Boettger's horned toad facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Boettger's horned toad |
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The Boettger's horned toad (scientific name: Boulenophrys boettgeri) is a special kind of toad. People also call it the Boettger's spadefoot toad or the pale-shouldered horned toad. This interesting amphibian lives in parts of southern and southeastern China. You can also find it in northeastern India. A similar toad might also live in Tibet.
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Meet the Boettger's Horned Toad
This unique toad is known by a few different names. Its scientific name, Boulenophrys boettgeri, helps scientists around the world know exactly which animal they are talking about. It's a type of amphibian, which means it can live both on land and in water.
Where Does It Live?
Boettger's horned toads are found in a wide area. In China, they live from the Sichuan province in the west, up to Shanxi in the north, and over to Zhejiang in the east. They also make their home in northeastern India, in places like Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, and Assam. These toads prefer specific types of environments to thrive.
How Was This Toad Discovered?
The story of how the Boettger's horned toad was found is quite international. A Belgian scientist named [[George Albert Boulenger first described it. He worked at the Natural History Museum, London.
Naming the New Species
Boulenger named this toad Boulenophrys boettgeri to honor Oskar Boettger. Oskar Boettger was a German zoologist. The toads Boulenger studied were collected by an Irish bird expert, John David Digues La Touche. He found them in a village called Guadun, in Wuyishan, Fujian, China.
What Does It Look Like?
Boettger's horned toads have a unique appearance. Male toads are usually about 36 mm (1.4 in) long from their snout to their rear end. Females are a bit larger, growing to about 43 mm (1.7 in) long.
Colors and Skin
These toads are typically dark grey or brown. They have interesting blackish markings on their backs that are often symmetrical, meaning they look the same on both sides. Their skin is smooth, but they also have small, scattered warts on their head and back.
Habitat and Lifestyle
The Boettger's horned toad is a fairly common species in its native areas. It likes to live near water and in forests.
Where They Live and Breed
You can often find these toads near streams in hilly areas. They like places with lots of plants along the water's edge and in the leaf litter on the forest floor. These are usually evergreen forests, which stay green all year. When it's time to lay eggs, these frogs go into the streams. Their young, called tadpoles, can grow to be about 46 mm (1.8 in) long.
