Description
Microhyla mihintalei is a moderate sized frog with snout vent length of 21.7 – 27.3mm in males and 24.4 mm in females. Head small, shorter than wide, snout sub-ovoid in dorsal and ventral view, rounded in lateral view, its length (SL 2.7) longer than horizontal diameter of eye; loreal region rounded with vertical canthus rostralis; interorbital space wider than upper eyelid and internarial distance; nostril closer to tip of snout than eye ; tympanum indistinct or obscured by a layer of skin without clearly defined borders, supratympanic fold distinct, extending from posterior corner of upper eyelid to near the insertion of forelimb at axilla; eye diameter; vomerine ridge absent; tongue elliptical. Forelimbs moderately short and thin; forelimb shorter than hand length; fingers short, finger length formula IColour in life: Dorsum light reddish-brown with a faint light grey band extending from behind the eye to the groin; lateral side of head and tympanic area dark grey; groin light grey with black patches; two distinct and narrow black streaks extending from the snout along the side of head to near the groin; posterior parts of thigh and tibia light brown with irregular black markings; a narrow black patch extends from anal opening to near the knee; ventral surface grey, throat with dark blackish-brown calling patch (Wijayathilaka et al. 2016).

Colour in alcohol: Dorsum light brownish-grey with a broad light grey band extending from behind the eye to the groin; dorsal surface of forelimbs lighter in colour compared to the dorsum and with incomplete black cross-bands; lateral side of head and tympanic area dark grey; groin light grey with black patches; two distinct and narrow black streaks extending from the snout along the side of head to near the groin; posterior parts of thigh and tibia with irregular black markings; a narrow black patch extends from anal opening to near the knee; ventral surface creamy-white, throat with dark blackish-brown calling patch (Wijayathilaka et al. 2016).

Distribution and Habitat

Country distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: Sri Lanka

View distribution map in BerkeleyMapper.

Microhyla mihintalei is widely distributed in the lowland dry zone of Sri Lanka from sea level up to 500 m (Wijayathilaka et al. 2016; Batuwita et al. 2019).

It also is found in lowland wet zone of Sri Lanka (Batuwita et al.,2019).

Life History, Abundance, Activity, and Special Behaviors
Found mostly in shaded areas, often close to stream and river banks or regions that become fairly stable ephemeral pools during the rainy season. They have been observed emerging from burrows in ground to call by around 7.30 PM. They are observed digging rapidly into soil using their hind feet, indicating they are active burrowers, and not only ground-burrow utilizers. They lay eggs as loosely arranged sheets on the water surface, mainly in ephemeral pools, and their tadpoles form loose shoals (Wijayathilaka et al. 2016).

Comments
The species is named after Mihintale, the point of unison for two ancient cultures when Mahinda Thero (Son of Indian Emperor, Asoka) met Dewanampiya Tissa (the king of Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka) in 246 BC. Mihintale is also considered to be one of the world’s earliest sanctuaries (Wijayathilaka et al. 2016). Microhyla mihintalei is closely related to the Indian species M. rubra based on molecular evidence and overall external morphology. Molecular phylogenetic analysis shows a genetic divergence range between 2.7−3.2% for the two species (Wijayathilaka et al. 2016).

References

Batuwita S, Udugampala S, DeSilva M, Diao J and Edirisinghe U. (2019). "A review of amphibian fauna of Sri Lanka: distribution, recent taxonomic changes and conservation." Journal of Animal Diversity, 1(2), 44-82. [link]

Wijayathilaka N., Garg S., Senevirathne G., Karunarathna N., Biju S.D., and Meegaskumbura M. (2016). "A new species of Microhyla (Anura: Microhylidae) from Sri Lanka: An integrative taxonomic approach." Zootaxa, 4033(3), 331-342. [link]

Species Account Citation: AmphibiaWeb 2021 Microhyla mihintalei: Mihintale Red Narrow-mouthed Frog <https://amphibiaweb.org/species/8439> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed Apr 19, 2024.

Citation: AmphibiaWeb. 2024. <https://amphibiaweb.org> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed 19 Apr 2024.

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