Wart-covered creature — with a ‘peeping’ call — discovered in Indonesia is new species
Three loud “peeping” sounds pierced through the darkness, leading researchers in Indonesia straight to a tiny creature nestled among the leaf litter scattered across the forest floor.
It was a new species of cross frog, according to a study published Oct. 12 in Zootaxa. The frogs, known as Oreophryne riyantoi, were discovered in an ”extremely wet” forest on Mount Mekongga in Sulawesi.
Scientists said the frogs are small — the two adult specimens they collected measured about 0.8 inches while the juvenile specimen they found was only about 0.5 inches. The specimens were collected by hand at night in November 2011.
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The critters have a rounded snout, small hands, short legs and unwebbed toes, and the skin on their head, body and limbs is covered in irregular warts, the study said. Their bellies are rough and slightly wrinkled.
Oreophryne riyantoi are dark gray, and their upper arms fingers and toes are orange, according to experts. They have an “indistinct W-shaped mark” on their backs.
Researchers said the species has an “unusual” habitat in the forest — other terrestrial cross frogs opt for open grassy or fern-filled meadows instead. The new species is only known from the region where it was found.
The species is also distinguished by its call, which consists of three to five “loud peeping notes,” which researchers only heard between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m., the study said. The last note of the sequence is “distinctly softer than those preceding it.”
Oreophryne riyantoi was named after Awal Riyanto, a senior researcher at Museum Zoologicum Bogoriense. The study’s co-authors said the name is in honor of Riyanto’s “remarkable contributions on taxonomic work and conservation of herpetofaunain Sulawesi.”
This story was originally published October 19, 2023 at 11:10 AM with the headline "Wart-covered creature — with a ‘peeping’ call — discovered in Indonesia is new species."
