''Taudactylus'' 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 ...

s in the family

Myobatrachidae Myobatrachidae, commonly known as Australian ground frogs or Australian water frogs, is a family of frogs found in Australia and New Guinea. Members of this family vary greatly in size, from species less than long, to the second-largest frog in ...

. These frogs are endemic to rainforest areas of coastal 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 ...

, most of this genus inhabit fast flowing streams in highland area. Most members of this genus have suffered serious declines, in which the 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 ...

appears to have played a significant role: ''T. diurnus'' is believed to be

extinct Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...

, while all others except ''T. liemi'' are listed as critically endangered by the

IUCN 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 natu ...

. These listings are conservative, and it is likely ''T. acutirostris'', presently listed as critically endangered, already is extinct. They are distinguishable from other Australian myobatrachids by the T-shaped pad at the end of each finger and toe. They are all small frog and reach no larger than 40 mm in length. The fingers and toes are unwebbed and the skin is generally smooth. The tympanum is large and is either visible or hidden. They lack vocal sacs but all species are known to call. The

Eungella Torrent Frog The Eungella torrent frog or Eungella day frog (''Taudactylus eungellensis'') is a species of stream dwelling frog endemic to Australia. It is restricted to ranges west of Mackay, Queensland, Mackay in mid-eastern Queensland. Description It is ...

is the only known Myobatrachid known to show its presence by the movement of its body. Of the six species in the genus ''Taudactylus'', one of the most primitive groups of frogs in Australia, two are restricted to the Wet Tropics of Queensland. ''T. rheophilus'' had been recorded only from the Bellenden Ker Range, Lamb Range, Carbine Tableland and

Thornton Peak Thornton Peak is a prominent mountain that rises above the Daintree Rainforest to a height of 1374 m. The mountain is located about 80 km northwest of Cairns within the catchment of the Daintree River. It is Queensland's fourth highe ...

, all recognised refugial areas but has suffered massive declines over its entire former range. Prior to 1988, ''T. acutirostris'' occurred in upland streams throughout the World Heritage Area. However, it has since suffered a dramatic decline in numbers and its status is considered critical. The catastrophic amphibian declines which have occurred in the Wet Tropics have been attributed to an amphibian fungal disease caused by ''

Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis ''Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis'' ( ), also known as ''Bd'' or the amphibian chytrid fungus, is a fungus that causes the disease chytridiomycosis in amphibians. Since its discovery in 1998 by Lee Berger, the disease devastated amphibian popul ...

''.

Cause of amphibian declines identified

In 1992 an experimental translocation experiment was being conducted to determine the cause of population declines in ''T. acutirostris''. Frogs and tadpoles from a stream in the north of the species range were collected and placed into observation enclosures at five sites to the south where the species had disappeared and in a control enclosure at the collection site. During this experiment, the scientist, Michael Mahony (Newcastle University) and Andrew Dennis (James Cook University, observed sick and dying frogs of ''T. acutirostris'' and several other stream frogs (''Litoria rheocola, Litoria nannotis'') in the enclosures and on the stream from where the frogs and tadpoles were being collected. They collected specimens and dispatched them to veterinary pathologists at James Cook University. This was the first observation of the cause of amphibian declines in Australia and directly led to the identification of a fungal pathogen (''Batrachochytridium dendrobatididis'') as the cause.

Species

There are six species:

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q923546 Myobatrachidae Amphibian genera Endemic fauna of Australia Amphibians of Australia