''Xenohyla'' is a genus of

tree frogs A tree frog (or treefrog) is any species of frog that spends a major portion of its lifespan in trees, known as an arboreal state. Several Lineage (evolution), lineages of frogs among the Neobatrachia suborder have given rise to treefrogs, althou ...

in the family Hylidae that 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 xeric habitats of coastal

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 ...

, with '' Xenohyla eugenioi'' native to the State of Bahia and the State of Sergipe, and '' Xenohyla truncata'' native to the State of Rio de Janeiro. This genus is characterized by a robust body, wide flat head, short snout, short forelimbs with muscular forearms, and a truncate-shaped body when viewed from above. They are associated with bromeliads, where they hide during the day and eat the insects that also inhabit the plant. They breed in temporary pools that are formed by rainwater. Both species are orange or brown with a white stripe going down their dorsal edges. ''X. truncata'' loses this stripe when it matures but ''X. eugenioi'' keeps it as an adult. '' Xenohyla truncata'' is unique in the fact that it is the only known frugivorous

amphibian Amphibians are ectothermic, anamniote, anamniotic, tetrapod, four-limbed vertebrate animals that constitute the class (biology), class Amphibia. In its broadest sense, it is a paraphyletic group encompassing all Tetrapod, tetrapods, but excl ...

. It locates fruit and swallows it whole, and is known to defecate out viable seeds that help in the spread of the plant. The

arthropod Arthropods ( ) are invertebrates in the phylum Arthropoda. They possess an arthropod exoskeleton, exoskeleton with a cuticle made of chitin, often Mineralization (biology), mineralised with calcium carbonate, a body with differentiated (Metam ...

to plant ratio in their diet depends on the month, with some months consisting mainly of fruits and other plant material, while other months when plants are not fruiting the frog mainly eats various types of

arthropods Arthropods ( ) are invertebrates in the phylum Arthropoda. They possess an arthropod exoskeleton, exoskeleton with a cuticle made of chitin, often Mineralization (biology), mineralised with calcium carbonate, a body with differentiated (Metam ...

. It is currently unknown whether or not '' Xenohyla eugenioi'' is frugivorous as well. The genus name comes from

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

xeno (ξένος meaning "strange" or "alien") and hyla (ὕλη meaning "wood" or "forest") which is used for

, so the genus name means "strange tree frog." ''Xenohyla truncata'' means "strange truncated tree frog" after the shape of its body. ''Xenohyla eugenioi'' is named after 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 ...

Eugênio Izecksohn who described the genus and type species, and the name means "Eugênio's strange tree frog."

Species

* '' Xenohyla eugenioi'' * '' Xenohyla truncata'' — Izecksohn's Brazilian treefrog

Photos

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2187264 Amphibians of the Atlantic Forest Endemic frogs of Brazil Amphibian genera Taxa named by Eugênio Izecksohn