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Raorchestes chalazodes (chalazodes bubble-nest frog, white-spotted bush frog, or Günther's bush frog) is a species of critically endangered frog in the family Rhacophoridae.

Raorchestes chalazodes is a nocturnal and arboreal species found in the understorey of tropical moist evergreen forest.

The original holotype was collected in 1876 by Colonel Richard Henry Beddome in Travancore and given to Albert C. L. G. Günther. Before its rediscovery in 2011 in the Upper Kodayar Region in Tamil Nadu, the species was thought to be extinct. Raorchestes chalazodes make there oviposition sites in the internodes of the Ochlandra travancorica species of bamboo, where the adult male will take care of the egg clutch. Raorchestes chalazodes is also the only species in its genus that is reported to exhibit parental care

Description

In life, the overall body coloration of Raorchestes chalazodes is green with its ventral region a purplish white. There are dark black-blue spots on the groin region. Some distinguishing characteristics of the species is the presence of a rounded snout, presence of a lingual papilla on the tongue, and the presence of well-developed supernumerary tubercles. Raorchestes chalazodes also has moderate toe webbing. One of its most unique and distinctive traits is its black iris with golden patches (

Original Holotype

The original holotype was an adult female collected in Travancore by Colonel Richard Henry Beddome, and given to and described by Albert C. L. G. Günther. This sample was found to be 26 mm long with the hind limb to be 42 mm in length. It is described to uniform greenish upper body with the lower part of the body was described to be a yellowish white color. The upper body also has the presence tubercles that look like white spots. (Gunther) These tubercles are presumed to be the reason for why Gunther named the species chalazodes.

Habitat and Distribution

Raorchestes chalazodes is found in the narrow region of the Western Ghats on the West Coast of peninsular India where they are restricted to elevations over 1200 m. Raorchestes chalazodes lives in the understorey of tropical moist evergreen forest. More specifically, Raorchestes chalazodes are found in the endemic understory of the Ochlandra travancorica bamboo that is found in the area. This bamboo forms a shrubby habitat that often forms imprenetrable clumps next to stream banks.

Conservation

Raorchestes chalazodes is currently classified as critically endangered by the most recent assessment by The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in 2004. This assessment of critically endangered is due to how the distribution of the species is severely fragmented and how the species experiences a continual decline in the extent and quality of its forest habitat.

The Ochlandra travancorica species of bamboo that Raorchestes chalazodes uses for oviposition sites is often harvested for use for biofuel and the manufacturing of paper and pulp. Because of this, Ochlandra travancorica has been severely depleted in the Western Ghats. To help with conservation, a mapping of its distribution to identify threatened areas that aren’t protected is a necessary first step. On top of this, harvesting bamboo with smaller diameters, stopping harvesting during the breeding season from May to November, and even creating artificial oviposition sites that resemble those found in the wild are all viable actions that can be taken to help with conservation of Raorchestes chalazodes.

Diet

Raorchestes chalazodes mainly consumes invertebrates such as insects and spiders, but have also been observed to eat other invertebrates like molluscs. Specifically, Raorchestes chalazodes was observed consuming Satiella dekkanensis, a type of snail with the absence of a hard shell. It is suggested that before the breeding season, adult male frogs will forage for large prey such as Satiella dekkanensis to prepare for the long period of caregiving.

Reproduction

The breeding season Raorchestes chalazodes is between the months of May and November. During this breeding season, males will find an internode in Ochlandra travancorica bamboo that has an opening and will vocalize inside the internode to attract females. Because males, stay near one internode, females are presumed to be polyandrous and move from one internode to the next with amplexus occurring inside the internode. . After the mating season ends, which is the months of November to December, the males will stop vocalizing and vacate the oviposition sites inside the internodes of the bamboo.

Parental Care

In Raorchestes chalazodes, there is direct parental care of offspring and in this species, the males are the sole providers of parental care where the males will have varied behavior to try to take care of egg clutches. Some of these strategies include egg attendance, egg guarding, and aggressive behavior to defend the oviposition site or itself. In egg attendance, the adult male frog will remain at a particular oviposition site regardless of time. In egg guarding, the adult male frog will be perched ahead of the eggs in the internode presumably to deter a perceived threat. The adult male frog will also exhibit aggressive behavior such as aggressive vocalization or by lunging at threats such as conspecific males and arthropods such as katydids and cockroaches, enter the internode. During the day, the adult male frog will sleep near the egg clutch with its eyes half closed and limbs brought close to its body. During the time period of parental care, the caregiver may not forage or feed.

This parental care serves as a way to protect the clutch from the many threats the eggs face. The mortality rate of unattended eggs is much higher than those of attended eggs, and the main source of egg mortality is from predation. The main causes of predation are cannibalism from conspecific males, egg parasitism from flies, and oophagy from ants. The male caregiver may eat the intruding ants and flies, which serves as a form of sustenance. Another cause of egg mortality was fungal infection. A majority of egg mortality results from cannibalism by unrelated males who are thought to be unsuccessful in finding a mate and defending their own oviposition site. As a male providing care regularly vocalizes which could signal territory ownership, a lack of vocalization may lead to these cannibalistic males attempting to take of the oviposition site and eating the nutrient rich eggs in the clutch.

Oviposition sites

Nests are made in the internodes of the Ochlandra travancorica species of bamboo. The adult frogs can get in through a small opening near the base of the internode. It is hypothesized that if the internode has an opening at the top, water could collect inside and drown the froglets. The insides of the oviposition sites have lower temperature and higher humidity compared to the outside. This higher humidity benefits the frog eggs by reducing water loss from evaporation. The eggs laid are also attached to the inner wall of the bamboo through a mucilaginous strand. Inside the bamboo, these eggs will undergo direct development without water.

Development

The eggs of Raorchestes chalazodes are spherical and transparent and are connected to the inner walls of the bamboo internode through a mucilaginous strand. The eggs have a creamy white yolk where the ratio of egg yolk to outer jelly is rather small. After hatching, the froglets will remain inside the internode where they will vacate the oviposition site between 3 to 34 days after the first froglet emerging