Leptodactylus fragilis

Mexican White-lipped Frog
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Amphibia
Order:	Anura
Family:	Leptodactylidae
Genus:	Leptodactylus
Species:	L. fragilis
Binomial name
Leptodactylus fragilis (Brocchi, 1877)
Synonyms
Cystignathus fragilis (Brocchi, 1877)[2] Leptodactylus labialis (Cope, 1878) Leptodactylus mystaceus labialis Shreve, 1957

The Mexican White-lipped Frog (Leptodactylus fragilis) is a species of Leptodactylid frog which ranges from Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas in the United States south through Mexico and Central America to Colombia and Venezuela.^[3]

Description

Found in Manuel Antonio National Park, Costa Rica

Mexican white-lipped frogs are grey-brown in color with brown or black mottling. They have a distinctive white stripe along their upper lip which gives them their name. They grow to 1.5–2 in (3.8–5.1 cm) in length.

Behavior

Mexican white-lipped frogs are nocturnal and carnivorous. They will consume almost any small arthropod that they can catch. During the heat of the day, they bury themselves in loose soil of roadside ditches, irrigated cropland, or grasslands, and emerge to feed in the evenings. Breeding takes place during spring rains. Eggs are laid in a white, foamy secretion.

References

1. ^ Heyer et al. (2004). "Leptodactylus fragilis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 3.1. International Union for Conservation of Nature. http://www.iucnredlist.org/apps/redlist/details/57127. Retrieved 6 Jun 2011.  Database entry includes a range map and justification for why this species is of least concern
2. ^ "Leptodactylus fragilis (Brocchi, 1877)". American Museum of Natural History Amphibian Species of the World 5.4. American Museum of Natural History. http://research.amnh.org/vz/herpetology/amphibia/?action=references&id=15619. Retrieved 2010-04-27. 
3. ^ "Leptodactylus fragilis White-lipped Frog". Herps of Texas. University of Texas at Austin. http://www.zo.utexas.edu/research/txherps/frogs/leptodactylus.fragilis.html. Retrieved 2010-04-27. 

External links

Media related to Leptodactylus fragilis at Wikimedia Commons Data related to Leptodactylus fragilis at Wikispecies