koo (eds.). "Raorchestes resplendens Biju, Shouche, Dubois, Dutta, and Bossuyt, 2010". AmphibiaWeb. University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  7. ↑ Biju, S. D.; Bossuyt, F. (2009). "Systematics and phylogeny of Philautus Gistel, 1848 (Anura, Rhacophoridae) in the Western Ghats of India, with descriptions of 12 new species". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 155 (2): 374–444. doi: 10.1111/j.1096-3642.2008.00466.x .
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