ENVIRONMENT Chirixalus doriae- Rare foaming frog
GS PAPER II: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.
Context: A team of zoologists from Mizoram University’s spotted Doria’s foam-nesting treefrog during a nocturnal survey in the buffer area of Mizoram’s Pualreng Wildlife Sanctuary in June 2020.
- A virtually unknown treefrog with known traits such as changing skin shade and whipping up foam to protect its eggs has resurfaced in India after 108 years.
- Doria’s foam-nesting treefrog (Chirixalus doriae) was first described in 1893 from Karin Bia-po in Myanmar and was later sighted in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Bangladesh.
- The natural history and distribution of Doria’s foam-nesting treefrog, last recorded in India in 1912 south of Arunachal Pradesh’s Tenga Valley, is virtually unknown.
- Very little is known about the natural history and the distribution of this treefrog.
- “Treefrogs can usually change their colour from lighter to darker or tan. This frog derives its name from the secretion of foam for covering the eggs the female lays. The foam guards the eggs against predators, direct sunlight and desiccation.
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