The Cambridge natural history, Vol. 08 (of 10)Gadow, Hans
Science
The Cambridge natural history, Vol. 08 (of 10)
Gadow, Hans
Animals
"I have been told by both English and natives that this frog was unknown in
Singapore until some nine or ten years ago, when it was introduced by a
half-caste (why, it is not known), and that it rapidly spread about the
island. It is now well known as the 'Bullfrog' by the English in Singapore,
and detested for the noise it makes at night. The voice of these rotund
animals can be heard every night after heavy rain; it is {235}a deep
guttural croak, 'wau-auhhhh,' very strident and prolonged. The males croak
while floating on the surface of the water, the single vocal sac under the
mouth inflated like a globe, and the arms and legs extended. They can hop
well on land and are good swimmers. The skin is excessively slimy; the
secretion comes off profusely, and dries on the hand into a sort of white
gum, with a faint aromatic smell. This gum dissolves in hot water and
coagulates in cold. The general appearance of these frogs is very stout,
their girth being about twice the length from snout to vent. The tongue,
which is oblong in spirit specimens, in life is very elastic, assuming,
when extended, a vermiform shape and reaching about 4 cm. in length. They
appear after sunset, crawling on old wood and feeding on white ants."
SUB-FAM. 2. DYSCOPHINAE.–_With teeth in the upper jaw._
This small group of nine genera, with scarcely more than one dozen species,
all with one exception living in Madagascar, has been separated by
Boulenger from the Engystomatinae merely on account of the presence of
teeth on the upper jaw and on the vomerine margin of the palatine bones. He
himself remarks that _Calluella_ may be considered a toothed _Hypopachus_,
and _Plethodontohyla_ a toothed _Callula_. These are obvious cases of
convergent analogy. Except for the teeth, the Indian _Calluella_ would be
merged into the American _Hypopachus_, and this would present an instance
of the most puzzling geographical distribution. In the case of the other
two genera, one Indian and Malayan, the other Malagasy, no such suspicion
would arise, since there are many other instances of such a coincidence of
distribution. There is the same divergence or unsettled condition in the
modification of various parts in the Dyscophinae as in the Engystomatinae.
The precoracoid bars are weak and curved backwards, and closely pressed
against the strong coracoids, in _Dyscophus_, _Calluella_ and _Platypelis_,
while these elements are reduced to unossified bars, and the clavicular
portions completely lost, in _Plethodontohyla_ and in _Phrynocara_. The
omosternum is absent and the metasternum is small in all except
_Dyscophus_, in which both these parts are exceptionally well developed and
large, although remaining unossified. The palate of _Dyscophus_ and
_Calluella_ is provided with curious, serrated dermal folds like those
which are so common in the Engystomatinae; and well-developed discs on the
fingers and toes, supported by T-shaped phalanges, are {236}possessed by
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