The southern toadlet (''Pseudophryne semimarmorata''), or marbled toadlet, is a species of small frog that 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 south-eastern

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 ...

Description

The species grows to about 20–30 mm in length ( SVL). The upper body is dark brown to olive green, with black warty blotches. The underparts, which are smooth in females and granular in males, are very distinctively marked, being mainly yellow, orange or red in colour with a broad band of black and white, or black and blue, marbling that covers the chest and upper belly. The toes are unwebbed.

Behaviour

Breeding takes place from late summer to early winter. The males make burrows in areas likely to flood after rain from which they call between late March and early May and where the females lay loose clusters of eggs. Following rain, the tadpoles are washed into pools and other wetlands, where they

change Change or Changing may refer to: Alteration * Impermanence, a difference in a state of affairs at different points in time * Menopause, also referred to as "the change", the permanent cessation of the menstrual period * Metamorphosis, or change, ...

into small toadlets from late spring.

Distribution and habitat

The westernmost part of the species’ range is in the extreme south-east of

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 ...

, extending across southern

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

, mainly south of the

Great Dividing Range The Great Dividing Range, also known as the East Australian Cordillera or the Eastern Highlands, is a cordillera system in eastern Australia consisting of an expansive collection of mountain ranges, plateaus and rolling hills, that runs rough ...

, to

Flinders Island Flinders Island, the largest island in the Furneaux Group, is a island in the Bass Strait, northeast of the island of Tasmania. Flinders Island was the place where the last remnants of aboriginal Tasmanian population were exiled by the colon ...

and northern and eastern

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

. The frogs are found in damp areas at lower elevations in grasslands, heathlands, woodlands and forests where they shelter beneath rocks, logs and leaf litter.

Conservation

The species’ population is thought to be declining. Threats include the fungal disease

chytridiomycosis Chytridiomycosis ( ) is an infectious disease in amphibians, caused by the chytrid fungi ''Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis'' and ''Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans''. Chytridiomycosis has been linked to dramatic population declines or extincti ...

, habitat clearance and degradation, as well the effects of

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

bushfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identif ...

frequency and severity.

References

Pseudophryne Amphibians of South Australia Amphibians of Tasmania Amphibians of Victoria (Australia) Amphibians described in 1892 Frogs of Australia {{Myobatrachidae-stub