Fungoid frog facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Fungoid frog |
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| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Hydrophylax (frog)
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| Species: |
malabaricus
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| Synonyms | |
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The Fungoid Frog (Hydrophylax malabaricus), also known as the Malabar Hills Frog, is a very colorful frog. You can find it living on the forest floor and in low plants in the Western Ghats mountain range. This area stretches across southwestern India, from the city of Mumbai all the way to Kerala.
This frog looks a lot like another species called Hydrophylax bahuvistara. They live in some of the same places, but the Hydrophylax bahuvistara also lives further into central India. Even though the Fungoid Frog only lives in a specific part of India, scientists are not worried about it disappearing. Its numbers are stable, so it's considered a species of "least concern" for conservation.
Fungoid Frogs have amazing colors! Their backs can be brownish-red or even bright crimson.
What the Fungoid Frog Looks Like
The Fungoid Frog has a head that is a normal size and a bit flat. Its snout is also a normal size and slightly pointed. The frog's nostrils are closer to the tip of its snout than to its eyes.
Its eardrum, called the tympanum, is very easy to see and is almost as big as its eye. The frog's fingers are a normal length, and its first finger is longer than the second. Its toes are quite short and are about half-webbed, which means they have some skin between them. The tips of its fingers and toes are a bit swollen, like small pads.
The skin on the Fungoid Frog's back is finely bumpy, almost like it has tiny grains. It also has a wide, slightly raised fold of skin along its sides. Another strong skin fold runs from below its eye to its shoulder, sometimes with one or two smaller bumps behind it.
The colors of the Fungoid Frog are striking. Its head and body are often a bright crimson red on top. The sides of its body are a darker, blackish-brown. Sometimes, its back has a few small black spots. Its upper lip is white, and it has a series of white spots along its sides. The legs are blackish-brown on top, with spots and patterns of pale brown and white. Underneath, the frog is usually plain white, or it might have a mix of brown and white patterns.
Images for kids
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A Fungoid Frog on a leaf.
