Paedophryne amauensis
| Paedophryne amauensis | |
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| Paratype of Paedophryne amauensis (LSUMZ 95004) on a US dime | |
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| Species: | P. amauensis
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| Binomial name | |
| Paedophryne amauensis Rittmeyer, 2012[1]
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Paedophryne amauensis is a species of frog from Papua New Guinea discovered in August 2009 and formally described in January 2012[1]. At 7.7 millimetres (0.30 in) in length, it is probably the world's smallest known vertebrate.[2][1]
Discovery
The frog species was discovered in August of 2009 by ecologist Christopher Austin while on an expedition to explore the diversity of Papua New Guinea, near Amau Village in the Central Province.[1] The discovery was published in the peer-reviewed scientific journal PLoS ONE in January 2012.[1]
Characteristics
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P. amauensis is a millimeter smaller than the previous record holder for being the world's smallest vertebrate, a species of carp (Paedocypris progenetica) from Indonesia.[3][4] The frog lives on land, and its life cycle does not include a tadpole stage.[3] The frog is crepuscular and feeds on small invertebrates. They are capable of jumping 30 times their own body length. Males call for mates with a series of very high pitched 8400–9400 Hz insect-like peeps.[1]
Habitat
Like all species of Paedophryne known so far, Paedophryne amauensis lives in the leaf litter on the floors of tropical forests.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g Rittmeyer, Eric N.; Allison, Allen; Gründler, Michael C.; Thompson, Derrick K.; Austin, Christopher C. (2012). Etges, William J. (ed.). "Ecological guild evolution and the discovery of the world's smallest vertebrate". PLoS ONE. 7 (1): e29797. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0029797. Retrieved 11 January 2012.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: unflagged free DOI (link) - ^ "World's tiniest frogs found in Papua New Guinea". The Australian. 12 January 2012. Retrieved 11 January 2012.
- ^ a b "World's smallest creature with a vertebrate named". The Telegraph. 12 January 2012. Retrieved 12 January 2012.
- ^ "Hallan en Papúa Nueva Guinea a las ranas más pequeñas del mundo" (in Spanish). eluniverso.com. Retrieved 2012-01-12.