UpdateBot at 19:43, 16 December 2021

2021-12-16T19:43:38Z

New page

{{Short description|Species of amphibian}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Use Indian English|date=January 2020}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Malabar tree toad
| image = Malabar tree toad from agumbe.jpg
| status = EN
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| parent_authority = Günther, 1876
| taxon = Pedostibes tuberculosus
| authority = [[Albert C. L. G. Günther|Günther]], 1876
| synonyms = * ''Nectophryne tuberculosus''
}}

The '''Malabar tree toad''' (''Pedostibes tuberculosus''), or '''warty Asian tree toad''', is a species of [[toad]] found in forests along the [[Western Ghats]] of great [[Karnataka]]<ref>State Frog [https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/2021/nov/27/karnataka-would-soon-have-its-state-frog-2388796.html]</ref> or [[Deccan]]. It is a small species and is found in wet tree hollows or leaf bases containing water. It is the only species in the [[monotypic]] genus '''''Pedostibes''''', also known as '''Asian tree toads'''.

==Taxonomy==
Formerly, the genus ''Pedostibes'' also hosted other Southeast Asian species that were subsequently moved to a new genus, ''[[Rentapia]]'', in 2016.<ref name=Frost/><ref name="Chan et al. 2016"/>

==Description==
[[File:PedostibesTuberculosus4.jpg|thumb|left|[[Phytotelmata|Phytotelmatous]] habitat]]
This is a slender frog with a moderate-sized head. The [[snout]] is pointed and the lores are vertical. The distance between the eyes is as wide as the upper eyelid width. The ear opening (tympanum) is well marked and is about a third of the diameter of the eye. The fingers are moderate, depressed, and webbed at the base. The first finger is half the length of the second. The toes are almost entirely webbed and the tips of both fingers and toes are dilated into broad, truncated disks being smaller on the toes. The tubercle near the joint is small, with two small, flat metatarsal tubercles. There is no tarsal fold. When the hind limb is held straight beside the body, the metatarsal tubercles reach to between the eye and tip of the snout. Skin of upper parts is rough (tubercular), the largest tubercles being arranged along each side of the back. In color, it is brownish-grey above, with the sides darker; a white band runs from below the eye to the axil; another white, longitudinal band is in the lumbar region; the beneath is dark-spotted. The male has a subgular vocal sac.<ref>Boulenger, G. A. (1890) Fauna of British India. Reptilia and Batrachia.</ref> Females are larger than males. Adults of this toad grow to 3.6-3.85 cm in length.

The call is described as a "shirrrr shirr shirr shirr", with a dominant frequency of 3780 Hz, each call lasting 3 to 7 sec with three to 10 pulses.<ref>Gururaja, K. V. & T. V. Ramachandra 2006. ''Pedostibes tuberculosus'' Advertisement call and distribution. Herpetological Review 37(1):75-76 [http://eprints.iisc.ernet.in/archive/00011890/01/Pedostibes_tuberculosus_KVG.pdf]</ref>

Its length from snout to vent is 1.4 in.

==Habitat==
This species is known to live in tree habitats, but adults are found among leaf litter, climbing into trees at night. They are found in the forest of the [[Western Ghats]] at elevations of 250 m to over 1000 m, often beside streams.<ref>Daniels, R.J. 2005. Amphibians of Peninsular India. City:Hyderabad. 116-117p.</ref>
<gallery>
Image:PedostibesTuberculosus3.jpg
Image:PedostibesTuberculosus1.jpg
Image:PedostibesTuberculosus5.jpg
</gallery>

==References==
{{Reflist|refs=

<ref name="Chan et al. 2016">{{Cite journal |last1=Chan |first1=Kin Onn |last2=Grismer |first2=L. Lee |last3=Zachariah |first3=Anil |last4=Brown |first4=Rafe M. |last5=Abraham |first5=Robin Kurian |name-list-style=amp |date=2016 |title=Polyphyly of Asian tree toads, genus ''Pedostibes'' Günther, 1876 (Anura: Bufonidae), and the description of a new genus from Southeast Asia |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=11 |issue=1 |pages=e0145903 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0145903|pmid=26788854 |pmc=4720419 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

<ref name=Frost>{{cite web |url=http://research.amnh.org/vz/herpetology/amphibia/Amphibia/Anura/Bufonidae/Pedostibes |title=''Pedostibes'' Günther, 1876 |author=Frost, Darrel R. |year=2019 |work=Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0 |publisher=American Museum of Natural History |accessdate=27 September 2019}}</ref>
}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Pedostibes}}
{{Commons category|Pedostibes tuberculosus}}
{{Wikispecies|Pedostibes}}

{{Taxonbar|from1=Q2715878|from2=Q2355367}}

[[Category:Frogs of India]]
[[Category:Endemic fauna of the Western Ghats]]
[[Category:Pedostibes]]
[[Category:Amphibians described in 1876]]
[[Category:Amphibians of Asia]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Albert Günther]]

Malabar tree toad - Revision history

UpdateBot at 19:43, 16 December 2021