Bocaina treefrog facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Bocaina treefrog |
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The Bocaina treefrog (scientific name: Aplastodiscus albosignatus) is a type of frog that belongs to the Hylidae family, which includes many treefrogs. This special frog lives only in Brazil, meaning it is endemic there. You can find it in warm, wet forests, including those on mountains, and near rivers. Sadly, its home is shrinking, which puts it at risk.
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What Does the Bocaina Treefrog Look Like?
This amazing frog can grow to be about 5 cm (2.0 in) long, which is about the size of your thumb! It has a wide head and a pointy nose. Inside its mouth, on the roof, it has small vomerine teeth.
Its big, round eyes have golden parts (irises) and pupils that look like a horizontal line. You can easily see its tympanum, which is like an eardrum, on the side of its head.
Male Bocaina treefrogs have a single vocal sac in their throat. This sac helps them make loud calls. What's really cool is that this frog isn't just green on the outside; its muscles and even its bones are green too!
There are many similar treefrogs in Brazil. But the Bocaina treefrog has special, large bumps near its tail end. These bumps help scientists tell it apart from other species. Its young, called tadpoles, also have unique features.
Where Does the Bocaina Treefrog Live?
The Bocaina treefrog is an arboreal species, meaning it lives mostly in trees. It is found in the mountains of southeastern Brazil. These frogs can live at high altitudes, up to 1,800 metres (5,900 ft) above sea level.
Many of these frogs live in protected areas like national parks. For example, it was first discovered in the Serra da Bocaina National Park. Its home is in both old, untouched virgin forests and older forests that have grown back. They prefer areas close to mountain streams.
You usually won't find these frogs in places where people farm or live. They like quiet, natural forest environments.
How Does the Bocaina Treefrog Reproduce?
Bocaina treefrogs usually breed between September and February. During this time, the male frogs call out at night. They often call from among rocks or from the banks of streams in the forest.
The female frogs lay their eggs in special underground nests. These nests are built in the muddy banks of streams. Once the eggs hatch, the young tadpoles live at the bottom of the stream.
The tadpoles grow and change into frogs through a process called metamorphosis. They are usually about 21 mm (0.83 in) long when they complete this change.
What is the Bocaina Treefrog's Status?
The Bocaina treefrog is currently listed as a species of Least Concern by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. This means it is not in immediate danger of disappearing. It is quite common in the areas where it lives.
However, the number of Bocaina treefrogs seems to be slowly going down. Even though the population is decreasing, it's not happening fast enough for scientists to give it a higher threat level right now.
