''Ranitomeya vanzolinii'', also known as the Brazilian poison frog or spotted poison 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 ''

Ranitomeya ''Ranitomeya'' is a genus of dart poison frogs found in Panama and South America south to Peru and Brazil, possibly into Bolivia. Taxonomy In 2006 Grant et al. revised the systematics of poison dart frogs and placed many species formerly classif ...

'' genus, from the poison dart frog 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 found in the Amazonian rainforests of

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

and

Perú Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

, and possibly

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 ...

Etymology

The

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

''vanzolinii'' honors

Paulo Vanzolini Paulo Emilio Vanzolini (; April 25, 1924 – April 28, 2013) was a Brazilian scientist and music composer. He was best known for his samba compositions, including the famous ''"Ronda", "Volta por Cima"'', and ''"Boca da Noite"'', and for his sc ...

, a Brazilian

herpetologist Herpetology (from Ancient Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is a branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, salamanders, and caecilians (Gymnophiona)) and reptiles (in ...

and composer.

Description

When fully grown, ''R. vanzolinii'' grows to around in snout–vent length. This species will feed on a variety of tiny invertebrates, including ants and mites. During the breeding season, males have a “cricket”-like, trilling call, which attracts females. Unlike some dendrobatid frogs, ''R. vanzolinii'' parents actively protect and feed their

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. The female will lay a fertile egg (or eggs) in a tiny pool of collected rainwater, typically within the central funnel, or “cup”, of a

bromeliad The Bromeliaceae (the bromeliads) are a Family (biology), family of monocot flowering plants of about 80 genera and 3700 known species, native mainly to the Tropics, tropical Americas, with several species found in the American subtropics and on ...

. Once the eggs hatch, the female is encouraged by the male to lay an infertile egg into the same small pool, in an effort to provide the young with a source of nutrition until it sprouts limbs and can fend for itself. The parents form a monogamous pair during this period.

Habitat and conservation

The species' 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 pre-montane

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 and lowland rainforests between 300 and 1280 metres above sea level, especially forests with bamboo and bromeliad plants, which can form the phytotelms that they use for breeding. Adults are primarily

arboreal Arboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some animals may scale trees only occasionally (scansorial), but others are exclusively arboreal. The hab ...

, mostly found up to 2 metres above ground, occasionally higher. The frog's range includes protected parks such as

Parque Nacional da Serra do Divisor The Serra do Divisor National Park () is a national park on the westernmost point of Brazil, in the state of Acre, near the Peruvian border. It also has the highest point in that state, reaching 609 meters above sea level. It has been nominated ...

and Reserva Extrativista do Alto Juruá. The IUCN classifies this frog as least concern of extinction because of its large range, much of which has remained intact, and its presumed large population. What threat it faces comes from habitat loss associated with agriculture, livestock rearing, and logging. It is also harvested wild for the international pet trade. In one bust in Lima, Peru, officials found hundreds of frogs packed in tubes for transport to Europe, hidden among a shipment of tropical fish, and half of them were dead.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q28053307 vanzolinii Amphibians described in 1982 Frogs of Brazil Amphibians of Peru Taxonomy articles created by Polbot