Microhyla karunaratnei
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Microhylidae
Genus: Microhyla
Species:
M. karunaratnei
Binomial name
Microhyla karunaratnei
Fernando and Siriwardhane, 1996[2]

Microhyla karunaratnei is a species of frog in the family Microhylidae. It is endemic to southern Sri Lanka.[1][3] It is also known as the Karunaratne's narrow-mouth frog[3] or Karunaratne's narrow-mouthed frog.[4] The specific name karunaratnei honours G. Punchi Banda Karunaratne, a Sri Lankan naturalist.[2][4]

Description

Adult males measure 16–17 mm (0.6–0.7 in) and adult females, based on a single specimen, about 19 mm (0.7 in) in snout–vent length. The snout is blunt. The canthus rostralis is rounded. The tympanum is hidden. The fingers have poorly developed discs and no webbing. The toes have webbing, lateral fringes, and more developed discs. Skin is smooth. The dorsum is pinkish grey-brown, and there is a blackish lateral stripe. There is a dark brown mid-dorsal marking, but this is indistinct in some specimens. The venter is white with black marbling.[2]

Habitat and conservation

Microhyla karunaratnei occurs in shaded, wet leaf litter in tropical moist forest at elevations of 515–1,110 m (1,690–3,642 ft) above sea level. The tadpoles develop in wetlands, including old abandoned gem mining pits,[1] the creation of which may actually have benefited the species.[2] However, Microhyla karunaratnei is an uncommon species that is known only from two sites. It is threatened by habitat loss caused by expanding cardamom plantations and by agricultural pollution. It occurs in the Sinharaja Forest Reserve.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group (2020). "Microhyla karunaratnei". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020: e.T57883A156578570. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T57883A156578570.en. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Fernando, P. & Siriwardhane, M. (1996). "Microhyla karunaratnei (Anura: Microhylidae), a new species of frog endemic to Sri Lanka" (PDF). Journal of South Asian Natural History. 2 (1): 135–142.
  3. 1 2 Frost, Darrel R. (2018). "Microhyla karunaratnei Fernando and Siriwardhane, 1996". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 5 January 2019.
  4. 1 2 Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael & Grayson, Michael (2013). The Eponym Dictionary of Amphibians. Pelagic Publishing. p. 110. ISBN 978-1-907807-42-8.
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