Iberian Frog
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The Iberian frog (''Rana iberica''), also known as Iberian stream 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 Ranidae found in Portugal and Spain. 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
river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...
s, mountain streams and
swamp A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...
s. 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 ...
,
introduced species An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived ther ...
,
climate change Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...
, water contamination, and increased ultraviolet radiation.Ayllón E., Domínguez C., 2001: “Situación actual y problemas de conservación de la rana patilarga en la Comunidad Autónoma de Madrid. Boletín de la Sociedad para la Conservación de los Vertebrados, 8–9: 7–15.


Description

The Iberian frog can grow to about in length but a more normal size is . Females tend to be larger than males. The tympanum can be seen just behind the eye and is about half its size in diameter. From the side of the head to the groin is a distinct ridge, the dorsolateral fold, which distinguishes this species from the
common frog The common frog or grass frog (''Rana temporaria''), also known as the European common frog, European common brown frog, European grass frog, European Holarctic true frog, European pond frog or European brown frog or simply the frog, is a semi ...
. The skin is smooth with fine granulations. The colour is very variable, being mainly olive, reddish or greyish-brown, sometimes with darker markings. A dark streak runs between the nostril and the eye, and a thin, white line marks the upper lip. The hind legs are sometimes barred with dark brown. The hind feet are more completely webbed than the common frog. The underside is pale, sometimes with darker spots, but the centre of the throat is not spotted.''Rana iberica''
AmphibiaWeb. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
The Iberian frog has a distinctive call, which is generally produced at night. It sounds like "rao-rao-rao" and is issued at a rate of about three calls per second.


Distribution and habitat

The Iberian frog 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 ...
to Portugal and north-western and central Spain. It is a mountain species and has been recorded at altitudes up to . It is present in the northern half of Portugal and in Spain it is found in the region of Galicia, in west León and in north-west Zamora, with separate populations in mountainous regions in central Spain. It favours slow-moving streams and rivers with overhanging vegetation, ponds, and glacial lakes. It shares parts of its range with the agile frog (''Rana dalmatina''),
Perez's frog The Perez's frog (''Pelophylax perezi''), also known as Iberian waterfrog, Iberian green frog or Coruna frog, is a species of frog in the family Ranidae. It is native to southern France, Portugal, Spain, and has been introduced to the Canary Isl ...
('' P. perezi'') and the common frog (''R. temporaria'').


Biology

The Iberian frog is an agile frog, jumping into the water if disturbed and swimming away rapidly. It is active both by day and night, and feeds on
beetle Beetles are insects that form the Taxonomic rank, order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Holometabola. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 40 ...
s,
flies Flies are insects of the Order (biology), order Diptera, the name being derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek δι- ''di-'' "two", and πτερόν ''pteron'' "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwin ...
,
caddisflies The caddisflies (order Trichoptera) are a group of insects with aquatic larvae and terrestrial adults. There are approximately 14,500 described species, most of which can be divided into the suborders Integripalpia and Annulipalpia on the basis ...
,
stoneflies Plecoptera is an order of insects commonly known as stoneflies. Some 3,500 species are described worldwide, with new species still being discovered. Stoneflies are found worldwide, except Antarctica. Stoneflies are believed to be one of the most ...
,
spider Spiders (order (biology), order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight limbs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude spider silk, silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and ran ...
s, and
harvestmen The Opiliones (formerly Phalangida) are an Order (biology), order of arachnids, Common name, colloquially known as harvestmen, harvesters, harvest spiders, or daddy longlegs (see below). , over 6,650 species of harvestmen have been discovered w ...
. In Galicia and lowland Portugal, breeding takes place from November to March, but in upland areas, it occurs from March to May.
Amplexus Amplexus (Latin "embrace") is a type of Mating, mating behavior exhibited by some External fertilization, externally fertilizing species (chiefly amphibians, Amphipoda, amphipods, and horseshoe crabs) in which a male grasps a female with his fro ...
, with the male clinging to the back of the female, takes place in the water. Small clumps of
eggs An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo begins to develop. Egg, EGG or eggs may also refer to: Biology * Egg cell, the female reproductive cell (gamete) in oogamous organisms Food * Eggs as food Places * Egg, Austria * Egg, Switzerland ...
with a gelatinous coat are laid and are stuck to water weeds or placed beneath underwater stones. When the tadpoles hatch, they feed on vegetable matter and take about three months before they undergo
metamorphosis Metamorphosis is a biological process by which an animal physically develops including birth transformation or hatching, involving a conspicuous and relatively abrupt change in the animal's body structure through cell growth and different ...
into juvenile frogs. These are about long. Males become mature when they are about in length and females when they are rather larger.


Conservation status

The Iberian frog is threatened by habitat loss through agriculture, deforestation, and the planting of non-native woodlands. Tourist development and recreational use of the land may cause disturbances. Introduced fish species and the presence of the
American mink The American mink (''Neogale vison'') is a semiaquatic species of Mustelidae, mustelid native to North America, though human introduction has expanded its range to many parts of Europe, Asia, and South America. Because of range expansion, the Am ...
(''Neogale vison''), escaped from fur farms, may also reduce numbers. Parts of its range include two national parks, Parque Natural del Gorbea and Parque Natural de Izki, and in these it is protected. In other places, especially in the Sistema Central Mountains and
Extremadura Extremadura ( ; ; ; ; Fala language, Fala: ''Extremaúra'') is a landlocked autonomous communities in Spain, autonomous community of Spain. Its capital city is Mérida, Spain, Mérida, and its largest city is Badajoz. Located in the central- ...
in Spain, populations are shrinking. The species is classified as being vulnerable in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.


References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1071372 Endemic amphibians of the Iberian Peninsula Rana (genus) Amphibians described in 1879 Amphibians of Europe Taxonomy articles created by Polbot