''Limnodynastes'' (commonly known as the Australian swamp frogs) is a genus 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 ...

native to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, southern

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

and some

Torres Strait Islands The Torres Strait Islands are a group of at least 274 small islands in the Torres Strait, a waterway separating far northern continental Australia's Cape York Peninsula and the island of New Guinea. They span an area of , but their total land ...

. They are ground-dwelling frogs, with no toe pads. The size varies from 45 mm to 90 mm in the

giant banjo frog The giant banjo frog, giant pobblebonk frog, giant bullfrog, or great bullfrog (''Limnodynastes interioris'') is a species of frog, endemic to Australia, in the family Limnodynastidae. Fry was the first to recognise the species of Giant Banjo Fro ...

. The webbing on the feet ranges between species, from very little, to almost complete. The tympanum is not visible in any species, except in the woodworker frog, which is sometimes classed in a separate genus ''Megistolotis''. All species construct a foam nest in which the eggs are laid. However, in south-eastern

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

female

striped marsh frog The striped marsh frog or brown-striped frog (''Limnodynastes peronii'') is a predominantly aquatic frog native to coastal Eastern Australia. It is a common species in urban habitats. Taxonomy The striped marsh frog was described by French nat ...

and spotted grass frog lack the flanges of skin on the hands that helps trap the air bubble and do not construct foam

nest A nest is a structure built for certain animals to hold eggs or young. Although nests are most closely associated with birds, members of all classes of vertebrates and some invertebrates construct nests. They may be composed of organic materia ...

Species

Following a major revision of amphibians in 2006, two species, the

ornate burrowing frog The ornate burrowing frog (''Platyplectrum ornatum'') is a species of ground frog native to Australia. It was moved to the genus ''Opisthodon'' in 2006, following a major revision of amphibians, and is now classified in the genus ''Platyplectrum' ...

, ''Opisthodon ornatus'' and Spencer's burrowing frog, ''Opisthodon spenceri'', were moved to the resurrected genus '' Opisthodon''. This reduced the number of member species to eleven.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2148350 Amphibians of Australia Amphibian genera Taxa named by Leopold Fitzinger