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Family: Hylidae
Gliding Leaf Frog, more...Spurrell's Leaf Frog, Spurrell's Leaf-frog (es: Rana)
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Adult: Species description based on Ibanez et al (1999), Duellman (2001) and Savage (2002). Large treefrog. Males to 75.6 mm, females to 92.8 mm. Individuals from Panama are much larger than individuals from Costa Rica. Dorsal: Dorsum green and smooth, often with white spots bordered by black. Ventral: Ventral surface white to yellow, and granular. Concealed surfaces: Flanks and thighs yellow to orange in color. Eye: Iris deep red. Pupil vertical. Lower membrane reticulated with greenish gold. Extremities: Hands and feet fully webbed with large terminal toe pads. Breeding season: Agalychnis spurrelli breeds in pools and water-filled cavities in logs. Males call from branches above the water. This species breeds explosively after heavy rains, when incredibly large numbers of individuals congregate at a breeding site (Scott and Starrett 1974). Egg: Clutches of eggs with a distinct, rather thick rubbery-looking membrane are deposited in a single layer on the upper surfaces of leaves (Scott and Starrett 1974). Eggs hatch in approximately 6 days (Scott and Starrett 1974), but can hatch as early as 3-4 days if they experience disturbance such as flooding (Gomez-Mestre and Warkentin 2007). Tadpole: Tadpole olive brown dorsally, bluish grey laterally, and pale blue-grey below (Duellman 1970). The posterior portion of the body and the tail often have dark brown markings (Duellman 1970). Tadpoles develop in water. Tadpoles orient themselves in the water column at a 45 degree angle with their heads facing upwards (Duellman 1970). Metamorph juvenile: Metamorphs have green dorsums (with or without spots) and white venters (Duellman 1970). Habitat: Lowland rainforest [from sea level] to 885 m (Duellman 1970). Ecology: In many species of leaf-breeding frogs, including A. spurrelli, there is a period of days during which embryos are capable of hatching. Embryos remain in the egg longer if undisturbed than if disturbed by a predator or flooding. However, the ability of A. spurrelli to escape hatch during snake attacks and flooding is limited compared to other species such as Agalychnis callidryas (Gomez-Mestre and Warkentin 2007, Gomez-Mestre et al 2008). Helminth parasites have been found in the intestine and bladder of A. spurrelli (Goldberg and Bursey 2008). Call: A single, low-pitched groan (Duellman 1970). Scott and Starrett (1974) mentioned a second "wuk, wuk, wuk" call that was most likely an aggressive call. Behavior and communication: Males have been observed scraping eggs off of leaves with their hind feet (Scott and Starrett 1974). Type locality: "Peria Lisa, Condoto, Choco Province, Colombia" |