''Choerophryne gudrunae'' is a species of

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely Carnivore, carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order (biology), order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-f ...

in the family

Microhylidae The Microhylidae, commonly known as narrow-mouthed frogs, are a geographically widespread family of frogs. The 683 species are in 63 genera and 11 subfamilies, which is the largest number of genera of any frog family. Evolution A molecular phylo ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

and is only known from its type locality near Kowat in the

Adelbert Range Adelbert Range is a mountain range in Madang Province, north-central Papua New Guinea. The highest point of the mountains is at . The Northern Adelbert languages and Southern Adelbert languages are spoken in the region. Fauna and flora As with ...

Madang Province Madang is a province of Papua New Guinea. The province is on the northern coast of mainland Papua New Guinea and has many of the country's highest peaks, active volcanoes and its biggest mix of languages. The capital is the town of Madang. D ...

Etymology

This species was originally described in the genus ''Albericus'', named for

Alberich In German heroic legend, Alberich () is a dwarf. He features most prominently in the poems ''Nibelungenlied'' and ''Ortnit''. He also features in the Old Norse collection of German legends called the Thidreksaga under the name Alfrikr. His name me ...

, the dwarf in Scandinavian mythology and

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

's opera cycle ''

Der Ring des Nibelungen (''The Ring of the Nibelung''), WWV 86, is a cycle of four German-language epic music dramas composed by Richard Wagner. The works are based loosely on characters from Germanic heroic legend, namely Norse legendary sagas and the '' Nibe ...

''. Menzies named the species he described after Alberich's companions in the mythodology. The specific name ''gudrunae'' is derived from

Gudrun Gudrun ( ; non, Guðrún) or Kriemhild ( ; gmh, Kriemhilt) is the wife of Sigurd/Siegfried and a major figure in Germanic heroic legend and literature. She is believed to have her origins in Ildico, last wife of Attila the Hun, and two que ...

Description

''Choerophryne gudrunae'' is a comparatively small species: three unsexed individuals in the

type series In biology, a type is a particular specimen (or in some cases a group of specimens) of an organism to which the scientific name of that organism is formally attached. In other words, a type is an example that serves to anchor or centralizes the ...

measure in snout–urostyle length. Later examination of these has revealed them all as males, measuring in snout–vent length. ''Choerophryne gudrunae'' shares the general appearance of other former ''Albericus'' species: brown dorsum with lighter or darker irregular mottling, warty dorsal skin, and short and road head with blunt snout and relatively large eyes. Compared to other species with "click" calls, it has comparatively short forearms and long legs. The male advertisement call is a short series of clicks (~10) emitted in rapid succession.

Habitat and conservation

''Choerophryne gudrunae'' is a poorly known species. The type locality is a hill forest at an elevation of about

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...

. ''Choerophryne gudrunae'' was quite common there. Shifting cultivation is a threat to its habitat.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q28055839 gudrunae Amphibians of Papua New Guinea Endemic fauna of Papua New Guinea Amphibians described in 1999 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot