Nose toad

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Nose toad
Toad, juvenile, shortly after metamorphosis

Toad, juvenile, shortly after metamorphosis

Systematics
Row : Land vertebrates (Tetrapoda)
without rank: Amphibians (Lissamphibia)
Order : Frog (anura)
Family : Rhinophrynidae
Genre : Rhinophrynus
Type : Nose toad
Scientific name of the  family
Rhinophrynidae
Günther , 1859
Scientific name of the  genus
Rhinophrynus
Duméril & Bibron , 1841
Scientific name of the  species
Rhinophrynus dorsalis
Duméril & Bibron, 1841

The nose toad ( Rhinophrynus dorsalis ), also nose frog or Mexican grave toad called, is a Froschlurch in the coastal lowlands of Mexico and parts of Central America occurs. The species is protected in Mexico.

features

Nose toads become six inches long. Their body is egg-shaped, the tip is the small head. Your skin is smooth and thin on the top, rough and well supplied with blood on the sides and abdomen. The back is brown and is often divided by a yellow or orange middle line. Yellow or orange spots can also be found on the flanks. The legs are short and stocky, the shovel-like hind legs have wide webbed feet and are effective burial instruments covered with horn on the heel. The first toe of the hind legs is a strong hump and only has one phalanx. Toothlets are toothless. The eardrum is hidden, ear glands are missing, as is the sternum . Their tongue is not attached to the front like other frogs, but free and can be stuck out through a groove at the end of the mouth.

Distribution area

Distribution area

Its exact circulation area covers the Caribbean coast of Mexico, including the peninsula of Yucatan to northwestern Honduras . On the Pacific side they come from the Río Balsas in Mexico to Costa Rica . There are also small populations on the southwestern coast of Texas . The species occurs from sea level up to a height of 500 meters.

Way of life

Toads inhabit the soil of tropical and subtropical dry and wet forests, thorn forests, savannas and cultivated land with loose soils, especially areas with pronounced rainy seasons, which lead to a temporary flooding of parts of the areas. They live almost permanently buried in the ground and appear on the surface of the earth at their highest after heavy rainfall during the mating season. They mainly spend periods of drought and winter underground. They eat insects, preferring termites , which are licked with the help of the tongue. If the toad feels threatened, it inflates itself with air and then resembles a small, pointed-mouthed balloon.

Reproduction

Toads reproduce several times a year, but only after heavy rainfall. Before mating, the males call loudly from their hiding place on land. The call sounds like a hoarse wh-oooa. Mating and oviposition take place in temporary small bodies of water that form after the rains. Sometimes the amphibians undertake longer hikes to find a suitable body of water. When mating, the male embraces the female by the lumbar region. The eggs are deposited in jelly-like tubes and float on the surface of the water. The tadpoles that hatch after a few days have barbels and paired breathing holes. Since they feed as filter feeders, they do not have a horny mouth. They live socially, reach a length of four centimeters and undergo metamorphosis into a fully grown animal after one to three months .

Systematics

The species is the only one in the family Rhinophrynidae. Fossils of the same and a different genus of the family are known from the Paleocene and Eocene of Wyoming and the Oligocene of Saskatchewan . Since the tadpoles look very similar, it is assumed that the family is in a sister group relationship to the tongueless (Pipidae).

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Albert Carl Ludwig Gotthilf Günther : Catalog of the Batrachia Salientia in the Collection of the British Museum. Taylor and Francis, London 1859.
  2. ↑ Darrel R. Frost: Rhinophrynus In: Amphibian Species of the World. Version 6.0, American Museum of Natural History, 1998-2014, accessed March 3, 2014.
  3. ↑ ADW: Rhinoprynus dorsalis information. Retrieved March 3, 2014 .

literature

  • K. Deckert, Gisela Deckert , GE Freytag, G. Peters, G. Sterba: Urania animal kingdom, fish, amphibians, reptiles. Urania-Verlag, 1991, ISBN 3-332-00376-3 .
  • AMCDuméril, G. Bibron: Erpétologie Genérale ou Histoire Naturelle Complète des Reptiles. Volume 8, Librarie Enclyclopedique de Roret, Paris 1841 (first description of the species and genus)
  • Albert Carl Ludwig Gotthilf Günther : Catalog of the Batrachia Salientia in the Collection of the British Museum. Taylor and Francis, London 1859 (first description of the family)

Web links

Commons : Rhinophrynidae  - Collection of images, videos and audio files