Indirana Explained

Indirana is a genus of frogs in the family Ranixalidae.[1] [2] These frogs are endemic to the Western Ghats of India. They are sometimes known under the common name Indian frogs,[3] whereas members of their parent family are named "leaping frogs".[1] [4]

Indirana represent an ancient radiation of frogs that diverged from all other frogs almost 50 million years ago. This has credited Indirana gundia as a status of one of the "Top 100 Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered Amphibians".

Description

Indirana species are small and slender-bodied frogs. They are typically found in leaf litter or near streams.[4] The tadpoles have hind limbs and finless tails, and are able to leap away to escape threats.[5] [6]

Taxonomy

Traditional classifications place the genus within the subfamily Ranixalinae of the family Ranidae, along with the genera Nannophrys and Nyctibatrachus.[7] The Ranixalinae have also been placed under the family Nyctibatrachidae.[8] Darrel R. Frost et al. (2006) placed them within the family Petropedetidae.[9] [10]

Species

New species are still being discovered: Indirana salelkari was discovered in the Netravali Wildlife Sanctuary in the Indian state of Goa and described in late July 2015.[11] The following species are recognised in the genus Indirana:[3]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Ranixalidae Dubois, 1987 . Frost, Darrel R. . 2015 . Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0 . American Museum of Natural History . 7 August 2015.
  2. Web site: Ranixalidae . 2015 . AmphibiaWeb: Information on amphibian biology and conservation. [web application] . Berkeley, California: AmphibiaWeb . 7 August 2015.
  3. Web site: Indirana Laurent, 1986 . Frost, Darrel R. . 2015 . Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0 . American Museum of Natural History . 7 August 2015.
  4. Book: Herpetology: An Introductory Biology of Amphibians and Reptiles . 4th . Laurie J.. Vitt. Janalee P. . Caldwell. Academic Press. 2014. 503.
  5. Web site: Gundia Indian Frog (Indirana gundia) . EDGE of Existence programme . Zoological Society of London . 1 June 2014.
  6. 10.1670/08-158.1. Jumping behavior of semiterrestrial tadpoles of Indirana beddomii (Günth.): relative importance of tail and body size. Journal of Herpetology. 43. 4. 680–684. 2009. Veeranagoudar . D. K. . Radder . R. S. . Shanbhag . B. A. . Saidapur . S. K. . 86364626.
  7. Book: George R. Zug . Laurie J. Vitt . Janalee P. Caldwell . Herpetology: An Introductory Biology of Amphibians and Reptiles. Academic Press. 2001. 430. 978-0-12-782622-6.
  8. Web site: Ranixalinae. ZipCodeZoo, BayScience Foundation, Inc.. 6 March 2012. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20140602201046/http://zipcodezoo.com/Key/Animalia/Ranixalinae_Subfamily.asp. 2 June 2014.
  9. Frost . D. R. . Grant . T. . Faivovich . J. N. . Bain . R. H. . Haas . A. . Haddad . C. L. F. B. . De Sá . R. O. . Channing . A. . Wilkinson . M. . Donnellan . S. C. . Raxworthy . C. J. . Campbell . J. A. . Blotto . B. L. . Moler . P. . Drewes . R. C. . Nussbaum . R. A. . Lynch . J. D. . Green . D. M. . Wheeler . W. C. . The Amphibian Tree of Life . Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History . 297 . 1–291. 2006 . 10.1206/0003-0090(2006)297[0001:TATOL]2.0.CO;2 . 2246/5781. 86140137 . free .
  10. Michael F. Barej . Mark-Oliver Rödel . Legrand Nono Gonwouo . Olivier S.G. Pauwels . Wolfgang Böhme . Andreas Schmitz . 2010. Review of the genus Petropedetes Reichenow, 1874 in Central Africa with the description of three new species (Amphibia: Anura: Petropedetidae). Zootaxa. 2340. 1 - 49.
  11. News: Newly discovered frog species named after Goan forest officer. 2015-08-02 . Business Standard . 2015-07-29. Press Trust of India.

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