''Chacophrys pierottii'', the Chaco horned frog or lesser Chini frog, is a species of

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely semiaquatic group of short-bodied, tailless amphibian vertebrates composing the order (biology), order Anura (coming from the Ancient Greek , literally 'without tail'). Frog species with rough ski ...

in the family

Ceratophryidae The Ceratophryidae, also known as common horned frogs, are a family of frogs found in South America. It is a relatively small family with three extant genera and 12 species. Despite the common name, not all species in the family have the horn-like ...

. It is

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...

within the genus ''Chacophrys''. It is found in the Chaco of northern

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

, eastern

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

, and western

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

. Its natural

habitat In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species' habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ...

s are dry shrubland and gallery forest. Outside the breeding season adults remain buried underground but emerge during the first heavy rains to breed in temporary ponds. It is threatened by

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

caused by agriculture and wood extraction. It is also collected for pet trade.

Description

The Chaco horned frog is a small, round frog with short limbs. The snout-vent length ranges from 45.2 - 65.57 mm (1.67 - 2.58 in), and females are typically larger than males. The head comprises almost half of an adult frog's body, with head length ranging from 20 – 24 mm (0.78 - 0.94 in), and head width ranging 19.16 – 29 mm (0.75 - 1.14 in). The eyes stick out prominently on top. The skin is covered in small, granular bumps, which are more prominent on the head and back. The forelimbs are short, and the fingers lack webbing. Adults may have green or brown splotching along the head and back, and the underside is generally cream or white. Two dark bands typically run from the eyes down the frog's sides.

Habitat & Distribution

''Chacophrys pierottii'' is found only in the semi-arid and arid regions of the Gran Chaco in Northern Argentina, southern Bolivia, and western Paraguay, at altitudes of 70 – 200 m (229.65 - 656.16 ft) above sea level.

Behavior & Ecology

During the dry season, adult Chaco horned frogs spend their time underground. Adults burrow underground, and construct a cocoon of dead skin to preserve moisture.

Reproduction

Once the rainy season begins, adults emerge and congregate in temporary pools to feed and mate; this activity peaks in January. Males call to attract females, particularly after periods of rain of at least 60 mm (2.3 in). The mating call is repetitive, consisting of 3 - 12 high-pitched notes in a pulsed structure that begin suddenly, then abruptly descend at the end of the call. These notes last between 499 - 1056 ms and are emitted at a rate ranging from 46.2 - 66.6 notes/min. Pulse duration ranges from 3 - 9 ms and pulse rate ranges from 81.8 - 111.7 pulses/s. The primary frequency ranges from 4109.7 - 5060.1 Hz, and secondary harmonics range from 8953 – 9150 Hz. After breeding, the female lays eggs at the bottom of muddy temporal pools that can be anywhere from 15 – 100 cm deep (5.9 - 39.7 in) and often contains submerged vegetation. After hatching, larvae reach the final

metamorphic Metamorphic rocks arise from the transformation of existing rock to new types of rock in a process called metamorphism. The original rock (protolith) is subjected to temperatures greater than and, often, elevated pressure of or more, causi ...

stage in about two weeks. Adults can live for up to five years.

Diet

The diet of adult Chaco horned frogs consists mainly of insects, especially beetles, bees, ants, and lepidopterids. They may also consume other

anuran A frog is any member of a diverse and largely semiaquatic group of short-bodied, tailless amphibian vertebrates composing the order Anura (coming from the Ancient Greek , literally 'without tail'). Frog species with rough skin texture due to ...

s opportunistically.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2247845 Ceratophryidae Amphibians described in 1948 Amphibians of Argentina Amphibians of Bolivia Amphibians of Paraguay Monotypic amphibian genera Taxonomy articles created by Polbot