Yellow Saddle Toad
| Yellow Saddle Toad | ||||||||||||
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Yellow Saddle Toad ( Brachycephalus ephippium ) |
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| Brachycephalus ephippium | ||||||||||||
| ( Spix , 1824) |
The yellow saddle toad ( Brachycephalus ephippium ) is a species from the family of saddle toads (Brachycephalidae) native to Brazil . They are tiny frogs with a striking yellow color. They have a potent skin toxin called tetrodotoxin . In English, the species is called “Pumpkin Toadlet” because of its color.
features
This species reaches a head-torso length of only 12.5 to 19.7 mm. The fingers and toes are reduced to three on each limb and thereby shortened. The hind legs are quite short. On the back there is a saddle-shaped bone plate under the skin. The animals are all bright yellow to orange in color. The eye iris is black.
Occurrence and way of life
Yellow saddleback toads inhabit the Atlantic coastal forests of southeast Brazil (from sea level to a maximum of 1200 m), where they live in the fall foliage on the ground. Small insects and other invertebrates such as springtails and mites serve as food . In dry seasons, the animals hide deeper in the leaves.
Reproduction occurs during the rainy season; the males show territorial behavior. If you discover a conspecific, utter shouts and move an arm up and down. If the opponent is another male, a wrestling match occurs and the rival is pushed away. Continuous series of calls of two to six minutes in length are generated. When calling, the animals stand up on all fours. According to a study published in 2017, however, the toads cannot hear their calls at all due to receding inner ears; the calls could then be a warning signal to enemies due to the toxicity of the toads or could have been retained due to a lack of selection against the call behavior.
If they have attracted a female, this is seized, whereby an inguinal amplexus occurs first. Then the male slides further forward on the back of the female (axillary amplexus). The female looks for a suitable egg-laying place between leaves or under dead wood and finally lays up to five quite large, yellowish-white eggs over a period of half an hour, which are then inseminated by the male. When the male has left the egg-laying site, the female rolls the eggs with the help of his feet so that soil adheres to them. This is to camouflage the eggs from predators. So they are eventually left to their own devices.
There is no aquatic tadpole stage, but a direct development. After about two months, fully developed young toads hatch from the eggs - they still have a rudimentary tail. Unlike the majority of amphibians, saddleback toads do not need any water for their reproduction.
swell
- ↑ Information contained in the overview of the Brachycephalidae family at amphibiaweb.org
- ^ Sandra Goutte et al .: vocalization frequencies in two frogs. Article number: 12121. In: Scientific Reports 7. Springer Nature, September 29, 2017, accessed February 8, 2018 . doi: 10.1000 / 182
Web links
- Photos of the yellow neat toad at calphotos.berkeley.edu
- IUCN Redlist: Brachycephalus ephippium (Engl .; including distribution map)