''Brachytarsophrys orientalis'', the Oriental short-legged toad, is a species of litter frog in the family

Megophryidae Megophryidae, commonly known as goose frogs, is a large family of frogs native to the warm southeast of Asia, from the Himalayan foothills eastwards, south to Indonesia and the Greater Sunda Islands in Maritime Southeast Asia, and extending to th ...

. It is native to

Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...

and

Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its cap ...

in southeastern China. It is the easternmost species within the genus ''

Brachytarsophrys ''Brachytarsophrys'' is a genus of the family Megophryidae in the order Anura, and are found in southern China, Myanmar, northern Thailand and northern Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic ...

'', hence the specific name ''orientalis''.

Description

This species is different from other short-legged toads because of its smaller adult size, moderate webbing, and the

tadpole A tadpole is the larval stage in the biological life cycle of an amphibian. Most tadpoles are fully aquatic, though some species of amphibians have tadpoles that are terrestrial. Tadpoles have some fish-like features that may not be found ...

s lacking transversal stripes on their chest. Males of this species reach 76.8 to 82.7 mm (3 to 3.3 in) SVL and females reach around 88.6 mm (3.5 in) SVL. The male develops

nuptial pad A nuptial pad (also known as thumb pad, or nuptial excrescence) is a secondary sex characteristic present on some mature male frogs and salamanders. Triggered by androgen hormones, this breeding gland (a type of mucous gland) appears as a spiked ...

s on the dorsal surface of the last and second fingers and calls during August from under rocks in streams.

Habitat and conservation

''Brachytarsophrys orientalis'' is known from montane streams surrounded by moist subtropical evergreen broadleaf forest at elevations between above sea level. Males call from hidden positions under rocks. As of March 2021, this species has not been included in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. It is present in two protected areas, Jiulianshan Nature Reserve (its type locality) in Jiangxi and Huboliao Natural Reserve in Fujian.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q97163521 orientalis Frogs of China Endemic fauna of China Amphibians described in 2020