La Loma tree frog facts for kids
Quick facts for kids La Loma tree frog |
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Hyla colymba Dunn, 1931 |
The La Loma tree frog (Hyloscirtus colymba) is a special kind of frog. It belongs to the Hylidae family, which includes many tree frogs. You can find this frog in countries like Costa Rica and Panama. Scientists also think it might live in Colombia, but they haven't confirmed it yet.
These frogs love to live in warm, wet places. Their natural habitats are tropical lowland forests and montane forests (forests on mountains). They lay their eggs and raise their young in streams. Sadly, the La Loma tree frog is in danger. Its homes are disappearing, and it's also threatened by a serious frog disease called chytridiomycosis.
The frog's common name, La Loma, comes from the place where it was first discovered. This spot is on a trail in Panama, between Chiriquí Lagoon and Boquete.
What Does It Look Like?
This tree frog is quite pretty! It's a small frog, usually green or brown. It has a light orange or creamy stripe near its eye. Sometimes, you might see dark spots on its skin. Its fingers and toes are webbed, which helps it climb and swim.
Adult male frogs are about 31 to 37 millimeters (about 1.2 to 1.5 inches) long. Female frogs can be a bit bigger, growing up to 39 millimeters (about 1.5 inches). Male frogs have a creamy spot under their chin called a mental gland. They also have a pale bluish-green throat and a single gular sac, which helps them make sounds. Unlike some other frogs, they don't have special pads on their thumbs for breeding.
You can tell the La Loma tree frog apart from similar frogs. For example, Hyloscirtus palmeri doesn't have the eye stripe. Another frog, Isthmohyla angustilineata, has a stripe that goes all the way down to its leg, and its fingers are not webbed.
Life Cycle: Tadpoles
The babies of the La Loma tree frog are called tadpoles. They are quite large and have a bronze color with shiny gold spots. These tadpoles can grow up to 37 millimeters (about 1.5 inches) long. When they change into tiny frogs (this is called metamorphosis), they are about 17 to 19 millimeters (about 0.7 inches) long.
Tadpoles are good at scraping food. They have a special mouth part called an oral disc. It has a hard beak and rows of tiny teeth-like structures called denticles. These help them graze on algae and other tiny bits of food. La Loma tree frog tadpoles usually live in fast-flowing streams, often hiding among rocks. They are active at night, which means they are nocturnal.
Reproduction
Male La Loma tree frogs make high-pitched chirping sounds, a bit like crickets. They usually call from under rocks or plants near fast-moving streams. If they sense any danger or disturbance, they stop calling right away. This makes them very hard for scientists to find and study!
Scientists working with the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project noticed something interesting. In one area called Cerro Brewster, male frogs that were sick with chytridiomycosis (a serious frog disease) were much easier to spot. This was unusual because healthy frogs are so secretive.
Conservation Efforts
Even though these frogs are hard to find, scientists believe there might be more of them than we realize in some places. This is because they are very good at hiding. However, in western Panama, adult La Loma tree frogs have completely disappeared from many stream areas. This is due to the devastating frog disease, chytridiomycosis. Even the tadpoles can get sick, and their mouthparts can be damaged by the disease.
Because this disease has caused the frogs to vanish from much of their natural range, experts have decided that the La Loma tree frog needs urgent help. They are a high priority for "ex situ" conservation. This means keeping them safe outside their natural habitat.
The Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project, based in Panama City, has set up a special "assurance colony" for these frogs. This is like a safe haven where the frogs can live and breed. In 2010, they successfully bred the La Loma tree frog in captivity for the very first time! This is a big step towards saving this unique species.
