''Isthmohyla tica'', also known as Starrett's treefrog, 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 Hylidae. It is found in the

Cordillera de Tilarán Costa Rica is located on the Central American Isthmus, surrounding the point 10° north of the equator and 84° west of the prime meridian. It has 212 km of Caribbean Sea coastline and 1,016 on the North Pacific Ocean. The area is 51,100&nb ...

Cordillera Central Central Cordillera refers to the New Guinea Highlands. Cordillera Central, meaning ''central range'' in Spanish, may refer to the following mountain ranges: * Cordillera Central, Andes (disambiguation), several mountain ranges in South America ** ...

, and

Cordillera de Talamanca The Cordillera de Talamanca is a mountain range that lies in the southeast half of Costa Rica and the far west of Panama. Much of the range and the area around it is included in La Amistad International Park, which also is shared between the two ...

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

and western

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...

. The

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

''tica'' is derived from the name that Costa Ricans use to refer themselves, '' tico''.

Description

Adult males measure and adult females in

snout–vent length Snout–vent length (SVL) is a morphometric measurement taken in herpetology from the tip of the snout to the most posterior opening of the cloacal slit (vent)."direct line distance from tip of snout to posterior margin of vent" It is the most c ...

. The snout is rounded in profile. The tympanum is visible. Supratympanic fold is present. The fingers are up to 1/3 webbed and bear terminal discs. The toes are about 4/5 webbed and bear discs similar to the finger ones. The dorsum is mottled with shades of green and brown. There are often some bright green flecks present too. The flanks are usually brown mottled or blotched with yellow. The upper arm is brown or orangeish. The upper surfaces of the limbs bear dark bars. The ventral surface is a dingy white. 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 i ...

s have small, somewhat flattened body and a very long tail with low fins. They have a large oral disc that can be used adhere to rocks in fast-flowing streams.

Habitat and conservation

''Isthmohyla tica'' occur in humid premontane and lower montane rainforests at elevations of

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 ...

. They are

nocturnal Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...

. Males usually call from vegetation overhanging the fastest-flowing stretches of streams, about above the water. The eggs are deposited under rocks in streams where the tadpoles then develop. Many populations of this species have disappeared (but sometimes rediscovered later) or collapsed. The exact cause of these large declines is unknown, but may involve some combination of chytridiomycosis and climate change. The species is also negatively affected by

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

. It has been recorded in a number of protected areas.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2703157 tica Amphibians of Costa Rica Amphibians of Panama Amphibians described in 1966 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot