Litoria castanea
Yellow-spotted Bell Frog
Conservation Status
Calling Period
Description
A large species of frog reaching up to 9 cm in body length. It has a bright green back with gold patches and a green longitudinal stripe along the middle. There is a cream-coloured stripe from the tip of the snout to halfway along the side. The belly is white. The pupil is horizontal and the iris is gold. The groin and backs of the thighs are bright blue with small bright yellow patches. Fingers are unwebbed and toes are fully webbed, both with small discs.
Breeding Biology
Eggs are laid as small clusters in water, sometimes sinking and attaching to vegetation at the shallow edges of permanent lagoons and ponds. Tadpoles can reach a total length of up to 8 cm, and are likely to be similar to those of Litoria aurea and Litoria raniformis in colour, habit and development time; only preserved Litoria castanea tadpoles have been examined. Breeds during spring and summer.
Similar Species
Looks very similar to Litoria aurea and Litoria raniformis in its distribution, but has more bright yellow patches on the backs of the thighs.
Images
Photo: George Madani
Photo: Michael McFadden
Photo: George Madani
Calls
Distribution
Formerly common throughout the New England Tableland and Southern Tablelands region in NSW, and the ACT, but has declined severely due to the amphibian chytrid fungus. It is now only known from one small population in southeast NSW.