Paedophryne amauensis
Paedophryne amauensis is a species of microhylid frog endemic to eastern Papua New Guinea. At 7.7 mm (0.30 in) in snout-to-vent length, it is considered the world's smallest known vertebrate.
The species was listed in the Top 10 New Species 2013 by the International Institute for Species Exploration for discoveries made during 2012.
Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal",...
Crepuscular animals are those that are active primarily during twilight (that is, the periods of dawn and dusk). This is distinguished from diurnal...
An insectivore is a carnivorous plant or animal that eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which also refers to the human practice of e...
Myrmecophagy is a feeding behavior defined by the consumption of termites or ants, particularly as pertaining to those animal species whose diets a...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
Oviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
Jumping (saltation) can be distinguished from running, galloping, and other gaits where the entire body is temporarily airborne by the relatively l...
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Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withP. amauensis, attaining an average body size of only 7.7 millimetres (0.30 in), is 0.2 millimetres (0.0079 in) smaller than the previous record-holder as the world's smallest vertebrate, a species of cyprinid fish (Paedocypris progenetica ; 7.9 mm ) from Indonesia and a species of goby fish (Schindleria brevipinguis ; 7.7 mm ) from Australia.
The frog lives on land and its life cycle does not include a tadpole stage. Instead, members of this species hatch as 'hoppers': miniatures of the adults. The skeleton is reduced and there are only seven presacral vertebrae present. They are capable of jumping thirty times their body length. The frog is crepuscular and feeds on small invertebrates. Males call for mates with a series of very high-pitched insect-like peeps at a frequency of 8400–9400 Hz.
P. amauensis occurs in tropical wet lowland and hill forest at elevations of 177–800 m (581–2,625 ft) above sea level. Due to having a high surface to volume ratio, the Paedophryne amauensis are subject to water-loss and dependent on the high-moisture content of leaf litter. Similar to all species of Paedophryne known so far, members of Paedophryne amauensis live in the leaf litter on the floors of tropical forests.
P. amauensis is known from its type locality near Amau village (Central Province) and from the Variarata National Park (National Capital District), both in eastern Papua New Guinea. It is likely to have a much wider range. It is very abundant locally. As large areas of suitable habitat remain, this species is not considered to be threatened at present.