''Zhangixalus jodiae'', also known as Jodi's treefrog, 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

Rhacophoridae The Rhacophoridae are a family of frogs that occur in tropical sub-Saharan Africa, South India and Sri Lanka, Japan, northeastern India to eastern China and Taiwan, south through the Philippines and Greater Sundas, and Sulawesi. They are commonly ...

. It is named in honour of

Jodi Rowley Jodi J. L. Rowley is an Australian herpetologist and conservationist. Life and research Rowley received her bachelor's degree in environmental science at University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also k ...

, Australian herpetologist, for her "great contribution to amphibian taxonomy in Asia". ''Zhangixalus jodiae'' 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 northeastern Vietnam and is only known from the vicinity of its type locality in Quản Bạ District,

Hà Giang Province Hà is a Vietnamese surname. The name is transliterated as He in Chinese and Ha in Korean. Ha is the anglicized variation of the surname Hà. It is also the anglicized variation of Hạ. Notable people with the surname Hà *Hà Kiều Anh, Mis ...

. It belongs to a

clade A clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that are monophyletic – that is, composed of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants – on a phylogenetic tree. Rather than the English term, ...

of ''

Zhangixalus ''Zhangixalus'' is a genus of frogs in the subfamily Rhacophorinae, family (biology), family Rhacophoridae. They are collectively known as Zhang's treefrogs. They occur in the Eastern Himalayas, southern China, Taiwan, Japan, and southeast Asia. ...

'' inhabiting

karst Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...

forests of southern China and northern Vietnam.

Description

Adult males measure in

snout–vent length Snout–vent length (SVL) is a morphometric measurement taken in herpetology from the tip of the snout to the most posterior opening of the cloacal slit (vent)."direct line distance from tip of snout to posterior margin of vent" It is the most c ...

; females and

tadpole A tadpole is the larval stage in the biological life cycle of an amphibian. Most tadpoles are fully aquatic, though some species of amphibians have tadpoles that are terrestrial. Tadpoles have some fish-like features that may not be found i ...

s are unknown. The body is robust. The head is moderately compressed, as long as it is wide. The snout is round anteriorly and slightly protruding in lateral view. The tympanum is round and distinct; supratympanic fold is also distinct. The fingers and toes are webbed and bear enlarged terminal discs. Skin is smooth, except for the belly and the ventral surfaces of fore and hind limbs that are granular. The dorsal surfaces are green. The flanks are cream; the axilla and groin have large black blotches. The chest and the belly are cream, while the lower jaw and throat region are greyish. The iris is silver and the pupil is black and horizontal. Males have a single, external subgular

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 ...

. The male advertisement call lasts about one second and consists of six notes, each about 6 ms in duration. The dominant frequency is 2.0 kHz.

Habitat

''Zhangixalus jodiae'' is known from an undisturbed limestone karst forest at elevations between

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...

. The specimens were found on the ground near streams.

Conservation

As of November 2021, this species has not been included in the

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biologi ...

. While the presently known range of ''Zhangixalus jodiae'' is very restricted, Nguyen and colleagues suggest that it should be considered "

data deficient A data deficient (DD) species is one which has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as offering insufficient information for a proper assessment of conservation status to be made. This does not necessaril ...

" because its actual distribution remains unknown.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q109676062 jodiae Amphibians of Vietnam Endemic fauna of Vietnam Amphibians described in 2020 Taxa named by Nikolai Loutseranovitch Orlov Taxa named by Thomas Ziegler (zoologist)