''Melanophryniscus macrogranulosus'' is a species of

toad Toad is a common name for certain frogs, especially of the family Bufonidae, that are characterized by dry, leathery skin, short legs, and large bumps covering the parotoid glands. A distinction between frogs and toads is not made in scient ...

in the family

Bufonidae {{Cat main, Toad This category contains both species commonly called toads, and the true toads from the family Bufonidae {{Cat main, Toad This category Category, plural categories, may refer to: Philosophy and general uses *Categorization, cat ...

. 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 ...

to northeastern Rio Grande do Sul, southern

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. It was for a long time only known from 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 t ...

collected in 1960 (the precise location of which was unknown), until another population was discovered in 2004. This was followed by the rediscovery of population at the type locality as well as few other populations, all in Rio Grande do Sul. Its common name is Torres redbelly toad, after the type locality.

Description

''Melanophryniscus macrogranulosus'' grow to at least snout–vent length. Individuals larger than about SVL are considered adults. Colouration changes through development. Dorsum in newly metamorphosed juveniles is dark gray. The ventral surface is pale, partially translucent. Palmar and plantar surfaces are also pale. Later on, palmar and plantar surfaces and the posterior region of venter show a pallid orange colour that gets more intense over time. Larger juveniles have also dark green dorsal surface of body and limbs, dark blue ventral surface with white spots, and some orange-red patches on the axils and belly. Colouration is variable in adults. The dorsal colour varies from light to dark green to almost black. Ventral surface exhibits a green or grayish blue pattern with red patches; one patch is always present on abdominal region and axils, and often in gular and pectoral region. There are small white spots covering all ventral surface, including limbs, throat, pectoral and abdominal regions. Palmar and plantar surfaces have red orange colouration. Colouration is suspected to be

aposematic Aposematism is the advertising by an animal to potential predators that it is not worth attacking or eating. This unprofitability may consist of any defences which make the prey difficult to kill and eat, such as toxicity, venom, foul taste o ...

. These toads show the

unkenreflex Unkenreflex – interchangeably referred to as unken reflex (''Unke'' is the German word for the genus of fire-bellied toads) – is a defensive posture adopted by several branches of the amphibian class – including salamanders, toads, and cer ...

when disturbed.

Reproduction

''Melanophryniscus macrogranulosus'' is an explosive breeder, breeding after heavy rains in temporary streams. Males call in shallow water along the streams both day and night, sometimes hidden in small cavities in the ground.

Amplexus Amplexus (Latin "embrace") is a type of mating behavior exhibited by some externally fertilizing species (chiefly amphibians and horseshoe crabs) in which a male grasps a female with his front legs as part of the mating process, and at the same ...

takes place in water.

Habitat and conservation

''Melanophryniscus macrogranulosus'' is only known from the Atlantic Forest biome. All known populations occur close to forest remnants. Breeding takes place in temporary streams. The

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of nat ...

has assessed the species as " Vulnerable". Caorsi and her colleagues suggest that it should be classified as "

Endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and in ...

" because of its small range, fragmented habitat, and disturbance from human activities. It is not known to occur within any protected area.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1941391 macrogranulosus Endemic fauna of Brazil Amphibians of Brazil Amphibians described in 1973 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Fauna of the Atlantic Forest