Distribution and Habitat

Country distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: Brazil

	View distribution map in BerkeleyMapper.
	View Bd and Bsal data (1 records).

Known to occur only in the Restinga habitat of coastal Brazil along the Atlantic ocean at low elevations.

Life History, Abundance, Activity, and Special Behaviors
In a highly unusual behavior among frogs, Xenohyla truncata has been observed feeding on the fruits, nectar, and flowers of the Brazilian milk fruit tree Cordia taguahyensis (de-Oliveira-Nogueira et al 2023). (It may be the only frog known to feed on nectar, as the Asian dicroglossid Euphlyctis hexadactylus is known to consume plant parts regularly.) The flower structure of this tree species allows the frog to enter and exit the flower easily. While feeding, the pollen grains adhere to the frog’s back and are transported to other flowers while visiting them. Based on this observation, de-Oliveira-Nogueira et al suggest that X. truncata is not only a seed disperser, but also a potential pollinator of C. taguahyensis, or even of other plant species with similar floral structure. Its role as a pollinator is yet to be confirmed.

Trends and Threats
Conversion of lowland coastal habitat into commercial, industrial and residential development threaten the species.

Their unique and novel ecological role feeding on the Brazilian milk fruit tree highlights the importance of fundamental natural history information for this endemic tree frog species. Likely with rapidly disappearing Restinga habitat in Brazil it is feared that we may lose this frog species and a unique amphibian-plant interaction (de-Oliveira-Nogueira et al 2023).

Possible reasons for amphibian decline

General habitat alteration and loss
Urbanization

Comments
This species was highlighted in News of the Week 29 May 2023:

De-Oliveira-Nogueira et al (2023) reports a new behavior and relationship between an amphibian and plant: the South American tree frog Xenohyla truncata has been observed feeding on nectar and flowers of the Brazilian milk fruit tree Cordia taguahyensis. The flower structure of this tree species allows the frog to enter and exit the flower easily. During their feeding activity, the pollen grains adhere to the frog’s back and are transported to other flowers while visiting them. Based on this observation, the authors suggest that X. truncata is not only a seed disperser, but also a potential pollinator of C. taguahyensis, or even of other plant species with similar floral structure. This finding is a unique and novel natural history behavior and highlights the importance of fundamental natural history information for this endemic tree frog species, which exclusively lives in the rapidly disappearing Restinga habitat on the coast of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. With expanding development and habitat destruction, it is feared that losing this frog species, currently threatened with extinction, also means the extinction of a unique amphibian-plant interaction, especially important as it is a first known for a frog. Thus, conservation of this tree frog species has heightened stakes. (Umi Arifin)

References

de-Oliveira-Nogueira CH, Ferreira Souza U, Mendes Machado T, Figueiredo-de-Andrade CA, Mônico AT, Ivan Sazima I, Sazima M, Toledo LF (2023). "Between fruits, flowers and nectar: The extraordinary diet of the frog Xenohyla truncata." Food Webs, 35(e00281). [link]

Species Account Citation: AmphibiaWeb 2023 Xenohyla truncata: Izecksohn's Brazilian Treefrog <https://amphibiaweb.org/species/981> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed Dec 27, 2024.

Citation: AmphibiaWeb. 2024. <https://amphibiaweb.org> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed 27 Dec 2024.

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