''Xenohyla truncata'', the Izecksohn's Brazilian treefrog, is a species of

frugivorous A frugivore ( ) is an animal that thrives mostly on raw fruits or succulent fruit-like produce of plants such as roots, shoots, nuts and seeds. Approximately 20% of mammalian herbivores eat fruit. Frugivores are highly dependent on the abundance ...

tree frog 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 lineages of frogs among the Neobatrachia suborder have given rise to treefrogs, although they are not clos ...

in the family

Hylidae Hylidae is a wide-ranging family of frogs commonly referred to as " tree frogs and their allies". However, the hylids include a diversity of frog species, many of which do not live in trees, but are terrestrial or semiaquatic. Taxonomy and ...

. 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 ...

to the

State of Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil. It has the second largest economy of Brazil, with the largest being that of the state of São Paulo. The state, which has 8.2% of the Brazilian population, is responsible for 9.2% 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 ...

. The range of this frog ranges from the southern border of

Espírito Santo Espírito Santo (; ) is a state in southeastern Brazil. Its capital is Vitória, and its largest city is Serra. With an extensive coastline, the state hosts some of the country's main ports, and its beaches are significant tourist attracti ...

down to Ilha da Marambaia, inhabiting mostly restingas near the coast and on some islands. They shelter inside bromeliads such as '' Neoregelia cruenta'' during the day and breed in temporary pools. When disturbed, this tree frog will tilt its head down, outstretch its legs, and puff up. This posture breaks up the frogs outline and makes it appear larger. These tree frogs are listed as near threatened because they are restricted to an area of less than 20,000 square kilometres and because human development modifies or destroys their restinga habitats. As a juvenile, ''Xenohyla truncata'' has white stripes down the sides of its body but they disappear at maturity, leaving the adult frog a uniform brown or orange. This species of frog is unique in that it is the only known

frog in the world. This frog will eat various types of plants, including '' Anthurium harrisii'', '' Erythroxylum ovalifolium'', and '' Maytenus obtusifolia''. Inside the stomach contents of ''Xenohyla truncata'' were found many different types of

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 ...

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...

seed In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be Sowing, sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds ...

s, pods, pulp and

flower Flowers, also known as blooms and blossoms, are the reproductive structures of flowering plants ( angiosperms). Typically, they are structured in four circular levels, called whorls, around the end of a stalk. These whorls include: calyx, m ...

s. The amount of plant material eaten by the frog likely depends on the blooming and fruiting periods of the plants, with various types of arthropods eaten instead when plants are unavailable. The frog will locate the fruit and simply snap at it, swallowing it whole. The frog has been found to defecate viable seeds and likely helps in the spread of the plants it consumes. The plants '' Erythroxylum ovalifolium'' and '' Maytenus obtusifolia'' both contain toxic

alkaloid Alkaloids are a broad class of natural product, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. Some synthetic compounds of similar structure may also be termed alkaloids. Alkaloids are produced by a large varie ...

s and

terpene Terpenes () are a class of natural products consisting of compounds with the formula (C5H8)n for n ≥ 2. Terpenes are major biosynthetic building blocks. Comprising more than 30,000 compounds, these unsaturated hydrocarbons are produced predomi ...

s, and ''Xenohyla truncata'' has been found to excrete from its skin the chemical compound N-phenyl-acetamide, which is capable of causing liver and kidney damage in vertebrates. Several of the arthropods consumed by the frog have been found to inhabit bromeliads. These arthropods are

cockroach Cockroaches (or roaches) are insects belonging to the Order (biology), order Blattodea (Blattaria). About 30 cockroach species out of 4,600 are associated with human habitats. Some species are well-known Pest (organism), pests. Modern cockro ...

larvae,

dragonfly A dragonfly is a flying insect belonging to the infraorder Anisoptera below the order Odonata. About 3,000 extant species of dragonflies are known. Most are tropical, with fewer species in temperate regions. Loss of wetland habitat threat ...

larvae, and crab spiders. This suggests that the bromeliads not only provide cover during the day, but also a food source. Sand has also been found in the digestive tract, meaning that the frog forages on the ground.

Pollination

This is the first amphibian to have been observed pollinating plants, '' Cordia taguahyensis'' (

Boraginaceae Boraginaceae, the Borago, borage or forget-me-not family, includes about 2,000 species of shrubs, trees, and herbs in 146 to 154 genus, genera with a worldwide distribution. The APG IV system from 2016 classifies the Boraginaceae as single famil ...

) and '' Iris x germanica'' (

Iridaceae Iridaceae () is a family of plants in order Asparagales, taking its name from the Iris (plant), irises. It has a nearly global distribution, with 69 accepted genera with a total of about 2500 species. It includes a number of economically importan ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2704233 Xenohyla Amphibians of the Atlantic Forest Endemic frogs of Brazil Pollination Amphibians described in 1959 Taxa named by Eugênio Izecksohn Taxonomy articles created by Polbot