Description

Diagnosis: Small size, relatively pointed snout, small tympanum, distinct white band on upper lip, presence of a rictal gland, more extensive webbing as compared to its congener Fejervarya (Minervarya) sahyadris (Ohler et al. 2009).

Description: Adult males measure 18.6-20.9 mm SVL, females measure 23.8-25.1 mm SVL. Slender body. Head is longer than it is wide and is convex. Pointed and protruding snout. Rounded canthus rostralis with a concave loreal region. Rounded nostrils have a lateral skin flap and lie closer to the eyes than to the tip of the snout. Interorbital space convex. Eyes have indistinct pupils. Rounded tympanum which is barely distinct. Distinct supratympanic fold which extends from the eye to above the shoulder. Pineal ocellus lies between the anterior borders of the eyes. Lacks a vomerine ridge. Tongue large, cordate, emarginate, and lacks median lingual process. Rictal gland is present along with two smaller glands posterior to mouth. Robust arms, shorter than hands. Fingers are thin, short, lack dermal fringe and webbing, with tips that are rounded but not expanded. Finger I is shorter than Finger II. Prominent single rounded subarticular tubercles are present on all fingers, but supernumerary tubercles are absent. Prepollex is distinct and oval-shaped. Palmar tubercle indistinct. Toes are long, thin, and rounded at the tips, but lack expanded discs. Toes have basal webbing. Toe V lacks dermal fringe. Subarticular tubercles are simple, oval-shaped, and prominent on toes. Prominent inner metatarsal tubercle, small rounded outer metatarsal tubercle. Inner tarsal ridge is flattened. Supernumerary tubercles and tarsal tubercle are absent. Dorsal and lateral surfaces are smooth, except for the posterior of the dorsum which bears glandular warts. Ventral surfaces have dense glandular warts. Dorsal and ventral surfaces of the thigh are shagreened. Rictal gland is present along with two smaller glands posterior to mouth. Males have single patch of small transparent whitish to grayish nuptial spines on the prepollex and finger I, extending up to the subarticular tubercle (Ohler et al. 2009).

Grayish beige dorsum with with light orange vertebral stripe and darker greyish beige longitudinal stripes. Black canthal stripe continues along tympanic fold. The loreal region, tympanic region and supratympanic fold are all dark grayish brown. Light laterodorsal bands (no folds). Dark gray "Fejervaryan" line is present. Forearm and dorsal part of thigh are light orange with diffuse gray-brown bands. Posterior thigh is black with yellow longitudinal stripes. Throat and vocal sacs are light gray and darker gray respectively; chest and belly are whitish but have a golden shine (Ohler et al. 2009).

Distribution and Habitat

Country distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: India

View distribution map in BerkeleyMapper.

Endemic to India. Found in the Chilapata Reserve Forest which is a moist deciduous forest that lies between the Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary and Buxa Tiger Reserve in the Jaldapara District in West Bengal State, India. Type locality coordinates are 26°36’N, 89°24’E. This species is usually seen on the ground or under low shrubs (Ohler et al. 2009).

Life History, Abundance, Activity, and Special Behaviors
Calling males found next to rainwater pools and ditches along the forest road about 10-30 cm from the water. Males sat on the ground, or on leaves or ferns about 20 cm above ground. The call is a long trill, with notes in the call series becoming longer as the call progresses and the intervals between the notes increasing as well. Dominant frequency is about 3500 Hz with a range of 2810-3870 Hz; two harmonics are seen, at 7000 Hz and 10500 Hz (Ohler et al. 2009).

Trends and Threats
Found in at least one protected area, the Chilapata Reserve Forest (Ohler et al. 2009).

References

Ohler, A., Deuti, K., Grosjean, S., Paul, S., Ayyaswamy A.K., Ahmed, M.F., and Dutta, S.K. (2009). ''Small-sized dicroglossids from India, with the description of a new species from West Bengal, India.'' Zootaxa, 2209, 43-56.

Species Account Citation: AmphibiaWeb 2010 Minervarya chilapata <https://amphibiaweb.org/species/7377> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed Feb 4, 2025.

Citation: AmphibiaWeb. 2025. <https://amphibiaweb.org> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed 4 Feb 2025.

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