Mareku's tree frog (''Litoria mareku'') 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 endemic to Indonesia. Scientists have seen it in the Wondiwoi Mountains in

Papua Province Papua is a province of Indonesia, comprising the northern coast of Western New Guinea together with island groups in Cenderawasih Bay to the west. It roughly follows the borders of Papuan customary region of Tabi Saireri. It is bordered by the ...

Taxonomy

''Litoria mareku'' is related to ''

Litoria mucro ''Litoria mucro'' is a species of frog in the subfamily Pelodryadinae, endemic to Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an a ...

'', ''Litoria nigromaculata'' and '' Litoria nigropunctata''. It is named after the collector of the two holotypes and who guided the scientists on their studies in the Wondiwoi Mountains: Genus Mareku, from Yeretuar village.

Description

The two adult male

holotype A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of several ...

s were 25.5 and 26.5 mm long in snout-urostyle length with smooth dorsal skin. This frog is green and gray in color with a black mark in front of both eyes and a black band across its body. Its belly, chest, and throat are light in color, with yellow color on the sides of its body. The insides of its hind legs are blue. There are spots on the sides of its throat and body.

Distribution and habitat

This species lives in the Wandammen Peninsula in

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Works * ...

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...

. The two frogs in the original description were found in shrubs not far from a stream and swamp.

References

Frogs of Asia mareku Species described in 2008 {{Pelodryadinae-stub