Litoria nannotis
Waterfall Frog
Conservation Status
- EPBC
- Unlisted
- IUCN
- Least Concern
Calling Period
Dec
Feb
Jan
Nov
Oct
Sep
Description
A large species of frog reaching up to 6.5 cm in body length. It has a light brown, olive-green, or grey back, with dark brown marbling or spots. The belly is white. The pupil is horizontal and the iris is gold, with black flecks. Fingers are slightly webbed and toes are fully webbed, both with large discs. The male has a distinct grouping of black nuptial spines on the base of the thumbs that help to grip the female during mating. They sometimes communicate by foot waving, which may be due to living near fast flowing streams where the sound of water blocks out any calling noise.
Breeding Biology
Eggs are laid as a cluster attached under rocks in streams. Tadpoles can reach a total length of up to 6 cm and are brown or grey with gold mottling, or uniform black in colour. They use their very large mouthparts to stick to rocks in order to avoid being swept away by flowing water. They often remain at the bottom of water bodies and it is unknown how long they take to develop into frogs. Breeding may occur at any time of the year.
Similar Species
Looks similar to Litoria lorica, Litoria nyakalensis and Litoria rheocola, but is larger and has more black nuptial spines than Litoria nyakalensis, has more mottling than Litoria rheocola, and is larger than Litoria lorica.
Images
Photo: Jodi Rowley
Photo: Stephen Mahony
Photo: Stephen Mahony