Monte Iberia Eleuth

Monte Iberia Eleuth
Conservation status
Critically Endangered (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Amphibia
Order:	Anura
Family:	Leptodactylidae
Subfamily:	Eleutherodactylinae
Genus:	Eleutherodactylus
Subgenus:	Euhyas
Species:	E. iberia Estrada & Hedges, 1996
Binomial name
Eleutherodactylus iberia Estrada and Hedges, 1996
Distribution of E. iberia in Cuba

The Monte Iberia Eleuth (Eleutherodactylus iberia) is the smallest living frog in the northern hemisphere, ranging between 9.6 to 9.8 millimetres (0.38 to 0.39 in) in length.^[2] It is the second-smallest frog (and tetrapod) in the world, following the Brazilian Gold Frog.^[3] It was first discovered in 1996 on Mount Iberia, from which the animal gets its name, and exists in only two small regions of Cuba. Much remains unknown about this small creature.

Discovery

The diminutive species was first documented by Cuban scientist Alberto R. Estrada of the Institute of Forest Research in Havana, working with S. Blair Hedges of Pennsylvania State University in association with the National Science Foundation's Biotic Surveys and Inventories Program. On a 1996 expedition to Cuchillas de Moa in search of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker (now believed to be extinct), four iberia specimens were collected after being uncovered under leaf litter and among the roots of ferns in a secondary hardwood forest on the western slope of Monte Iberia.^[4] The find was published in the journal Copeia, where the name Eleutherodactylus iberia was introduced.^[3][5][6]

Description

E. iberia is physically similar to E. limbatus and E. orientalis, but it is generally darker and the lines on its back do not extend as far to the rear. Because of the extreme miniaturization of the species, it possesses fewer teeth than its cousins and a laryngeal apparatus comparable in size to the head of a pin (resulting in a high-pitched call of a series of irregular chirps, comparable to other species of the genus).

Reproductive data is extremely limited. The female specimen which has provided the sole source of data thus far was found beside an egg, suggesting that iberia lays a single egg in each clutch and that the parents are closely involved in raising the young (as is common with animals who birth few offspring a time).^[5]

Habitat

Only two isolated populations are known to exist, both in the Holguín Province of eastern Cuba at elevations under 600 meters.^[7] The first location is on top of the Monte Iberia tableland where the frog was discovered. The second is smaller (less than 100 km² and sparsely-occupied, near Nibujón at sea level. This latter area has suffered great disturbances over the past 40 years from human activities.^[8]

E. iberia exists in areas of closed rainforest with poorly-drained soil; it requires a great deal of humidity for its survival.^[9]

Notes

References

1. ^ Hedges, B. & Díaz, L. (2004). Eleutherodactylus iberia. 2006. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved on 19 June 2007.
2. ^ [1]^{[dead link]}
3. ^ ^{a b} "Frogs on all continents except Antarctica". Interesting Animals. Fascinating facts & amazing stories. http://www.didyouknow.cd/animals/frogs.htm. Retrieved 2007-06-12. 
4. ^ Eleutherodactylus iberia (No common name)
5. ^ ^{a b} Walters, Mark Jermoe (1997). "Spotting the smallest frog: as hopes fades for one species, a tiny frog comes into view - discovery of Eleutherodactylus iberia". Look Smart: Find Articles. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FRO/is_n3_v130/ai_19421840. Retrieved 2007-06-19. 
6. ^ US NSF - News - Biotic Surveys Program Uncovers Smallest Frog , Frontiers, September 1997
7. ^ Global Amphibian Assessment - Detailed Report
8. ^ [2]^{[dead link]}
9. ^ InfoNatura - Detailed Report

Further reading

• AmphibiaWeb: Eleutherodactylus iberia -- features a more detailed physical description
• http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1200/is_n23_v150/ai_18965496
• Estrada, A. R. and S. B. Hedges (1996). At the lower size limit in tetrapods: a new diminutive frog from Cuba (Leptodactylidae: Eleutherodactylus). Copeia , 1996(4), 853-859.
• Gomez, A.R., and R. Alonso (2000). "Threatened Amphibians of Cuba." Froglog, 2000(37), 5-6.