Rhacophorus pseudomalabaricus

Rhacophorus pseudomalabaricus, also known as Anaimalai flying frog, false Malabar gliding frog,[2] and false Malabar tree frog,[3] is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to the Anaimalai Hills, a part of the southern the Western Ghats in the Tamil Nadu and Kerala states, India.[2]

Rhacophorus pseudomalabaricus
Scientific classification edit
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Rhacophoridae
Genus: Rhacophorus
Species:
R. pseudomalabaricus
Binomial name
Rhacophorus pseudomalabaricus
Vasudevan and Dutta, 2000

Description

Adult males measure 47–54 mm (1.9–2.1 in) and adult females 66–72 mm (2.6–2.8 in) in snout–vent length.[4] The eyes are protruding. The supra-tympanic fold is distinct.[3] The fingers and toes are extensively webbed; the webbing is light yellow. Juveniles have distinctive black zebra-like pattern that becomes fainter in adults, resembling venation of leaf; the background colour is green.[4]

Habitat and conservation

Rhacophorus pseudomalabaricus has been recorded in tropical moist evergreen forest,[5] in secondary forests on the fringe of abandoned cardamom plantation, in a marshy area beside a perennial stream outside a cardamom plantation,[4] and near an artificial water hole between the evergreen forest and tea plantation.[3] Specimens have been recorded both in lower canopy and understorey vegetation and on the ground.[5][3][4] Its elevational range is 955–1,430 m (3,133–4,692 ft) above sea level.[4] Reproduction takes place on vegetation overhanging marshy areas, ponds, and streams.[5][4]

This species is known from at least two protected areas, Indira Gandhi National Park[1] and Parambikulam Tiger Reserve.[3] Outside the protected areas, it is threatened by habitat loss caused by conversion of forests to other uses as well as by timber extraction.[5]

References
  1. IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group (2022). "Rhacophorus pseudomalabaricus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2022: e.T59016A166109863. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
  2. Frost, Darrel R. (2021). "Rhacophorus pseudomalabaricus Vasudevan and Dutta, 2000". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.1. American Museum of Natural History. doi:10.5531/db.vz.0001. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
  3. Jobin, K. M. & Nameer, P. O. (26 October 2012). "Diversity of rhacophorids (Amphibia: Anura) in Parambikulam Tiger Reserve, Western Ghats, Kerala, India". Journal of Threatened Taxa. 4 (13): 3205–3214. doi:10.11609/JoTT.o3081.3205-14.
  4. Biju, S. D.; Kamei, Rachunliu G.; Mahony, Stephen; Thomas, Ashish; Garg, Sonali; Sircar, Gargi & Suyesh, Robin (2013). "Taxonomic review of the tree frog genus Rhacophorus from the Western Ghats, India (Anura: Rhacophoridae), with description of ontogenetic colour changes and reproductive behaviour". Zootaxa. 3636 (2): 257–289. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3636.2.3. PMID 26042293.
  5. S.D. Biju, Sushil Dutta, Karthikeyan Vasudevan, Chelmala Srinivasulu, S.P. Vijayakumar (2004). "Rhacophorus pseudomalabaricus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2004: e.T59016A11869234. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2004.RLTS.T59016A11869234.en. Retrieved 14 November 2021.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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