Brachycephalidae |  |
81 species in 2 genera
Commonly Called Robber Frogs, Three-Toed Toadlets
Brachycephalus ephippium
Photo by Germano Woehl Jr.
(Click for family gallery)This family is an assemblage of direct-developing frogs from Brazil and northern Argentina, and is composed of two genera, Brachycephalus and Ischnocnema. The family Brachycephalidae is defined primarily by molecular characters; no unique morphological characters are shared by these genera. Members of this family range in size from 10.2 mm snout-vent length in females of Brachycephalus didactylus to 54 mm in females of Ischnocnema guentheri.
Frogs of the genus Brachycephalus are known as "Saddle-back Toads," due to the presence of bony shields above their vertebrae, or "Pumpkin Toads," from the bright orange coloration of some of the members of this family. At first, they were considered to be Bufonids, but absence of a Bidder's organ (ovarian tissue on the testes, a synapomorphy of Bufonidae) led to their recognition as an independent family. Due to their small size and large genomes (an amphibian characteristic), these frogs have "lost" some of their digits (2 on the hand and 3 or 4 on the feet). These frogs are direct developers with inguinal or axillary amplexus. Brachycephalus ephippium is known to possess tetrodotoxin, a strong toxin also found in newts of the genus Taricha and in puffer fish.
Frogs of the genus Ischnocnema are found throughout the Atlantic Coastal Forest in eastern Brazil, and in the Araucaria forest in extreme southeastern Brazil and northern Argentina.
Written by AmphibiaWebNotable Family Characteristics
- Inhabits leaf litter in tropical rainforests, some are arboreal
- Direct development
- Amplexus may either be inguinal or axillary or shifting between the two
- Generally diurnal
- Distribution limited to South America
Cartography Credit: Zoe Yoo, UC Berkeley
Range maps sources: AmphibiaWeb, UC Berkeley, and IUCN RedListRelevant Reference
Hedges, S. B., Duellman, W. E., and Heinicke, M. P. (2008). New World direct-developing frogs (Anura: Terrarana): Molecular phylogeny, classification, biogeography, and conservation. Zootaxa 1737: 1-182.
Vitt, L. J., and J. P. Caldwell. 2013. Herpetology. An Introductory Biology of Amphibians and Reptiles. Fourth Edition. Amsterdam: Elsevier.
Genus Brachycephalus (42 species)
Genus Ischnocnema (39 species)
Ischnocnema abdita no account photos no sound/video Ischnocnema bocaina no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema bolbodactyla no account photos sound/video Ischnocnema colibri no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema concolor no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema crassa no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema epipeda no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema erythromera no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema feioi no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema garciai no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema gehrti no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema gualteri no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema guentheri account photos sound/video Ischnocnema henselii no account photos no sound/video Ischnocnema hoehnei no account photos no sound/video Ischnocnema holti account photos sound/video Ischnocnema izecksohni no account photos no sound/video Ischnocnema juipoca no account photos no sound/video Ischnocnema karst no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema lactea no account photos no sound/video Ischnocnema manezinho no account photos no sound/video Ischnocnema melanopygia no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema nanahallux account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema nasuta no account photos no sound/video Ischnocnema nigriventris no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema octavioi no account photos no sound/video Ischnocnema oea no account photos no sound/video Ischnocnema paranaensis no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema parnaso no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema parva no account photos sound/video Ischnocnema penaxavantinho no account photos sound/video Ischnocnema pusilla no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema randorum no account photos no sound/video Ischnocnema sambaqui no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema spanios no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema surda no account photos no sound/video Ischnocnema venancioi no account no photos no sound/video Ischnocnema verrucosa no account photos no sound/video Ischnocnema vizottoi no account no photos no sound/video
Citation: AmphibiaWeb: Information on amphibian biology and conservation. [web application]. Berkeley, California: AmphibiaWeb. Available: https://amphibiaweb.org/. (Accessed:
AmphibiaWeb's policy on data use.