Australian Frogs

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Common names: Giant Barred Frog; Southern Barred Frog

Scientific name: Mixophyes iteratus

Family: Myobatrachidae

Description

This frog is dark olive to black on its back, with irregular dark brown blotches starting between the eyes and running down the back. There is also a thin stripe running from the snout through the eye. The arms and legs have wide dark bars and there is a broad band of dark spots and blotches down the sides of the body. The iris is golden above and dark below. The belly is smooth and white. The toes are fully webbed and the back is finely granular.

Size

115 mm

Habitat

This frog lives in forests such as Antarctic Beech, wet sclerophyll and rainforests. It often hides in leaf litter near permanent fast-flowing streams.

Call

A deep guttural grunt.

Breeding

Males call in spring and summer from the banks of streams, amongst the leaf litter. As the male and female mate the female kicks her legs and sprays some water and her eggs onto the bank.

Eggs

Are large and attach to leaves, rocks and grasses above the surface of the water.

Tadpoles

Are large and gold in colour, with some dark banding. These colours provide excellent camouflage for the tadpoles against rock surfaces.

Similar species

This frog can be distinguished from other species of Mixophyes by the spots on its sides, the wide banding on its legs and the iris which is golden in the upper half and darker in the lower half.

Suspected threatening processes

Population Size

An estimate of the total number of adults present in the species entire range is 5001-10000 individuals. Some factors affecting population size and distribution are known, but 1 or more major factors are unknown.

Population trend in Australia over the past 50 years

Trend unknown but population size suspected to be decreasing.

Knowledge of population trend in Australia

Monitored locally.

Population concentration

Majority concentrates at more than 25 locations. (e.g. the number of sites in which individuals group together either seasonally, such as breeding sites, or they may occupy discrete habitat patches within the broader landscape, such as discrete water bodies or drainage units.)

Ongoing management activities in Australia

Management mostly related to enforcement of conservation laws.

Reproductive potential for recovery

The average number of eggs deposited per adult female per year is >1000 eggs/female/year. Minimum age at which females are known or suspected to first reproduce is 2-3 years.

Range size in Australia

The size of the geographic area over which the taxon is distributed: 1001-80000 km² (up to 1% area of Australia or about the area of Tasmania).

Distribution trend

Decline, if any, unknown. (This is an estimate of change in the portion of the total range that is occupied or utilised; it may not equal the change in total range.)

Knowledge of distribution in Australia

Broad range limits or habitat associations are known, but local occurrence cannot be predicted accurately.

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Demonstration site only. Content taken from Frogs Australia Network website.