Researchers at Griffith University in Australia and the Queensland Museum have discovered a “chocolate frog” in New Guinea, and say the amphibians that have baptized Litoria Myra can provide useful information about the ancient relationship between Australia and the island to its north.
“The closest known relative of Litoria mira is the blue tree frog, also known as the Australian tree frog. The two species look similar except that one of them is usually green in color, while the newly identified species are usually a chocolate brown wizard,” Paul Oliver said, Fellow of the university.
We gave Mira, a strange or surprising name in Latin, not this new species of Litoria, because we were surprised to discover a hitherto unknown relative of the blue-leaf frog, well known and common in Australia, in the lowland rainforests of New Guinea. “ Specialist added.
According to Steve Richards of the Museum of South Australia, Litoria mira is assumed to be a widespread species in New Guinea, but it prefers warm, marshy, and crocodile-rich areas where people don’t dare very much.
“While New Guinea is not a place most Australians know well, we do have many animal groups in common. Knowing about the biodiversity of New Guinea will help us better understand the history and origins of the unique fauna in Australia,” Richards noted in The Australian Review. Zoology. Co-author of a study published in the journal.
(MTI)
