Spinular night frog

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Spinular night frog
HS-6016-Nyctibatrachus acanthodermis.jpg
Not evaluated (IUCN 3.1) [1]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Nyctibatrachidae
Genus: Nyctibatrachus
Species:
N. acanthodermis
Binomial name
Nyctibatrachus acanthodermis
Biju, Van Bocxlaer, Mahony, Dinesh, Radhakrishnan, Zachariah, Giri, and Bossuyt, 2011

The spinular night frog (Nyctibatrachus acanthodermis), 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.

Contents

Taxonomy

Nyctibatrachus acanthodermis was described in 2011, along with 11 other species in its genus, by the herpetologist Sathyabhama Das Biju and his colleagues based on an adult male specimen collected from Nelliampathi in the Palakkad district of Kerala, India, in 2010. The species's name is from the Greek words acanthos, meaning spine, and dermis, meaning skin, referring to its characteristic spiny skin. [2] It is also called the spinular wrinkled frog. [1]

There are no subspecies of N. acanthodermis. [3] It is one of 34 species in the night frog genus Nyctibatrachus, in the family Nyctibatrachidae, commonly known as the robust frogs. [4] According to a 2017 study by the herpetologist Sonali Garg and colleagues, it is sister (most closely related) to N. gavi . The clade (group of organisms descending from a common ancestor) formed by these two species is sister to another clade formed by N. major . These three species are together sister to a clade formed by N. grandis and N. sylvaticus . The clade of these five species is sister to N. radcliffei , and these six species are sister to N. indraneili . [5] [6] A study from 2014 found a slightly different relationship, with major being sister to gavi, and acanthodermis being sister to that clade. [7] The following cladogram shows relationships within this clade based on a phylogeny by the 2017 study by Sonali Garg and colleagues: [5]

N. indraneili

N. radcliffei

N. grandis

N. sylvaticus

N. acanthodermis

N. gavi

N. major

Description

N. acanthodermis is a large species of night frog, with an adult male snout–vent length of 52.9–66.2 mm (2.08–2.61 in). The head is wider than it is long, and the snout is ovoid and longer than the diameter of the eye. The back is brownish-grey. The upperside of the limbs is dark brown, with dark brown lines across the limbs and fingers. The underside is uniformly grey, darker on the throat, and the thigh, feet, and webbing are dark grey. When preserved in 70% ethanol, the upperside is black and the underside is greyish-brown. The thigh is darker than the rest of the underside, and the chest, hand, feet and webbing are dark grey. Males and females are broadly similar in their external appearance, but can be distinguished by the presence of nuptial pads and femoral glands (bulbous glands near the inner thigh) in males. [2]

The species may be confused with the congeneric N. gavi, N. grandis, [2] and N. radcliffei. [5] It can be distinguished from these species by a combination of its large size; robust body; medium webbing on the feet; noticeable wrinkling on the skin of the upperside, with conspicuous projections along the spine; a prominent Y-shaped ridge from the upper lip to the nostrils; the presence of the dorso-terminal groove (groove on the upper side of the tip of the digit) on the fourth toe; the absence of the dorso-terminal groove on the third finger; and the lower leg being longer than the foot and nearly equal in length to the thigh. [2]

Distribution, ecology, and conservation

N. acanthodermis is endemic to the Western Ghats of India, where it is known from Nelliampathi in Palakkad, Kerala, and from the Valparai Plateau in Coimbatore district, Tamil Nadu. The specimens used to describe the species were collected from under rocks in streams in a region of secondary forest. [2] Frogs from Tamil Nadu inhabited pools in swiftly flowing streams. [8] Females lay large pigmented eggs with a diameter of 2.2–2.8 mm (0.087–0.110 in). [2] The species has not yet been assessed by the IUCN. [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.

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

The Malabar gliding frog or Malabar flying frog is a rhacophorid tree frog species found in the Western Ghats of India.

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

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

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

The giant wrinkled frog is a species of frogs in the family Nyctibatrachidae endemic to the Western Ghats of India in the Kudremukh region. Its natural habitats are tropical moist lowland forests and rivers. It is threatened by habitat loss.

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

The Kempholey night frog is a species of frog in the family Nyctibatrachidae.

<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 Nyctibatrachus. It is a rather 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.

Nyctibatrachus sanctipalustris is a species of frog in the family Nyctibatrachidae from India. The specific name, sanctipalustris, "holy swamp" in Latin, refers to the type locality, "the sacred swamps of the Cauvery (river)...Coorg, India".

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

Nyctibatrachus minimus is a species of frogs in the family Nyctibatrachidae. It is the smallest known frog in the genus Nyctibatrachus and was recently discovered from Kurichiyarmala in the Western Ghats or Wayanad, Kerala.

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

The Dattatreya night frog is a species of frog in the family Nyctibatrachidae first described in the Shola forests around the Dattatreya Peeta in the Chikkamagaluru district of Karnataka. It is still known only from this part of the Western Ghats, India.

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

Nyctibatrachidae is a small family of frogs found in the Western Ghats of India and in Sri Lanka. Their common name is robust frogs. Recognition of Nyctibatrachidae as a family is fairly recent. These frogs were previously placed in the broadly defined family Ranidae, which was more recently divided into three subfamilies: Lankanectinae, Nyctibatrachinae, and Astrobatrachinae.

The Jog night frog or Jog's night frog is one of 34 species of nocturnal frogs in the genus Nyctibatrachus. It is found exclusively in the Western Ghats, India, and both sexes share the responsibility of watching over the eggs.

<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>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>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 night 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 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 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 night 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.

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

Nyctibatrachus sabarimalai, also known as the Sabarimala night frog or Sabarimala 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 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.

References

  1. 1 2 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 (PDF) (Report) (5th ed.). Zoological Survey of India. p. 9.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Biju, S. D.; Bocxlaer, Ines Van; Mahony, Stephen; Dinesh, K. P.; Radhakrishnan, C.; Zachariah, Anil; Giri, Varad; Bossuyt, Franky (15 September 2011). "A taxonomic review of the night frog genus Nyctibatrachus Boulenger, 1882 in the Western Ghats, India (Anura: Nyctibatrachidae) with description of twelve new species". Zootaxa . 3029 (1): 49–52. doi: 10.11646/zootaxa.3029.1.1 . ISSN   1175-5334.
  3. Frost, Darrel R. (2023). "Nyctibatrachus acanthodermis". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. American Museum of Natural History. doi:10.5531/db.vz.0001.
  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. 1 2 3 Garg, Sonali; Suyesh, Robin; Sukesan, Sandeep; Biju, S. D. (21 February 2017). "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.
  6. Krutha, Keerthi; Dahanukar, Neelesh; Molur, Sanjay (26 December 2017). "Nyctibatrachus mewasinghi, a new species of night frog (Amphibia: Nyctibatrachidae) from Western Ghats of Kerala, India". Journal of Threatened Taxa . 9 (12): 10988. doi:10.11609/jott.2413.9.12.10985-10997. ISSN   0974-7907.
  7. Gururaja, Kotambylu Vasudeva; Dinesh, K. P.; Priti, H.; Ravikanth, G. (16 May 2014). "Mud-packing frog: A novel breeding behaviour and parental care in a stream dwelling new species of Nyctibatrachus (Amphibia, Anura, Nyctibatrachidae)". Zootaxa . 3796 (1): 41. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3796.1.2. ISSN   1175-5334. PMID   24870664.
  8. Harikrishnan, S.; Mudappa, D.; Raman, T. (2018). "Herpetofaunal survey in rainforest remnants of the Western Ghats, India". The Herpetological Bulletin. 146: 13, 15.