Hyloxalus exasperatus
{{short description|Species of frog}}
{{Speciesbox
| image =
| status = CR
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| taxon = Hyloxalus exasperatus
| authority = (Lynch and {{interlanguage link multi|William Edward Duellman|fr|lt=Duellman}}, 1988)
| synonyms = Colostethus exasperatus Duellman and Lynch, 1988
}}
Hyloxalus exasperatus or the Yapitya rocket frog is a species of frog in the family Dendrobatidae. It is endemic to Ecuador and found on the eastern slopes of the Andes in Pastaza and Morona-Santiago Provinces.{{cite web |url=http://research.amnh.org/vz/herpetology/amphibia/Amphibia/Anura/Dendrobatidae/Hyloxalinae/Hyloxalus/Hyloxalus-exasperatus |title=Hyloxalus exasperatus (Duellman and Lynch, 1988) |author=Frost, Darrel R. |year=2014 |work=Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0 |publisher=American Museum of Natural History |access-date=23 March 2015}}{{cite web |url=http://zoologia.puce.edu.ec/Vertebrados/anfibios/FichaEspecie.aspx?Id=1232 |title=Hyloxalus exasperatus |author=Coloma, LA |author2=Ortiz, DA |author3=Frenkel, C. |name-list-style=amp |year=2013 |work=Ron, S. R., Guayasamin, J. M., Yanez-Muñoz, M. H., Merino-Viteri, A., Ortiz, D. A. y Nicolalde, D. A. 2014. AmphibiaWebEcuador. Version 2014.0 |publisher=Museo de Zoología, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador (QCAZ) |access-date=23 March 2015 }}{{Dead link|date=August 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} However, it is suggested that specimens from Pastaza represent a different, possibly undescribed species.{{BioRef|amphibiaweb
|title=Hyloxalus exasperatus (Duellman and Lynch, 1988)
|author1=Luis A. Coloma|author2= Diego A. Ortiz |author3= Caty Frenkel
|editor1= Luis A. Coloma
|date=May 14, 2013
|language=es
|url=https://amphibiaweb.org/species/1559
|access-date=August 29, 2024}}{{cite IUCN
|title= Sky Blue Poison Dart Frog: Hyloxalus exasperatus
|url=https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/55077/98644535
|page=e.T55077A98644535
|doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2023-1.RLTS.T55077A98644535.en
|id=55077
|year=2023
|author1=IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group
|accessdate=August 29, 2024}}
Description
Males measure {{convert|17.5|-|20|mm|abbr=on}} and females {{convert|21|mm|abbr=on}} in snout–vent length (based on only six and two specimens, respectively). Toe webbing is absent but it has a dorsolateral stripe and a short oblique lateral stripe. It is similar to Hyloxalus whymperi but lacks heavy darkening on the abdomen of males.{{cite journal |last1=Coloma |first1=L. A. |year=1995 |title=Ecuadorian frogs of the genus Colostethus (Anura: Dendrobatidae) |journal=Miscellaneous Publication, Museum of Natural History, University of Kansas |volume=87 |pages=1–72 |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/16171}} Male call is unknown.
Etymology
Students of South American frogs named this frog exasperatus for feelings of frustration and exasperation while waiting fifteen years for scientist Stephen R. Edwards to finish writing his reassessment of the genus Colostethus.
Habitat
Its natural habitats are pluvial premontane and very humid premontane forests. Its altitudinal range is {{convert|970|-|1981|m|abbr=on}} asl.
Scientists found some of these frogs in one protected park: Bosque Protector Cordillera Kutuku-Shaimi.
Reproduction
Scientists believe the frog reproduces the same way many other frogs in Hyloxalus do: the female frog lays eggs on the ground and the male frog carries the tadpoles to streams.
Threats
The IUCN classifies this frog as critically endangered and possibly extinct. Scientists believe that there are no more than 250 alive today, no more than 50 in each separate population.
It is threatened by habitat loss and degradation caused by agricultural expansion, logging, and gold and copper mining.
References
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{{Taxonbar|from=Q1343249}}
Category:Amphibians of the Andes
Category:Amphibians of Ecuador
Category:Endemic fauna of Ecuador
Category:Amphibians described in 1988
Category:Taxa named by William Edward Duellman