Azuay stubfoot toad facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Azuay stubfoot toad |
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The Atelopus bomolochos, also known as the Azuay stubfoot toad or Cuenca jambato frog, is a type of toad. It belongs to the family called Bufonidae. This special toad lives only in southern Ecuador. You can find it in the Cordillera Oriental mountains, specifically in the Azuay, Cañar, and Loja Provinces.
About This Toad
Male Azuay stubfoot toads are about 38 to 41 millimeters long. Female toads are a bit bigger, measuring about 44 to 51 millimeters from snout to vent. Their backs can be yellow, yellow with brown, or yellowish-green. They often have black spots on their backs. Their bellies are usually yellow or orange.
Where It Lives and Why It Needs Help
This toad naturally lives in humid mountain forests and high-altitude grasslands called páramo. It can be found at elevations from 2,500 to 2,800 meters above sea level. These toads like to breed in streams.
This species used to be very common, but its numbers have dropped a lot. Scientists believe two main reasons caused this decline. One is a fungal disease called chytridiomycosis. The other is the loss of its natural habitat.
After 2002, when the last toad was seen in Sangay National Park, people worried it might be extinct. But in 2015, a small group of these toads was found again near Cuenca. This was great news!
To help protect this rare toad, some of them are now cared for at the Amaru Zoo in Cuenca. This helps make sure the species can survive.
See also
In Spanish: Atelopus bomolochos para niños
