Chaperina fusca

Chaperina fusca
Conservation status

Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Microhylidae
Genus: Chaperina
Mocquard, 1892
Species: C. fusca
Binomial name
Chaperina fusca
Mocquard, 1892
Synonyms
  • Chaperina beyeri Taylor, 1920
  • Microhyla leucostigma Boulenger, 1899
  • Nectophryne picturata Smith, 1921

Chaperina fusca (common names: brown thorny frog, spiny-heeled froglet, saffron-bellied frog) is a species of frog in the Microhylidae family.[2] It is monotypic within the genus Chaperina.[3] It is found on the Malay Peninsula (Thailand and Malaysia), in Borneo (Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei) and in the Philippines (Palawan, Mindanao, and Jolo islands).[2] It is abundant in Borneo but uncommon on the Malay Peninsula and patchily distributed in the Philippines.[1]

Description

Chaperina fusca are small frogs: males measure 18–21 mm (0.71–0.83 in) in snout–vent length and females 20–26 mm (0.79–1.02 in). They are black above with minute white, light blue, or greenish spots. The skin is smooth with scattered tubercles; they have a sharp dermal projection on elbows and heel.[4]

These frogs are active after rainfall on forest floor and low vegetation; they are good climbers.[4]

Habitat and conservation

Its natural habitats are primary lowland and montane rainforests as well as edge habitats; it has also been found in rural gardens. It breeds in small, temporary water bodies rich in decaying organic matter.[1]

Threats to this species include deforestation, habitat conversion to agriculture, and pollution.[1]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group (2014). "Chaperina fusca". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.1. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Frost, Darrel R. (2014). "Chaperina fusca Mocquard, 1892". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
  3. ↑ Frost, Darrel R. (2014). "Chaperina Mocquard, 1892". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Chaperina fusca". Amphibians and Reptiles of Peninsular Malaysia. Retrieved 25 June 2014.