Kajang slender litter frog facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Kajang slender litter frog |
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| Conservation status | |
Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Anura |
| Family: | Megophryidae |
| Genus: | Leptobrachella |
| Species: |
L. kajangensis
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| Binomial name | |
| Leptobrachella kajangensis (Grismer, Grismer, and Youmans, 2004)
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| Leptobrachella kajangensis is only known from Tioman Island, Malaysia | |
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| Synonyms | |
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Leptolalax kajangensis Grismer, Grismer, and Youmans, 2004 |
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The Kajang slender litter frog (scientific name: Leptobrachella kajangensis) is a special kind of amphibian. It belongs to the family Megophryidae, which includes many types of frogs and toads. This frog is found only in Malaysia.
It lives in a very specific place: a small cave near the top of Gunung Kajang (Mount Kajang). This mountain is on Tioman Island, a small island located about 32 kilometers (20 miles) off the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia.
What Does It Look Like?
Scientists first studied two adult male frogs of this species. They measured about 35 to 36 millimeters (1.4 inches) long from their snout to their bottom. This is quite large for a frog in the Leptobrachella group.
These frogs were found calling near a pond inside the cave. Scientists also collected some tadpoles from the same pond. They believe these tadpoles are the young of the Kajang slender litter frog.
Some other tadpoles were found lower down on the same mountain. They looked similar but had different colors. These might be a different species of frog.
Where Did It Come From?
Tioman Island was once connected to Peninsular Malaysia. This connection happened a very long time ago, during the Pleistocene Ice Age.
However, scientists think it's unlikely that the Kajang slender litter frog simply walked across flat land to get to Gunung Kajang. Instead, they believe the frog's ancestors were already there when the land changed.
This idea is called vicariance. It means that a species gets separated into different groups when a natural barrier, like water or mountains, forms. So, the frog's ancestors might have been on a larger mountain range that later became Tioman Island.
 | James B. Knighten |
 | Azellia White |
 | Willa Brown |
