Pseudophilautus schmarda

Pseudophilautus schmarda is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to the central hills of Sri Lanka[2][3] and is known from the Peak Wilderness Sanctuary, Agra Bopath, Horton Plains, and Pedro.[1][3] The specific name schmarda honours Ludwig Karl Schmarda, an Austrian physician, naturalist, and traveler.[4] Common names Sri Lanka bug-eyed frog and Schmarda's shrub frog have been coined for it.[2]

Pseudophilautus schmarda
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Rhacophoridae
Genus: Pseudophilautus
Species:
P. schmarda
Binomial name
Pseudophilautus schmarda
(Kelaart, 1854)
Synonyms[2]

Polypedates (?) schmardanus Kelaart, 1854
Philautus schmarda (Kelaart, 1854)
Ixalus poecilopleurus Lichtenstein and Martens, 1856

Description

Adult males measure 18–27 mm (0.7–1.1 in) and adult females, based on only two specimens, 20–30 mm (0.8–1.2 in) in snout–vent length. The body is stout. The snout is obtusely pointed. The tympanum is visible and the supratympanic fold is prominent. The fingers have lateral dermal fringes and only rudimentary webbing, whereas the toes are medially webbed. Skin of the upper side is rough with glandular folds, glandular warts, and horn-like spinules. The upper parts are dark green and red-brown; the flanks grade from yellow through dark brown to light brown. The chest and abdomen are yellow and bear bright-yellow spots.[3]

Habitat and conservation

Pseudophilautus schmarda occurs primarily in cloud forests at elevations of 810–2,300 m (2,660–7,550 ft) above sea level, but has also been recorded in pine and abandoned tea plantations. While juveniles have been observed on the forest floor, adults occur in the understorey vegetation some 1–2 m (3–7 ft) above the ground. The eggs are deposited in a deep hole that the female excavates in the forest floor.[1][3]

Pseudophilautus schmarda is a common frog. While much of its range lies within protected areas, habitat deterioration is taking place because of illegal firewood collection, clear-cutting for timber, and conversion to agricultural land such as tea plantations. Additional potential threats are forest fires and agro-chemical pollution.[1]

References
  1. Manamendra-Arachchi, K.; Pethiyagoda, R.; de Silva, A. & Wickramasinghe, D. (2004). "Pseudophilautus schmarda". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2004: e.T58900A11852110. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2004.RLTS.T58900A11852110.en.
  2. Frost, Darrel R. (2018). "Pseudophilautus schmarda (Kelaart, 1854)". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  3. Manamendra-Arachchi, Kelum & Pethiyagoda, Rohan (2005). "The Sri Lankan shrub-frogs of the genus Philautus Gistel, 1848 (Ranidae: Rhacophorinae), with description of 27 new species" (PDF). Raffles Bulletin of Zoology. Suppl. 12: 163–303. (Philautus schmarda: p. 171–174)
  4. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael & Grayson, Michael (2013). The Eponym Dictionary of Amphibians. Pelagic Publishing. p. 192. ISBN 978-1-907807-42-8.
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