Ingerana charlesdarwini (vernacular name: Charles Darwin's frog) is a species of frogs in the family Dicroglossidae. It is endemic to the Andaman Islands, India, and is known from the South Andaman Island, Long Island, and North Andaman Island.[1][2]
Taxonomy
Ingerana charlesdarwini was described in 1998 as Rana charlesdarwini by Template:Interlanguage link multi, but was moved to the genus Ingerana in 2006. It remains uncertain whether it truly belongs to Ingerana.[1][2] Later on, specimens labelled as Rana doriae andamanensis collected by Nelson Annandale were found from the Zoological Survey of India. However, Annandale never formally described a taxon using that name, so it is an unavailable name.[2]
Description
Adult males measure Template:Convert and adult females Template:Convert in snout–vent length. The snout is rounded and has a blunt tip. The tympanum is distinct and exposed; the supra-tympanic fold is well-developed and forms a thick, fleshy ridge. The fingers have no webbing whereas the toes are partially webbed. The finger and toe tips bear swollen discs, without circum-marginal grooves. Skin has minute granules scattered all over the dorsum; the venter is smooth. Colouration is variable with three different morphs:
- The first morph is dull olive brown but has a bright orange butterfly-like marking on the dorsum behind the occiput, and a smaller spot of the same colour above the sacral region. Only very feeble black subocular spots are present, and the limbs lack barred pattern.
- The second type is light tan and has very distinct black bars on the limbs. The dorsum has only a feeble W-like marking on the mid-dorsum and two indistinct orange spots. A mid-dorsal stripe might be present. Under moist conditions, the colour turns dark brown. Males have a dark gular vocal sac.
- The third morph, which is similar to the holotype, is bright creamy white but with a dark brown patch on the dorsum as well as very thin, creamy white mid-dorsal stripe and two distinct, white subocular spots. Again, males have a dark gular vocal sac.[2]
Habitat and conservation
Ingerana charlesdarwini have been found in primary evergreen and secondary forests at elevations below Template:Convert. The eggs are laid in water-filled tree holes.[3][2] It is threatened by habitat loss (clear-cutting). The type series was collected in the Mount Harriet National Park, and the species is also known from the Saddle Peak National Park.[3]