Trachycephalus dibernardoi facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Trachycephalus dibernardoi |
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| Conservation status | |
Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Anura |
| Family: | Hylidae |
| Genus: | Trachycephalus |
| Species: |
T. dibernardoi
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| Binomial name | |
| Trachycephalus dibernardoi Kwet and Solé, 2008
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The Trachycephalus dibernardoi is a type of frog that belongs to the Hylidae family. This frog is found only in Brazil and Argentina. Scientists also believe it might live in Paraguay.
Contents
Discovering the Frog: How Was It Found?
When Was This Frog First Described?
This frog species was officially described in 2008. Two herpetologists, Axel Kwet and Mirco Solé, were the ones who first wrote about it.
Where Was the First Frog Found?
The very first Trachycephalus dibernardoi frog was found in a special place. This place is called "Centro de Pesquisas e Conservação da Natureza (CPCN) Pró Mata." It is located near São Francisco de Paula, Rio Grande do Sul in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The frog was found at an altitude of 950 meters above sea level.
What Is a Holotype?
A holotype is like the main example specimen of a species. For this frog, the holotype is an adult female. It was caught on January 20, 1996, by Axel Kwet and Marcos Di Bernardo. You can find this special frog stored at the PUCRS Museum of Science and Technology in Porto Alegre.
What Does the Frog's Name Mean?
The name Trachycephalus comes from Greek words. "Trachy" means "rough," and "cephalus" means "head." So, it means "rough head."
The second part of its name, dibernardoi, honors a person. It is named after Marcos Di Bernardo. He was a herpetologist and a professor. He helped find the first frog and wrote a book about amphibians in Brazil. Sadly, he passed away in 2006 at age 42.
What Does This Frog Look Like?
This frog is quite large for a tree frog. Female frogs can grow up to 77.6 mm long from their snout to their vent (bottom). Males are a bit smaller, reaching about 57.2 mm.
The frog's eyes are yellow. They have a cool pattern of black lines that look like four petals. Its back can be brown or olive green. It often has patterns that look like eyemarks or other patches. Its legs have black and white bands.
One special thing about this frog is a white shape on its back. It has a white parallelogram that goes from each eye all the way to its sacrum (part of its back). This helps tell it apart from a similar frog, T. imitatrix.
Where Does This Frog Live?
Where in Brazil and Argentina?
In Brazil, this frog has been found in the states of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina. For example, it lives in São Francisco de Paula (at 950 m altitude) and Machadinho (at 760 m) in Rio Grande do Sul. In Santa Catarina, it's been found in Seara (at 550 m).
It also lives in the northeastern part of Argentina. Specifically, it's found in the Misiones province, in a place called El Soberbio.
Where Else Might It Live?
Scientists think this frog might live in many other places too. They believe it could be found between 150 and 1100 meters above sea level. This includes the Sierra Geral area and nearby regions. There might also be more populations in western Paraguay and in the state of Paraná in Brazil.
Is This Frog Protected?
The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) keeps a list of endangered species. This list is called the IUCN Red List. The Trachycephalus dibernardoi frog is currently classified as a "least concern" species. This means it is not in danger of disappearing right now.
See also
In Spanish: Trachycephalus dibernardoi para niños
