Description
M 23-26 mm. Tympanum distinct, 3/5 of eye diameter. Tibiotarsal articulation reaches between forelimb and tympanum. Toe 3 of same length as toe 5. Skin smooth. Dorsally light brown with indistinct markings, ventrally whitish (Glaw and Vences 2007).

Similar species: Other species of Cophyla differ in size, C. phyllodactyla being larger and C. occultans being smaller (Glaw and Vences 2007).

Distribution and Habitat

Country distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: Madagascar

View distribution map in BerkeleyMapper.

Known only from Berara forest, Sahamalaza Peninsula (Glaw and Vences 2007) at 170 m asl (Andreone and Vences 2008). The habitat is transitional forest, intermediate between rainforest and dry forest (Glaw and Vences 2007).

Life History, Abundance, Activity, and Special Behaviors
Habits: Males were found at night calling from leaves, at perch heights of 1-2 m (Glaw and Vences 2007).

Calls: A long melodious whistling note that is repeated after regular intervals in long-lasting series. Note repetition rate is about 30/min (Glaw and Vences 2007).

Trends and Threats
Known only from a single locality so far. Thought to be restricted to transitional forest within the Sahamalaza Peninsula, since surveys have not detected this species at other sites in northwestern Madagascar. The area where it occurs has recently been designated as a protected area, the R�serve de la Biosph�re du Sahamalaza-Iles Radama. However, the remaining forest habitat has been declining due to subsistence agriculture (Andreone and Vences 2008).

Possible reasons for amphibian decline

General habitat alteration and loss
Intensified agriculture or grazing
Subtle changes to necessary specialized habitat

Comments
Taken with permission from Glaw and Vences (2007).

References

Andreone, F., and Vences, M. (2008). Cophyla berara. In: IUCN 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. www.iucnredlist.org. Downloaded on 01 May 2009. Disclaimer:

Glaw, F., and Vences, M. (2007). Field Guide to the Amphibians and Reptiles of Madagascar. Third Edition. Vences and Glaw Verlag, Köln.

Species Account Citation: AmphibiaWeb 2010 Cophyla berara <https://amphibiaweb.org/species/6571> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed May 3, 2025.

Citation: AmphibiaWeb. 2025. <https://amphibiaweb.org> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed 3 May 2025.

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