''Hyloxalus fuliginosus'' or the Quijos rocket 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

Dendrobatidae Poison dart frog (also known as dart-poison frog, poison frog or formerly known as poison arrow frog) is the common name of a group of frogs in the Family (biology), family Dendrobatidae which are native to tropical Central America, Central an ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

where it is known from the Amazonian slopes of the

Andes The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the List of longest mountain chains on Earth, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range ...

in the northern Ecuador, with some sources reporting it from Colombia and Venezuela.

Description

Males measure about and females in snout–vent length. The skin of the dorsum is dark green-brown in color. There is a line down each side of the body. The frogs exhibit visual sexual dimorphism: the male frogs have gray chests and female frogs have cream-white chests with or gray spots. The male frog's testicles are white in color.

Habitat

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

cloud forest A cloud forest, also called a water forest, primas forest, or tropical montane cloud forest, is a generally tropical or subtropical, evergreen, Montane forest, montane, Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, moist forest characteri ...

s where it occurs near streams. They have been observed during the day under rocks and logs. People have seen this frog between 572 and 1926 meters above sea level. The frog's small range includes one protected park: Parque Nacional Cayambe Coca.

Young

Scientists infer that this frog breeds through larval development in streams.

Threats

The IUCN Red List classifies this frog as endangered due to its small range and ongoing threats. Water pollution and habitat loss in the form of deforestation in favor of agriculture and cattle grazing are the principal threats.

Invasive species An invasive species is an introduced species that harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native spec ...

also affect this population.

References

fuliginosus Amphibians of Ecuador Taxa named by Marcos Jiménez de la Espada Amphibians described in 1871 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Dendrobatidae-stub