Rhinella lilyrodriguezae

Last updated

Rhinella lilyrodriguezae
Rhinella lilyrodriguezae.jpg
A specimen of R. lilyrodriguezae photographed during the day
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Bufonidae
Genus: Rhinella
Species:
R. lilyrodriguezae
Binomial name
Rhinella lilyrodriguezae
Cusi, Moravec, Lehr, and Gvoždík, 2017
Distribution map of Rhinella lilyrodriguezae.svg
The green dot corresponds to where the holotype was found and the red lines are the boundary of the Cordillera Azul National Park.

Rhinella lilyrodriguezae is a species of frog in the family Bufonidae, which is found in Cordillera Azul National Park in Peru.

Contents

Some of the striking characteristics of the species are the elongated snout and the color change between day and night, becoming lighter during the day.

It was described on May 12, 2017 by four researchers in the journal ZooKeys. Its name is a tribute to researcher Lily Rodriguez, who was responsible for the discovery of several species and the creation of several national parks in Peru. It does not yet have an official conservation status defined, but researchers classify it as a data deficient species.

Taxonomy

The species was described on May 12, 2017, by biologists Juan C. Cusi, Jiří Moravec, Edgar Lehr and Václav Gvoždík in the scientific journal ZooKeys. [1] It was described as belonging to the genus Rhinella , but specifically to the Rhinella festae clade, the result of which was discovered from genetic and molecular analyses. A total of six individuals were collected in Cordillera Azul National Park in 2013, and the holotype was found in Alto Biavo, at an altitude of 1 260 meters, on September 27, 2013, and it was a pregnant female. It was diagnosed as a new species because it had a number of unique characteristics, such as being large in size, having eight pre-sacral vertebrae, with the sacrum fused to the coccyx, an elongated and pointed snout, and its coloration. Genetic tests were also done on the mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene, attesting to its specialization. It was named Rhinella lilyrodriguezae in honor of herpetologist Lily Rodriguez, for her discoveries in the area of Peruvian amphibians and for promoting the creation of several natural parks in Peru, such as the one where the species was discovered. [2]

Distribution and conservation

Currently, the only place where the species has been found is Cordillera Azul National Park, in the Alto Biavo district in northern Peru, with elevations between 1,245 and 1,280. [3] Here there is noise pollution and extraction of wood and soil, which together with the habits of the local population, such as subsistence hunting and extensive fishing, threaten the local biodiversity. So far the species has not been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), so there is no official conservation status, but researchers suggest its classification as a data-deficient species. [2] With its discovery, 94 species of the genus Rhinella are totaled. [4]

Description

On the left, an individual during the night, and on the right, an individual during the day. Paratype of Rhinella lilyrodriguezae.jpg
On the left, an individual during the night, and on the right, an individual during the day.

Females measure between 47.1 and 58.3 millimeters, and the size of males is not known. The head, which is triangular when seen from above and narrower than the body, accounts for 30% of their length. Its snout is elongated, with a rounded tip, long, protruding, and directed towards the anteroventral region (similar to that of a shark). Its canthus rostralis is rounded, with a concave loreal region, and the nostrils are small, round, directed toward the sides, and are not prominent. The tympanic ring is weakly defined, with the superficial tympanic membrane present, and there is no contact with the parotid glands, which are relatively large. Its back is covered by small, rounded, elevated tubercles with keratinized tips. Its tongue is thin, 2.5 times larger than the body, and its choana is small and oval. [2]

During the day, its back and flanks are dark brown, with dark green spots distributed between the sacral region and the parotoid glands, and the throat is dark gray. Its iris is silver-green, with irregular black spots. At night its back is light brown, with a whitish-gray line between the muzzle and the cloca, and the tip of the muzzle, eye, eyebrow, and crown of the head are light gray. [2]

Ecology

It is a nocturnal and semi-arboreal species, [5] with all individuals found at night between 20:33 and 22:49 local time, on leaves of bushes that were between ten and one hundred centimeters high. One of the females found was pregnant, containing 185 eggs in her ovaries. The presence of pigmented eggs, large in number, and the association of individuals with bodies of water, makes one imagine that the tadpoles are endotrophic, and may have direct development or development of tadpoles that do not feed in water or wet soil. There are no records of their vocalization. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cane toad</span> Worlds largest true toad

The cane toad, also known as the giant neotropical toad or marine toad, is a large, terrestrial true toad native to South and mainland Central America, but which has been introduced to various islands throughout Oceania and the Caribbean, as well as Northern Australia. It is a member of the genus Rhinella, which includes many true toad species found throughout Central and South America, but it was formerly assigned to the genus Bufo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slender-legged tree frogs</span> Genus of amphibians

Osteocephalus is a genus of frogs, the slender-legged tree frogs, in the family Hylidae found in the Guianas, the Amazon Basin, Venezuela, Colombia, southeastern Brazil, and north-eastern Argentina. Males are warty, while females are smooth.

<i>Phrynopus</i> Genus of amphibians

Phrynopus is a genus of frogs of the family Strabomantidae. Their common name is Andes frogs. They are endemic to Peru and inhabit the upper humid montane forest and supra-treeline grassland in the Cordillera Oriental, with one record from the Peruvian Cordillera Occidental.

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

A true toad is any member of the family Bufonidae, in the order Anura. This is the only family of anurans in which all members are known as toads, although some may be called frogs. The bufonids now comprise more than 35 genera, Bufo being the best known.

Rhinella chrysophora, sometimes known as the Rio Viejo toad, is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to the Cordillera Nombre de Dios on the Atlantic versant in north-central Honduras.

Rhinella arborescandens is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to Peru and only known from its type locality near Mendoza, northern Cordillera Central, in the Amazonas Region. It is unusual among Rhinella toads because it is arboreal, hence the specific name arborescandens, derived from Latin arbor for tree and scando meaning to climb.

<i>Rhinella crucifer</i> Species of amphibian

Rhinella crucifer is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It endemic to Brazil and known from the Atlantic Forest of eastern Brazil between the states of Ceará in the north and Rio de Janeiro in the south. Common name striped toad has been coined for it. "Rhinella pombali" is a hybrid between Rhinella ornata and this species.

Sclerophrys fuliginata is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. The specific name fuliginata is Latin for "sooty", in reference to the species' appearance of a more or less diffusely uniform exterior color and pattern. It is also known as the Shaba Province toad or sooty toad. It is found in the southern Democratic Republic of the Congo, southeastern Tanzania, and northern Zambia.

<i>Rhinella jimi</i> Species of amphibian

Rhinella jimi is a species of toads in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to northeastern Brazil and known between Bujaru in northeastern Pará and Maranhão in the north, south to Bahia and Vitória, Espírito Santo. Prior to its description in 2002, it was confused with Rhinella schneideri. The specific name jimi honors Jorge Jim, a Brazilian herpetologist. Common name Jimi's toad has been coined for it.

<i>Incilius leucomyos</i> Species of amphibian

Incilius leucomyos is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It was described in 2000 and is endemic to the Atlantic versant of the north-central Honduras.

Rhinella multiverrucosa is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to Peru. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.

<i>Rhinella poeppigii</i> Species of amphibian

Rhinella poeppigii is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae that is known from the eastern Andean slopes of Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia, as well as from Serranía de Sira in Amazonian Peru. Its distinctiveness from Rhinella marina has been debated, but it is currently accepted as a valid species. It is named after Eduard Friedrich Poeppig, German botanist and naturalist who made scientific expeditions to South America.

<i>Rhinella proboscidea</i> Species of amphibian

Rhinella proboscidea is a species of small South American toad in the family Bufonidae, common in the Amazon rainforest. It is the only species known to practice reproductive necrophilia.

<i>Rhinella festae</i> Species of amphibian

Rhinella festae is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is found in Ecuador and Peru. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Rhinella lindae is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to Colombia and known from its type locality, Murri in the municipality of Frontino, and from Las Orquídeas National Natural Park, both on the western slope of the Cordillera Occidental, Antioquia Department. The specific name lindae honors Linda Trueb, an American herpetologist. However, common name Murri beaked toad has been coined for this species.

Rhinella ruizi is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to the Cordillera Central in Antioquia, Colombia. The specific name ruizi honors Pedro Miguel Ruiz-Carranza, a Colombian herpetologist.

Atelopus pyrodactylus is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to Peru and only known from its type locality in the northern section of the Río Huallaga basin, Department of San Martín, on the eastern slope of the Cordillera Central. The specific name pyrodactylus refers to the light orange fingers and toes of this frog.

Osteocephalus castaneicola is a species of frog in the family Hylidae. It is found in lowland Amazonia of northern Bolivia, adjacent southeastern Peru, and western Brazil. It breeds in water-filled fruit capsules of the Brazil nut, a characteristic also alluded to in its specific name castaneicola derived from the Latin castanea, the root of the vernacular name castaña for the Brazil nut, together with the Latin colō meaning "to inhabit".

<i>Pristimantis ashaninka</i> Species of frog

Pristimantis ashaninka is a species of frog in the Craugastoridae family. It is found in the Pui Pui Protection Forest in central Peru. It is 23 to 26 millimeters long, and is characterized by containing small conical tubercles in its skin, giving a spiny appearance, and by having no tympanic membrane. The species was described in 2017 after morphological and genetic analyses and was named Pristimantis ashaninka in honor of the indigenous people Asháninka, who live in the regions near the protection forest. The species was listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as a least-concern species. There is still no information about its behavior and/or reproduction, but it is assumed that the tadpoles have direct development, as this is a common characteristic of the genus.

Juan Cusi is a Peruvian herpetologist who has led and participated in the identification of multiple amphibian species. His research focuses on diversity, ecology, conservation and taxonomy. He is a Collaborator Researcher at Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos in Lima, Peru. Additionally, Juan Cusi is part of the Edgar Lehr's Lab.

References

  1. ↑ "Rhinella lilyrodriguezae Lily Rodriguez's Beaked Toad; Sapo picudo de Lily Rodriguezi". Amphibiaweb. Archived from the original on 2017-07-02. Retrieved 2017-06-02.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 CUSI, Juan; MORAVEC, Jiří; LEHR, Edgar; Gvoždík, Václav. "A new species of semiarboreal toad of the Rhinella festae group (Anura, Bufonidae) from the Cordillera Azul National Park, Peru". ZooKeys. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.673.13050 . PMC   5523195 .
  3. ↑ "Rhinella lilyrodriguezae Cusi, Moravec, Lehr, and Gvoždík, 2017". AMNH. Archived from the original on 2017-07-02. Retrieved 2017-06-02.
  4. ↑ "Rhinella". Amphibiaweb. Archived from the original on 2017-07-02. Retrieved 2017-06-02.
  5. ↑ "New Species of Toad from Peru". Gone Froggin. Archived from the original on 2017-07-02. Retrieved 2017-07-02.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.