Gallery: Slimy but Cute: 10 Newly Discovered Amphibians
01sabins-glassfrog
With all the depressing news about the global amphibian die-offs, a bit of good news: Scientists are discovering lots of new species, bringing the total to more than 7,000. In the past 20 years, frogs and other amphibians have been dying in alarming numbers. More than 40 percent of amphibian species are threatened with extinction, according to the most recent [IUCN Red List of Threatened Species](http://www.iucn.org/about/work/programmes/species/our_work/the_iucn_red_list/). The main causes are habitat destruction, climate change, and a sinister new fungal disease called [chytridiomycosis](http://www.amphibiaweb.org/chytrid/chytridiomycosis.html). But despite this, or perhaps because of it, there’s been a surge in discoveries of new species in recent years. “Once it became apparent that amphibians were declining, there was a great interest in amphibians,” said biologist David Wake of the University of California, Berkeley, who founded [Amphibiaweb](http://amphibiaweb.org/), a database to catalog new amphibian species. ”When we started it in 2000, we thought that the age of amphibian discovery was pretty well done,” said Wake. But now, about 2.5 new species are added every week. Here are some of our favorites from the most recent rounds of discoveries. __Above:__ Sabin's Glassfrog ----------------- On July 29, Sabin’s glassfrog ([*Centrolene* *sabini*](http://amphibiaweb.org/cgi-bin/amphib_query?where-genus=Centrolene&where-species=sabini)) became the 7,000th species on Amphibiaweb.Alessandro Catenazzi, of San Francisco State University, discovered the little frog in the small streams of the Kosnipata valley in Peru, at an elevation of 9,000 feet. They’re called glassfrogs because their skin is transparent, exposing their internal organs and bones. During the cool nights, the males of the new species call out to attract females who come to lay their eggs on leaves above streams. *Image: Alessandro Catenazzi*
02prince-charles-stream-tree-frog
Prince Charles Stream Tree Frog ------------------------------- Yes, His Royal Highness has a frog named after him. The [*Hyloscirtus princecharlesi*](http://amphibiaweb.org/cgi-bin/amphib_query?where-genus=Hyloscirtus&where-species=princecharlesi) frog was named in honor of the prince’s efforts to promote tropical rainforest conservation (a pastime that has earned him the nickname the “Frog Prince”). The frog, with its characteristic orange blotches, lives in the cascading streams of cloud forests in Ecuador. It was described as a new species by Luis Coloma, of the Otonga Foundation in Ecuador, and colleagues. *Image: Luis Coloma*
03splendid-web-footed-salamander
Splendid Web-Footed Salamander ------------------------------ Only a single specimen of the splendid web-footed salamander ([*Bolitoglossa splendida*](http://amphibiaweb.org/cgi-bin/amphib_query?where-genus=Bolitoglossa&where-species=splendida)) has ever been seen. It was found in the remote mountains of Costa Rica, reachable only by several days’ hiking. Eduardo Boza-Oviedo, of the University of Costa Rica, San Pedro, led the discovery. Biologist David Wake, a colleague of Boza-Oviedo, described it as having a glossy black body with “a Heinz tomato-red back and Heinz mustard-yellow spot.” DNA sequencing analysis confirmed it as a new species. *Image: Eduardo Boza-Oviedo*
04rhinella-inopina-toad
*Rhinella inopina* Toad ----------------------- The [*Rhinella inopina*](http://amphibiaweb.org/cgi-bin/amphib_query?where-genus=Rhinella&where-species=inopinus) toad species lives in the seasonal tropical dry forests of central Brazil. The stern-looking toad has a “robust” body and head wider than it is long, according to a paper by Wilian Vaz-Silva of the Central University of Goiás – Uni-Anhanguerain Brazil and colleagues, who first described the species. It ranges in color from yellowish-cream to brown, sometimes with sparse dark spots. *Image: *Danusy Lopes Santos**
05bolitoglossa-guaneae-salamander
*Bolitoglossa guaneae* Salamander --------------------------------- The little [*Bolitoglossa guaneae*](http://amphibiaweb.org/cgi-bin/amphib_query?where-genus=Bolitoglossa&where-species=guaneae) salamander hails from the Cordillera Oriental mountains in Colombia. It was named for the native Guanes people, who have inhabited the same region since 600 B.C. (and were nearly decimated by the Spanish in 1586). It was discovered by Andrés Acosta-Galvis and Doris Gutiérrez-Lamus of the National University of Colombia. *Images: Andrés Acosta-Galvis*
06yellow-dyer-rainfrog
Yellow Dyer Rainfrog --------------------- The tangerine-colored yellow dyer rainfrog ([*Diasporus* *citrinobapheus*](http://amphibiaweb.org/cgi-bin/amphib_query?where-genus=Diasporus&where-species=citrinobapheus)) makes its home in the Cordillera Central in Western Panama. Its call sounds like a whistle, and although its bright-colored skin is not poisonous, researchers speculate it might not make the tastiest meal for a predator. It was observed and described by a team led by Andreas Hertz of the Senckenberg Research Institute and Nature Museum in Germany. *Image: Andreas Hertz*
07matama-moss-salamander
Matama Moss Salamander ---------------------- Perhaps the world’s tiniest salamander, the Matama moss salamander ([*Nototriton* *matama*](http://amphibiaweb.org/cgi-bin/amphib_query?where-genus=Nototriton&where-species=matama)) lives in the mountains bordering Costa Rica and Panama. It spends its days hidden in tendrils of moss. Finding one requires hundreds of hours of searching through vines in the forest, according to biologist David Wake, whose colleague Eduardo Boza-Oviedo reported the new species. *Image: Eduardo Boza-Oviedo*
Photo: Andre Baertschi08jackies-reed-frog
Jackie's Reed Frog ------------------ The Jackie's reed frog ([*Hyperolius* *jackie*](http://amphibiaweb.org/cgi-bin/amphib_query?where-genus=Hyperolius&where-species=jackie)) was found in Nyungwe National Park in southern Rwanda and described by Maximilian Dehling of the University of Koblenz-Landau in Germany. It has the characteristic transparent skin of a glassfrog, blue-colored bones, and a call that is distinct from other frogs of the same genus. *Image: Maximilian Dehling*
09yellow-throated-web-footed-salamander
Yellow-Throated Web-Footed Salamander ------------------------------------- This little salamander, [*Bolitoglossa aureogularis*](http://amphibiaweb.org/cgi-bin/amphib_query?where-genus=Bolitoglossa&where-species=aureogularis), was also discovered by Eduardo Boza-Oviedo and colleagues, in the Cordillera de Talamanca mountain range in Costa Rica. Its body has a golden-tan color, with a bright blast of yellow under its chin — hence its name *aureogularis**,* meaning “golden throat.” The species was found among the roots and leaves of bromeliad plants. *Image: Eduardo Boza-Oviedo*
Picasa10wide-headed-night-frog
Wide-Headed Night Frog ---------------------- Wide-headed night frog isn’t the official name for [*Astylosternus laticephalus*](http://amphibiaweb.org/cgi-bin/amphib_query?where-genus=Astylosternus&where-species=laticephalus), but that’s basically what it is: a frog with a very broad head, found most often at night. Mark-Oliver Rödel of the Humboldt University of Berlin and colleagues discovered it in rainforests in West Africa’s Ivory Coast and Ghana. The frog has a brown to brownish-red body speckled with red dots and large, bulging eyes. *Image: Daniel Portik*
