The Patzcuaro frog (''Lithobates dunni'' or ''Rana dunni'') 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 Ranidae. Within the former, broadly defined genus ''

Rana Rana may refer to: Astronomy * Rana (crater), a crater on Mars * Delta Eridani or Rana, a star People, groups and titles * Rana (name), a given name and surname (including a list of people and characters with the name) * Rana (title), a histori ...

'', it belongs to the ''Rana montezumae'' (='' Lithobates montezumae'') subgroup of the ''Rana pipiens'' (=''

Lithobates pipiens ''Lithobates pipiens''Integrated Taxonomic Information System nternet2012''Lithobates pipiens'' pdated 2012 Sept; cited 2012 Dec 26Available from: www.itis.gov/ or ''Rana pipiens'', commonly known as the northern leopard frog, is a species of l ...

'') complex. 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 elsew ...

to the

Michoacán Michoacán, formally Michoacán de Ocampo (; Purépecha: ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Michoacán de Ocampo ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Michoacán de Ocampo), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of ...

state,

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, where it is locally known as ''rana de Pátzcuaro''. It occurs in Lake Pátzcuaro, Lake Cuitzeo, and the surrounding streams in Río de Morelia.

Etymology

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 ...

''dunni'' honors Emmett Reid Dunn, a prominent American herpetologist.

Description

Females grow to at least and males, based on the only adult male in 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 the ...

, to in snout–vent length. The body is chunky and the limbs are short and thick. The tympanum is distinct; the post-tympanic fold is indistinct. The dorso-lateral folds are weak. The toes are fully webbed and have rounded tips. Skin is dorsally very pustulose. The dorsum is dark grey with few indistinct, asymmetric yellow-gray markings. The head is yellowish-white and has some gray spotting. The ventral surfaces are white, apart from the gray chest and chin. Males have paired

vocal sac The vocal sac is the flexible membrane of skin possessed by most male frogs and toads. The purpose of the vocal sac is usually as an amplification of their mating or advertisement call. The presence or development of the vocal sac is one way o ...

Habitat and conservation

Patzcuaro frog is an aquatic frog living in deep water with abundant nutrients. Most of the types were collected in shallow water ( deep) with abundant vegetation. The diet includes at least snails of the genus ''

Physa ''Physa'' is a genus of small, left-handed or sinistral, air-breathing freshwater snails, aquatic pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the subfamily Physinae of the family Physidae.MolluscaBase eds. (2021). MolluscaBase. Physa Draparnaud, 1801. Ac ...

''. Males call throughout the year. Reproduction takes place in the streams. A major threat to this species is harvesting—it is considered delicious by local people. Once common, over-exploitation has greatly reduced its abundance. It is not known to occur in any protected area.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4664545 Lithobates Fauna of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt Endemic amphibians of Mexico Amphibians described in 1957 Taxa named by Richard G. Zweifel Taxonomy articles created by Polbot