The Pinocchio frog or northern Pinocchio treefrog (Litoria pinocchio) is a species of frog in the subfamily Pelodryadinae.[1][2][3][4] It was discovered in the Foja Mountains of Papua Province in Indonesia by Conservation International and the National Geographic Society during a 2008 expedition, where it was accidentally spotted by Paul Oliver, a herpetologist.[5][6][7] Despite being discovered in 2008, it remained undescribed and was long known simply as the "Pinocchio frog" (with no given scientific name) until 2019, when it was finally described as Litoria pinocchio.[4] The frog is named for its Pinocchio-like nose, which can enlarge and inflate in certain situations.[3] Although unusual, a similar nose is found in several other related frogs from New Guinea, including L. chrisdahli, L. havina, L. mareku, L. mucro, L. pronimia and L. prora.[4]
| Pinocchio frog | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Anura |
| Family: | Hylidae |
| Genus: | Litoria |
| Species: | L. pinocchio
|
| Binomial name | |
| Litoria pinocchio | |
Ecology and behavior
editAs a part of the subfamily Pelodryadinae, the Pinocchio frog's diet consists primarily of insects. They are also found high above ground, according to Paul Oliver. He believes this because when he spotted the frog, he did not see any more so he supposed they were up in the trees.[7] The male Pinocchio frog inflates its nose when calling, and the nose decreases in size when the frog is calm and quiet.[2][5][6]
References
edit- ^ "Litoria pinocchio". amphibiaweb.org. AmphibiaWeb. Retrieved 8 June 2019.
- ^ a b Newscientist.com
- ^ a b "Wild Fact #125 - The Nosey Frog - Long-Nosed Tree Frog". Wild Facts. 14 January 2013. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
- ^ a b c Richards, Stephen J.; Mumpuni, Mumpuni; Günther, Rainer; Oliver, Paul M. (2019-05-14). "Systematics of New Guinea treefrogs (Litoria: Pelodryadidae) with erectile rostral spikes: an extended description of Litoria pronimia and a new species from the Foja Mountains". Zootaxa. 4604 (2): 335–348. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4604.2.6. ISSN 1175-5334. PMID 31717193. S2CID 181852228.
- ^ a b "New bat, gecko, pigeon identified in Papua". 17 May 2010. Retrieved 17 May 2010.
- ^ a b "'Pinocchio' Frog and 'Gargoyle' Gecko Discovered". Live Science. 17 May 2010. Retrieved 17 May 2010.
- ^ a b "New Species Found in "Lost World": Pinocchio Frog, More". National Geographic. May 18, 2010. Archived from the original on May 19, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2016.