''Hyloxalus awa'' 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 ...

and known from the western Andean slopes and the western Pacific lowlands.

Description

Males measure and females in

snout–vent length Snout–vent length (SVL) is a morphometric measurement taken in herpetology from the tip of the snout to the most posterior opening of the cloacal slit (vent)."direct line distance from tip of snout to posterior margin of vent" It is the mos ...

. Dorsum is reddish brown with diffuse dark marks. Flanks are dark gray.

Etymology

Scientists named this frog ''awa'' for the Awa

indigenous people There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

. They live in some of the same places as the frog. The word "Awa" means "people."

Reproduction

The male call is a trill of about 3–5 seconds in duration, emitted at a rate of six calls per minute. Males are territorial and aggressive towards other males. Under laboratory conditions, mating takes place in morning and clutch size is 4 to 21 eggs. Eggs are laid on leaf-litter or low vegetation; the adults carry the

tadpole A tadpole or polliwog (also spelled pollywog) is the Larva, larval stage in the biological life cycle of an amphibian. Most tadpoles are fully Aquatic animal, aquatic, though some species of amphibians have tadpoles that are terrestrial animal, ...

s on their back to nearby streams where they complete their development.

Habitat and conservation

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 of ''Hyloxalus awa'' are humid sub-montane tropical forest at elevations of

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

. 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 ...

due to

agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

(both crops and livestock),

logging Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidder, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or trunk (botany), logs onto logging truck, trucksagricultural pollution Agricultural pollution refers to biotic and abiotic byproducts of farming practices that result in contamination or degradation of the environment and surrounding ecosystems, and/or cause injury to humans and their economic interests. The po ...

. The frog's range includes several protected park: Reserva Ecológica Manglares Cayapas Mataje, Refugio de Vida Silvestre Manglares Estuario del Río Muisne, Reserva Ecológica Mache-Chindul, Reserva Ecológica Cotacachi-Cayapas, Refugio de Vida Silvestre El Pambilar, Reserva Ecológica Los Ilinizas.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1342908 awa Amphibians of Ecuador Amphibians of the Andes Endemic fauna of Ecuador Amphibians described in 1995 Taxa named by Luis Aurelio Coloma Taxonomy articles created by Polbot