Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Leiopelmatidae
Genus: Leiopelma
Species: L. archeyi
Binomial name: Leiopelma archeyi
Common name: Archey's frog
Leiopelma archeyi is the smallest of New Zealand’s indigenous frog species. It lives at a relatively high altitude of about 400-1000 m asl in moist native forests and open sub-alpine scrub. This species occurs in only two regions, the Whareorino range west of Te Kuiti and Moehau and Colville Ranges on the Coromandel Peninsula, south to ranges near Paeroa in the east on North Island, New Zealand. This species is fully terrestrial, living and reproducing under damp vegetation in native forests. Like other New Zealand native frog species, it does not exhibit a breeding call. This is because they are a primitive frog species that do not possess vocal chords or eardrums. However, they are known to squeak or chirp when annoyed, distressed, or during sexual activity.
Leiopelma archeyi is a small frog with snout-vent length up to 31 mm for males, 37 mm for females. They vary in colour from mostly green to mixtures of green and brown to mostly brown. They have no or little webbing in the hind toes.
Leiopelma archeyi is a terrestrial breeder with mating takes place in shallow, moist depressions beneath logs. During mating, the male clasps the female about the back. After the unpigmented eggs (4 to 15) are laid the male guards them. Leiopelma archeyi young do not go through a tadpole stage, instead, they develop totally within a gelatinous capsule in the egg, hatching out as tailed froglets which crawl onto the father’s back where they are kept moist. They remain on his back for several weeks whilst they complete metamorphosis. They take around three years to reach maturity.
Populations o Leiopelma archeyi have crashed in recent years due to a disease called chytridiomycosis which is caused by Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis an amphibian chytrid fungus.
The Department of Conservation (DOC) has classified the Archey's frog as a “Critically endangered” species.
Areas in red are the Archey's frog habitat.
Thanks to Wikipedia for text and Information: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
Thanks to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017: e.T11450A3277496. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2004.RLTS.T11450A3277496.en.
