The frog, Limnonectes phyllofolia sp. nov. has a unique reproductive strategy in which the male of the species guards the egg clutches.
A new fanged frog species from Sulawesi Island in Indonesia has been discovered and described by researchers with the Indonesian Institute of Sciences, and the University of California at Berkeley.
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The frog, Limnonectes phyllofolia sp. nov. has a unique reproductive strategy in which the male of the species guards the egg clutches, which are typically laid on leaves or “mossy boulders one to two meters above small, slow moving streams.” It has the smallest adult body size among the other Limnonectes species on the island, with a maximum snout to vent length of 30mm.
From the research paper: Fig 1. Images of Limnonectes phyllofolia sp. nov. in life. (A) A male L. phyllofolia (no voucher) guards an egg clutch on a leaf 0.2 meters above a slow spring-fed stream on Gunung Balease—24 October 2010, 21:05 h. (B) A male L. phyllofolia, MVZ:Herp:295234, guards an egg clutch 0.6 m up on a 2 m tall mossy boulder overhanging a stream in Bantimurung National Park—25 June 2014, 20:30 h. (C) A male L. phyllofolia, MVZ:Herp:295430, guards an egg clutch on a leaf 0.2 m above a puddle in Bantimurung National Park—25 June 2014, 22:25 h. (D) A male L. phyllofolia, MVZ:Herp:295248, guards an egg clutch on a mossy boulder 1 m above a 1 m wide cascading stream in Bantimurung National Park—25 June 2014, 21:38 h. (E) A male L. phyllofolia (no voucher) guards an egg clutch on a leaf while larvae hatch and drop into the water below. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0292598.g001
This species is unique in that it is just one of two species from the island that deposits their eggs on land and which the males guard the eggs. The other frog in the Limnonectes genus that deposits its eggs on land is L. arathooni. The difference between the two, according to the researchers, is that L. arathooni lays its eggs in stream side leaf litter or in holes along the banks of streams, while L.phyllofolia deposits its eggs one to two meters above the ground.
From the research paper: Fig 4. Eggs and newly hatched larvae of Limnonectes phyllofolia. (A) A male L. phyllofolia, MVZ:Herp:295236, guards two egg clutches on a sapling 2 m above a 1 m wide stream in Bantimurung National Park. (B) Example of dual egg clutches (guarded by MVZ:Herp:295224) deposited on fern frond 0.6 m above a puddle in Bantimurung National Park. (C) Example of eggs from clutch guarded by MVZ:Herp:295224—clutch was collected from leaves 0.75 m above a puddle on 24 June 2014, 19:00 h from Bantimurung National Park. (D) Example of eggs from clutch guarded by MVZ:Herp:295236—clutch was collected from leaves of a sapling tree, 2 m above a 1 m wide stream on 25 June 2014 at 21:38 h from Bantimurung National Park. (E) Example of newly hatched tadpoles. The associated clutch was guarded by MVZ:Herp:295246, and collected on a mossy boulder 1.5 m above a 1 m wide stream on 25 June 2014 at 21:38 h from Bantimurung National Park. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0292598.g004
The complete paper, A new species of terrestrially-nesting fanged frog (Anura: Dicroglossidae) from Sulawesi Island, Indonesia” can be read on the PLOS One Journal website.
