Parachuting frog
The parachuting frog or pale-eyed parachuting tree frog (Litoria pterodactyla) is a frog from the island of New Guinea.[1] It is in the Nyctimystes gramineus complex with the Pinocchio frog and montane Pinocchio frog.[2][3]
| Parachuting frog | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Anura |
| Family: | Pelodryadidae |
| Genus: | Litoria |
| Species: | L. pterodactyla |
| Binomial name | |
| Litoria pterodactyla Oliver, Richards, and Donnellan, 2019 | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
The frog uses its webbed toes to steer when it jumps out of trees, like a human in a parachute. As of 2019, scientists had only seen the parachuting frog once.[3] They found it in the Muller mountain range, 515 meters above sea level.[1]
The scientists used DNA barcoding to examine the parachuting frog and other species found nearby, the Pinocchio frog and montane Pinocchio frog.[4]
The scientific name of this frog, pterodactyla, means "wings on its fingers" and comes from Latin.[3]
References
- "Nyctimystes pterodactyla (Oliver, Richards, and Donnellan, 2019)". American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
- "Litoria pterodactyla". Amphibiaweb. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
- Carley Rosengreen (June 7, 2019). "Frog discoveries have scientists hopping". Griffith University. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
- Paul Oliver; Stephen J. Richards; Stephen C. Donnellan (2019). "Two new species of treefrog (Pelodrydidae: Litoria) from southern New Guinea elucidated by DNA barcoding (Abstract)". Zootaxa. 4609 (3): 469. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4609.3.4. PMID 31717094. S2CID 182921660. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
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