''Xenophrys lekaguli'' 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

Megophryidae Megophryidae, commonly known as goose frogs, is a large family of frogs native to the warm southeast of Asia, from the Himalayan foothills eastwards, south to Indonesia and the Greater Sunda Islands in Maritime Southeast Asia, and extending to t ...

. 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 Southeast Asia and is known from the

Chanthaburi Chanthaburi (, ) is a town ('' thesaban mueang'') in the east of Thailand, on the banks of the Chanthaburi River. It is the capital of the Chanthaburi Province and the Mueang Chanthaburi District. The town covers the two ''tambons'' Talat an ...

and Sa Kaeo Provinces in eastern Thailand and from the

Cardamom Mountains The Cardamom Mountains (, ; , ), or the Krâvanh Mountains, is a mountain range in the southwest part of Cambodia and Eastern Thailand. The majority of the range is within Cambodia. The silhouette of the Cardamom Mountains appears in the Sea ...

in Pursat Province, western Cambodia. The

specific Specific may refer to: * Specificity (disambiguation) * Specific, a cure or therapy for a specific illness Law * Specific deterrence, focussed on an individual * Specific finding, intermediate verdict used by a jury in determining the final ...

name commemorates Thai zoologist and conservationist Dr Boonsong Lekagul.

Description

''Xenophrys lekaguli'' is a medium-sized ''Xenophrys'', the female having a body length of up to , the male up to in snout–vent length. The upper parts are light brown with darker markings, the flank is yellowish and the underside pinkish. The legs have black spots. The bluntly pointed snout projects distinctly beyond the lower

jaw The jaws are a pair of opposable articulated structures at the entrance of the mouth, typically used for grasping and manipulating food. The term ''jaws'' is also broadly applied to the whole of the structures constituting the vault of the mouth ...

. The species is most similar to '' Xenophrys auralensis'' and ''

Xenophrys major ''Xenophrys major'' is a species of toad Toad (also known as a hoptoad) is a common name for certain frogs, especially of the family Bufonidae, that are characterized by dry, leathery skin, short legs, and large bumps covering the parotoi ...

'' but can be distinguished from the former by the smaller size of the male and the presence of teeth on the

vomer The vomer (; ) is one of the unpaired facial bones of the skull. It is located in the midsagittal line, and articulates with the sphenoid, the ethmoid, the left and right palatine bones, and the left and right maxillary bones. The vomer forms ...

and from the latter by lacking a pale stripe above the mouth and having a patterned (as opposed to plain) eyelid. The slender

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, ...

has the mouth shaped like an upturned funnel, which is typical of the genus.

Habitat and conservation

''Xenophrys lekaguli'' occurs near cascade streams in hilly evergreen and evergreen-bamboo mixed forests at elevations of

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

. They can be typically found on boulders, leaf litter or bare soil within from the stream banks. This species can occur in slightly disturbed habitats. It is threatened by habitat loss and modification caused by (selective) logging and agriculture. It is present in a number of protected areas.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q28026226 lekaguli Frogs of Asia Amphibians of Cambodia Amphibians of Thailand Amphibians described in 2006 Taxa named by Bryan Lynn Stuart Taxa named by Yodchaiy Chuaynkern Taxa named by Tanya Chan-ard Taxa named by Robert F. Inger