Description
Austrochaperina archboldi has a head that is slightly narrower than the body with a blunt snout when viewed dorsally and rounded when viewed laterally. The canthus rostralis is rounded with a steep loreal region. Nostrils are anteriorly placed on snout. Tympanum barely distinguishable externally. This species is of moderate size, with males attaining 35 mm and females 38 mm. Eyes are large and the dorsal pattern consists of tiny irregular brown markings on a paler background. Relative finger lengths are as follows: 3>4>2>1; all fingers with grooved terminal discs. Disc of third finger is 1.4 times broader than penultimate phalanx. Relative toe lengths are as follows: 4>3>5>2>1 with the first digit less than half the second. Coloration is a pale brown with tiny irregular darker brown spots. Loreal region is slightly darker. Throat is mottled dark and light brown with a gradual change to light spots posterior toward chest.

Distribution and Habitat

Country distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: Papua New Guinea

View distribution map in BerkeleyMapper.

Found in the forests of Arau in a region of “mid-mountain fagaceous forest and a lower montane mixed rain forest.” The species is only known from the type locality in the Kratke Mountains at 1400 min the Eastern Highland Province, Papua New Guinea.

Life History, Abundance, Activity, and Special Behaviors
Nothing known.

Possible reasons for amphibian decline

General habitat alteration and loss

References

Zweifel, R.G. (2000). ''Partition of the Australopapuan Microhylid frog genus Sphenophryne with descriptions of new species.'' Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, 253, 1-130.

Species Account Citation: AmphibiaWeb 2005 Austrochaperina archboldi <https://amphibiaweb.org/species/6366> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed Nov 23, 2024.

Citation: AmphibiaWeb. 2024. <https://amphibiaweb.org> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed 23 Nov 2024.

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