Metaphrynella is a small genus of microhylid frogs from the southern Malay Peninsula and Borneo. They are sometimes known as the Borneo treefrogs[1] or tree hole frogs. The common name refers to the microhabitat of these frogs: males call from tree holes and tadpoles develop in the water contained in those holes.[2]

Metaphrynella
Metaphrynella sundana
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Microhylidae
Subfamily: Microhylinae
Genus: Metaphrynella
Parker, 1934
Type species
Phrynella pollicaris
Boulenger, 1890
Diversity
2 species (see text)

Description

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Metaphrynella are small, arboreal frogs that have plump bodies and adhesive finger and toe tips.[2]

Taxonomy

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Metaphrynella may be paraphyletic, as molecular data[3] suggest that Phrynella is phylogenetically imbedded within it. Another study suggests that its closest relatives are Kaloula, Uperodon, and Ramanella.[1] A molecular phylogenetic study by De Sá et al. (2012)[3] shows Kaloula to be a sister clade of Metaphrynella.

Species

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There are two species:[1][4]

Binomial name and author Common name
Metaphrynella pollicaris (Boulenger, 1890) Malaysian treefrog
Metaphrynella sundana (Peters, 1867) Borneo treefrog

References

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  1. ^ a b c Frost, Darrel R. (2015). "Metaphrynella Parker, 1934". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
  2. ^ a b Haas, A.; Hertwig, S.T.; Das, I. (2015). "Metaphrynella (Tree Hole Frogs)". Frogs of Borneo. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
  3. ^ a b De Sá, R. O., Streicher, J. W., Sekonyela, R., Forlani, M. C., Loader, S. P., Greenbaum, E., … Haddad, C. F. B. (2012). Molecular phylogeny of microhylid frogs (Anura: Microhylidae) with emphasis on relationships among New World genera. BMC Evolutionary Biology, 12, 241. http://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2148-12-241
  4. ^ "Microhylidae". AmphibiaWeb: Information on amphibian biology and conservation. [web application]. Berkeley, California: AmphibiaWeb. 2015. Retrieved 15 April 2015.