How the critically endangered Anaimalai flying frog got a new home

Source: The Hindu

 What is the News?

Frog enthusiast in Kerala has constructed two ponds at Windermere Estate to restore the habitat for the Anaimalai flying frog.

About Anaimalai flying frog:

• Anaimalai flying frog (Racophorus pseudomalabaricus) is also known as the False Malabar Gliding Frog.
• The frog is endemic to the southern part of the Western Ghats.

Characteristics of the Anaimalai flying frog:

• The frog is usually larger than bush frogs.
  • Bush Frog is a species of Frog belonging to the family Rhacophoridae.
• The female can grow up to three inches. Mating takes place usually between June and October during the rainy season.
• The female creates foam nests on leaves, into which the eggs are laid and the male fertilises them.
• The outer layer of foam protects the eggs from bacteria, predators and weather changes.
• When the eggs hatch, the nest disintegrates and tadpoles drop into the water body below.

Conservation Status:

• IUCN Status: Critically Endangered

Threats:

• This species is known from at least two protected areas, Indra Gandhi National Park and Parambikulam Tiger Reserve.
• Outside the protected areas, it is threatened habitat loss caused by the conversion of forests to other uses as well as by timber extraction