The red-crowned toadlet (''Pseudophryne australis'') is a species of

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

n ground frog, restricted to the

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

Basin,

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

. It is only found around sandstone escarpment areas around Sydney, from

Ourimbah Ourimbah () is a small township in the Central Coast region of New South Wales, Australia, located about north of the state capital Sydney. Ourimbah is located approximately halfway between Sydney and Newcastle. The township today consists of ...

in the north,

Nowra Nowra () is a city in the South Coast, New South Wales, South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. It is located south-southwest of the state capital of Sydney (about as the crow flies). As of the 2021 census, Nowra has an estimated po ...

to the south and the Blue Mountains areas to the west.

Description

This is a small species of frog, reaching 30 mm in length. It is characterised by the red T-shaped mark on its head. It is dark brown or black above with a red wash or spots over its back, and a red mark near the vent. The sides are a blue-grey and there is a white mark in the armpits and thighs. The ventral surface is very strongly marbled black and white, with a bluish colour in some areas between the black and white.

Ecology and behaviour

This species is only found around temporary creeks and soaks in sandstone habitats in woodland, heathland and dry sclerophyll forest around the Sydney basin. Males make an ark call from nest sites under leaf litter and rocks, in areas likely to be inundated, generally only after heavy rain. Eggs are laid under leaf litter and tadpoles begin developing inside the egg, the males stays with the eggs in the nest. Once heavy rain floods the nest site the eggs hatch and the tadpoles (already fairly developed) finish their development in the temporary pools. In

it is often found in the same habitats as

Giant Burrowing Frog The giant burrowing frog or eastern owl frog (''Heleioporus australiacus'') is a large frog species that occurs in coastal south-east New South Wales and Victoria (Australia), Victoria in Australia. It is also known as the owl frog, southern ow ...

s. This species has declined due to urbanisation around Sydney.

Sources

Frog and tadpole Study Group

Frog Australia Network
Frog call available here. * Anstis, M. 2002. Tadpoles of South-eastern Australia. Reed New Holland: Sydney.

References

* Database entry includes a range map and justification for why this species is vulnerable {{Taxonbar, from=Q577611 Amphibians of New South Wales Pseudophryne Vulnerable fauna of Australia Amphibians described in 1835 Taxa named by John Edward Gray Frogs of Australia