Tapichalaca treefrog. Photo © Luis A Coloma

Tapichalaca treefrog Hyla tapichalaca

New Species of Treefrog in Tapichalaca

A spectacular species of treefrog new to science has been found in the Tapichalaca Reserve , owned and managed by the World Land Trust's partner, Fundación Jocotoco. The World Land Trust has been sending funds to South Ecuador to help with the land purchases of Tapichalaca and nearby forests, and already several new species of orchid have been found, but the treefrog is particularly exciting. All over the world amphibians are declining and a special task force is trying to find out the reasons. Reserves, such as those being created with funding from the World Land Trust are vital in the attempts to conserve the rarest species, some of which are confined to a single mountain, or river valley.

Read an abstract of the report A NEW TREEFROG (HYLIDAE: HYLA) FROM SOUTHERN ECUADOR AND A DESCRIPTION OF ITS ANTIPREDATOR BEHAVIOR by David Kizirian, Luis A. Coloma and Arturo Paredes-Recalde