#hemiphractus

Sumaco Horned Treefrog (Hemiphractus proboscideus), family Hemiphractidae, Loreto, Peru

A Spix’s horned toad carries eggs on its back. This photograph was taken by Jasmine Vink, the winner of the wildlife and animal category and overall winner in the Australian Photography’s 2018 Photographer of the Year competition

Photograph: Jasmine Vink/Australian Photography Magazine

Spix's Horned Tree Frog (Hemiphractus scutatus), family Hemiphractidae, Ecuador

Sumaco Horned Treefrog - Hemiphractus proboscideus

Sometimes referred to as Sumaco Horned Treefrog because of the shape of its head and snout, this bizarre frog belonging to the South American species Hemiphractus proboscideus (Hemiphractidae), is indeed strange. 

This species can be identified by a distinctive large triangular head, with a fleshy, sharply pointed snout and protruding tubercles on the upper eyelids. Like other frogs in the genus, this one is casque-headed, has large, angular ornamented skull bones, and the skin is co-ossified to the cranial elements. This species also has odontoids, fang-like outgrowths of the lower jaw which are superficially similar to teeth but not equivalent to true teeth. The tongue and interior of the mouth are a striking yellow color.

And if that were not enough, this species is a marsupial frog considered one of the basal members of this genus since the female incubates the eggs on her back but lacks a brooding pouch for doing so. During the mating season, the female carries up to 26 large eggs exposed on her back, adhered by gelatinous substances. This species has direct development where small froglets hatch directly out of the eggs, without going through a free-living larval stage.

Hemiphractus proboscideus is considered a rare species, but it can be found in the Upper Amazon Basin in southeastern Colombia, Ecuador and northern Peru.

References: [1] - [2]