''Insuetophrynus'' is a

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...

genus of

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

s in the family

Rhinodermatidae Rhinodermatidae, also known as Darwin's frogs, mouth-breeding frogs or mouth-brooding frogs, is a small family of frogs found in temperate forests of southern Chile and adjacent Argentina. They are a unique and evolutionary significant group of ...

. The sole species is ''Insuetophrynus acarpicus'', also known as Barrio's frog. 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 else ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

and only known from few localities on the

Valdivian Coast Range The Cordillera de Oncol (sometimes called Valdivian Coast Range) is a mountain range, located along the Pacific coast in southern Chile. It is part of the Chilean Coast Range System (''Cordillera de la Costa''). It was named for the city of Valdivi ...

between Chanchán in the

Los Ríos Region The Los Ríos Region (Spanish: ''Región de Los Ríos'', , ''Region of the Rivers'') is one of Chile's 16 regions, the country's first-order administrative divisions. Its capital is Valdivia. It began to operate as a region on October 2, 2007 ...

in the south and

Queule Queule is a Chilean town in the commune of Toltén in Cautín Province, Araucanía Region. It is located just north of Mehuín and close to the border of Araucanía Region with Los Ríos Region. Days after the 1960 Valdivia earthquake and t ...

(southernmost

Araucanía Region The Araucanía ( ), La Araucanía Region ( es, Región de La Araucanía ) is one of Chile's 16 first-order administrative divisions, and comprises two provinces: Malleco in the north and Cautín in the south. Its capital and largest city is Te ...

) and Colequal Alto in the north; the fourth locality is

Mehuín Mehuín is a Chilean town and harbour, located on the shores of the Pacific Ocean at the mouth of Lingue River. Administratively it belongs to the San José de la Mariquina commune in Valdivia Province of Los Ríos Region. The town is located a ...

, which is the type locality. The altitudinal range is asl.

Description

Adult males measure and females in snout–vent length. The body is sturdy with muscular arms and legs (these frogs are powerful jumpers). The toes are partially webbed and thinner than the fingers which are short, thick, and unwebbed. The head is wider than long, with a broad, rounded snout. The eyes are large, and tympanum is visible but not large. The back is reddish brown with some whitish granulations. The hind legs have transverse, darker bands. The throat is pinkish yellow, and the stomach is pale. Skin is dorsally quite granular or warty. Also ventral region is also very granular, apart from the throat that is fairly smooth.

Habitat and conservation

''Insuetophrynus acarpicus'' inhabits coastal streams in

temperate forest A temperate forest is a forest found between the tropical and boreal regions, located in the temperate zone. It is the second largest biome on our planet, covering 25% of the world's forest area, only behind the boreal forest, which covers abou ...

. Adults hide under stones during the day, emerging at night to feed along the stream margins.

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 can be found under stones in muddy areas with slow current. The species has a small area of distribution (its known range extends only 33 km along the coast) and its habitat is threatened by clear cutting and afforestation.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q304494 Rhinodermatidae Monotypic amphibian genera EDGE species Amphibians of Chile Endemic fauna of Chile Amphibians Taxonomy articles created by Polbot