‘Dainty’ creature — with ‘large’ body — found as new species in South Africa. See it
.JPG "In the rocky outcrops of southwestern South Africa, a “dainty” creature rests in pools of water at night.")
In the dry and rugged terrain of the Cederberg region of South Africa, creatures can’t depend on an abundance of resources or regular rainfall.
Many animals wouldn’t be able to survive here, but for one group of frogs, it’s paradise.
Half of all species in the genus Cacosternum, or dainty frogs, have been discovered here. Now, researchers have just identified one more.
The discovery was published Sept. 18 in the peer-reviewed journal Zootaxa.
Cacosternum cederbergense, or the Cederberg dainty frog, belongs to a clade of dainty frogs known for their relatively ”large” body size, researchers said.
The holotype, or primary specimen used to diagnose the species, was collected about 1,600 feet above sea level and measured just shy of one inch long, according to the study.
Researchers described the frog’s body as “slender,” while its head is “bluntly rounded” and makes up one quarter of its total size.
The frog has small hands leading to rounded, unwebbed fingertips, according to the study. On the hands, the frog has “heart-shaped” palmar tubercles, a pad-like structure.
C. cederbergense’s back has “olive mottling over paler beige patches,” and small bumps covered with “black blotches,” researchers said. Its stomach is white with “large black blotches that fuse together and are tinged with orange.”
Researchers also recorded the frog’s call, which they heard 20 times in just over 18 minutes, according to the study.
The call wasn’t territorial, researchers said, and came from a single male frog in a pool of water.
The researchers described it as a “short, pulsed bray emitted singly at long intervals,” according to the study.
The Cederberg dainty frogs rest in pools of water at night, either completely submerged at the bottom of the water or partially clinging to a rock, researchers said.
“During the day, adult and juvenile frogs have been found sheltering under rocks, or in small cracks in the pool edge,” according to the study.
The frogs will also play dead when picked up, a technique observed in other dainty frogs, where they will death-feign by tucking in their legs and head inwards and stiffening their body, researchers said.
On one occasion when researchers picked up a frog it secreted a white liquid from large glands on the sides of their backs, according to the study.
The secretions of a related species, C. capense, have been found to be toxic, and researchers suspect this is also the case for the new species.
The Cederberg region and mountain range runs along the southwestern cape of South Africa.
The research team includes Oliver Angus, Nicolas Telford, Tyrone Ping and Werner Conradie.
This story was originally published September 20, 2024 at 12:15 PM with the headline "‘Dainty’ creature — with ‘large’ body — found as new species in South Africa. See it."
