How the critically endangered Anaimalai flying frog got a new home

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Source: The Hindu

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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
Source: The Hindu
  • 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
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