Sooglossidae

Taxobox
name = Seychelles Frogs

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image_caption = "Nasikabatrachus sahyadrensis"
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Amphibia
ordo = Anura
subordo = Neobatrachia
familia = Sooglossidae
range_

range_map_caption = Distribution of Sooglossidae (in black)The Seychelles Frogs (Sooglossidae) are a family of frogs only found on the Seychelles Islands. Until recently this family was believed to include the genera "Nesomantis" and "Sooglossus", but following a major revision of amphibians in 2006 [http://digitallibrary.amnh.org/dspace/bitstream/2246/5781/1/B297.pdf] the genus "Nesomantis" was named a junior synonym of "Sooglossus"; conversely, the recently-discovered Purple Frog which was initially assigned to a distinct monotypic family (Nasikabatrachidae) is now included in the Sooglossidae [Frost, Darrel R. 2006. Amphibian Species of the World: an online reference. Version 4.0 (17 August 2006). Electronic Database accessible at http://research.amnh.org/herpetology/amphibia/index.php. American Museum of Natural History, New York, USA.] .

All of the species are relatively small terrestrial frogs, about (convert|4|cm|in in length, hiding under fallen leaves or in rock crevices. They are unusual for the Neobatrachials, in that they undertaking inguinal amplexus, a primitive version of amplexus. They lay their eggs on moist ground, rather than in water. One species lacks tadpoles, with the eggs hatching directly into miniature frogs, while the others carry the tadpoles on their backs until their metamorphose.cite book |editor=Cogger, H.G. & Zweifel, R.G.|author= Zweifel, Richard G.|year=1998|title=Encyclopedia of Reptiles and Amphibians|publisher= Academic Press|location=San Diego|pages= 104-105|isbn= 0-12-178560-2]

There is no fossil record for the family. The two genera's ancestors diverged when the Seychelles Islands split from India about 100 million ago.

Taxonomy

The family was first described in 1931 by Gladwyn Kingsley Noble (1894-1940).
*Genus "Sooglossus" (Seychelles Frogs)
**Gardiner's Seychelles Frog ("S. gardineri")
**Seychelles Palm Frog ("S. pipilodryas")
**Seychelles Frog ("S. sechellensis")
**Thomasset's Frog ("S. thomasseti")

*Genus "Nasikabatrachus" (Purple Frog)
**"Nasikabatrachus sahyadrensis"

References