The Bicoloured Frog's Wedding Suit

The polka dots had thinned into the skin. The blacks had greyed into sallower shades. But the red-rimmed eyes still gleamed like rubies. Here was the Bicoloured Frog again, dressed for its wedding party

Bi-coloured Frog (Clinotarsus curtipes).

In early June this year, just as Agumbe awaited the deluge of the southwest monsoon, we visited the Agumbe Rainforest Research Station there. You might remember that we had posted an encounter with the polka-dotted Bicoloured Frog (Clinotarsus curtipes).

In his Book of Indian Reptiles and Amphibians, J C Daniel mentions that the species begins to breed with the onset of the southwest monsoon and tadpoles can be sighted in plenty in April, May and June. However, in Agumbe, none of the frogs we encountered displayed any hint of breeding colours.

The Kulgi Nature Camp abutting the Dandeli-Anshi Tiger Reserve (15°16'01"N 74°37'01"E), with its broad-leafed north Western Ghats moist deciduous forests, is drier than Agumbe (13°30'30"N 75°5'45"E) and the monsoon had receded by early October, though thundershowers staged a mock-charge in the evenings.

Agumbe, June: Bi-coloured Frog in non-breeding colours

The forest floor was not just a lot drier, the leaf litter was much less than at Agumbe

It was mid-morning and we were out birding along the Birder's Trail near Kulgi Nature Camp, having just enjoyed watching a mixed hunting party -- Velvet-fronted Nuthatch, Paradise Flycatcher, Scarlet Minivets, Brown-capped Pygmy Woodpecker, Greater Flameback and Common Iora -- and a much-relieved Sandy commented on the uncharacteristic lethargy of the leeches (there was to be no nightmare-induced macabre storytelling tonight). And then a casual glance at the forest floor revealed this treasure.

Creamy yellow upper body with prominent black dots

The upper body is bright golden-yellow and the dots have almost faded off

The transformation was remarkable. The dots on the upper body had almost faded off and the yellow was much brighter -- almost golden. The sharp division between the coloration of the upper and lower parts of the body remained but the glistening black limbs were now brown.

The black limbs have turned brown

The white patch that ran from the snout towards the eye was now yellow and a small black band separated it from the greenish-yellow (almost olive) skin of the sides, which now displayed a dual coloration -- a change from the uniform black of the non-breeding form. The most remarkable change, however, was the white-blotched grey of the frog's underside and the lower half of the belly between the fore and hind-limbs. It gave the frog's underbelly and sides a rather lichen-patched texture (less on the underbelly than the sides of the lower belly), perhaps a useful camouflage from slithering predators on the forest floor.

The large red-rimmed eye still glowed like a ruby.

Notice the lichen-patched texture of the underbelly that was uniform black before breeding commenced

Behaviourally the frog did not seem to have changed much. It was solitary, did not call, and was not jumpy or nervous. While we photographed, it stayed put, only taking a single jump if we stepped too close. 

It did seem a bit late in the season, but the forest had several wet patches and we hoped that somewhere, not too far away, was another individual of the species. Of the opposite sex.

Text and photographs by Sahastrarashmi

Encounter: Golden Frog

Our very own Golden Frog, a Western Ghats endemic, gave us the cherished privilege of a long and uninterrupted audience

At the outset let me state that the frog we encountered is not to be confused with the Panamanian Golden Frog (Atelopus zeteki), which was last seen and filmed in the wild in 2007. The entire known population in the wild is now assumed extinct and the frog survives only in captivity. Our Golden Frog (Hylarana aurantiaca) is luckier, but the Sword of Damocles of the amphibian world, the fungal infection chytridiomycosis, hangs over its head too.
Frogs have an extremely permeable skin, through which they can absorb oxygen into the bloodstream. Oxygen first dissolves in a thin water film on the surface of the skin and then from there into the blood. This feature, which evolved to aid their amphibious lifestyle, is now one of the reasons for the rapid decline of frog populations around the globe. The permeable skin makes them highly susceptible to toxins in the water. So evolved is this feature in frogs that a lungless frog has been discovered in 2007 in the rainforests of Borneo, Indonesia. The Bornean Flat-headed Frog (Barbourula kalimantanensis) has no lungs and this 7 cm long frog breathes entirely though its skin. The absence of lungs helps it attain a flatter body shape -- a key adaptation to survival in its habitat, fast-running mountain streams, since it aids streamlining and reduces drag. But it is already threatened due to rise in water toxicity due to mining.

We first encountered the Golden Frog during a late evening “frogging” session at ARRS. They were perched on leaves and calling (the vocal sac is internal) but in the feeble torchlight it was very difficult to make out the distinctive coloration, especially the yellow-orange back bordered by two golden streaks – the characteristics that gives them their regal name. The next day I saw a couple of them on the same bushes beside a small monsoonal wetland right outside our cottage and as the excited Ogres scanned the bushes we realized that there at least 20 of them right there. As we photographed them, the frogs maintained the calm and composure of meditating Zen monks. There was no alarm, no anxiety and no visible discomfiture. In fact, as the successive monsoon fronts arrived -- the sequence of mist, drizzle, heavy shower, sunshine, mist played out though the day -- they hardly seemed to move. I observed one of them seated in position for almost three hours. They also seemed to be quite gregarious, seated on leaves, twigs, stems and branches of the bush close to each other.

Hylarana aurantiaca is found in moist evergreen forests, swamps and coastal regions bordering the southern Western Ghats and is probably a Western Ghats endemic since the population found in Sri Lanka is suspected to belong to a separate, yet undescribed, species. It is described as a semi-arboreal and semi-aquatic frog. The frogs we came upon at the ARRS (which has a population of over 200-300 Golden Frogs) were typically perched on small bushes – on stems and twigs – and on large leaves close to the ground. There was a small disused water-logged paddyfield nearby so the bushes were technically at the edge of a shallow water body. Their IUCN status is Vulnerable.

The frog is small in size -- approximately 4 cm from the snout to the vent. The toes are dilated into discs and the middle digit of the toes is longer than the other two. It has three digits on each limb and the webbing is barely noticeable. The skin can be smooth but is often granulated especially on the back due to scattered conical tubercules. The nostril is close to the snout and the tympanum is quite distinct, almost the size of the eye, only slightly smaller.

Hylarana aurantiaca’s distinct feature is a chocolate-brown/olive-green band that runs from the tip of the snout along the flanks to the hindlegs. The eye, nostril and tympanum are all situated on this band. This band is bordered by a bright yellow, almost golden streak running all along the upper border and till the foreleg along the lower border. The back, which is essentially bordered by these two Midas-touched streaks is orange/orange-yellow or olive-brown. The back and the limbs have no barring but for some dark splotches. The eye is black and bulging, the eyelids bright orange. The underparts are creamy white and the skin is a translucent glowing orange when it is lit up by the sun.

Currently, around the world, most of the roughly 5,000 species of frogs are in decline, and we have a very real risk of losing species that are not yet discovered. In India, while 12 new species of tree-frogs were discovered by a team led by S D Biju of Delhi University, Systematics Lab, Delhi, another initiative to re-discover 50 lost amphibians of India (LOST! Amphibians of India Initiative) has yielded just five re-discoveries so far, the prized one being Chalazodes Bubble-nest Frog (Raorchestes chalazodes), unrecorded since 1874. Researchers estimate that we may have lost up to 13% of our amphibians already.

We Ogres cherish the time we spent with the Golden Frogs at ARRS. They were trusting, accessible and -- pardon me for anthropomorphising -- extremely friendly. It was a privilege to observe and photograph them from so close. The Golden Frog is a lovely representative of a species that has a special place in our hearts – be it as a Frog Prince or as a metaphor in Matsuo Basho’s famous Frog Haiku.

Text and Photographs by Sahastrarashmi
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Monsoon Mating Mania

Monsoon in top gear is a season for an unabashed green orgy, and we voyeuristic Green Ogres clicked away shamelessly. So much for the birds and bees...


"On the earth the broken arcs; in the heaven a perfect round."
- Robert Browning

Crimson-tailed Marsh Hawks form little earthly arcs as they clasp. Often, when mating dragonflies take wing together, they resemble some large composite monster

The phrase 'Sex and the City' brings to mind too many limp television romances but here we were in Agumbe, so far removed from anything urban that our cell phones barely twitched. Distractions were therefore not going to trouble us. So, absently, perhaps the single (and deprived?) among us must have pondered the question: "What was sex away from the city going to be like?"


I assure you that it was not on our agenda to find out, but without our asking the rainforest's little denizens put on an unabashed show just for us. Even a prude would have stopped to watch, and marvel at the minuscule arcs being etched in the great circle of life. 

Doing it on the hop...

...or on a twig

The sex lives of animals are intriguing but they don't always make for pleasant breakfast conversation. How many embarrassed parents have hurried their confused children away from friendly neighbourhood dogs making an amatory spectacle of themselves in full view of 132 apartments? 


Truth be told, I learned the facts of life long before my parents had the opportunity to tell me about the birds and bees. Ironically, I learned what I had to just by watching birds and bees, and other animals. By age seven, I had some very viable theories on reproduction, most of which led to "Aha, I told you so!" moments later on in life. 


Something about animals (or was it something about me?) led them to perform without restraint before my eyes. And so, before I was myself of reproductive age I had witnessed, both in the wild and in captivity, the private moments of (in no particular order) chickens, quail, partridges, butterflies, dragonflies, mynas, peafowl, cats, crabs, squirrels, geese, donkeys, horses, elephants, monkeys, guinea pigs, rats, mice, pigeons, parakeets, sparrows, snakes, buffalos, cattle, pigs, goats, sheep, deer, gaur, nilgai, blackbuck, agamas, frogs, cockroaches, leopards, waterhens, fish...  


Watching their complex (and, in some cases, extremely uncomplicated) courtship rituals was always fascinating, even if not in a voyeuristic way. With every year, I began to look forward to the monsoon that awakened a deep-seated love rush in all living things. 


Three days and nights in Agumbe brought back so many childhood discoveries that it was like falling in love with love all over again.


While grasshoppers whirred underfoot, crickets kept up the chorus at night. In the murky nooks of the rainforest where we ventured gingerly, half-excited and half-fearful for the vipers that we were told lurked there, frogs were awake and lovesick enough to sing by day. At dusk their chorus mounted to a din above which you had to raise your voice to be heard. Frogs and toads clasped in the stagnant pools of rainwater. Grass stalks at the bottom of clear-flowing runnels were braided with spawn.


Wherever we looked, insects mated. Amorous flies buzzed love songs in our ears. Tiger Beetles tumbled on the ground, looking mean and aggressive even as they coupled. Katydids and grasshoppers hurried away to quieter corners at our approach. 


Whether it was the unusual beauty of two bodies in harmony, or sheer zoopornographic glut, we the paparazzi stalked these lovelorn creatures and made a photographic feast of it. Here are the spoils for your vicarious enjoyment.

Or in brazen defiance of gravity like these Handmaiden Moths

Clearly, we were not the only voyeurs

Text by Beej
Photos by Sahastrarashmi, Sandeep Somasekharan and Beej


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Encounter: Bicoloured Frog

It's tiny and blends in completely with the leaf litter but once you spot it, the Bicoloured Frog is unmistakable

The southwest monsoon has just set in and the entire forest is dripping wet. The dimly lit floor is an abstract mosaic of rust, maroon, brown, beige, green and black – leaves in all stages of decomposition, slowly turning into soggy mulch. An occasional vein of green moss on a tree buttress glows iridescent under a rare shaft of sunlight. Fungi sprout everywhere feasting on death and decay. Every tentative footstep encounters leeches – tiny cold-blooded filaments swaying in the stagnant and humid air, relentlessly in the hunt for the iota of warmth that our feet radiate, setting them off on a determined somersaulting advance. Rotting twigs and branches give way at the slightest footfall and the soft murmur of rain on the dense closed canopy is a permanent hum in a forest which is otherwise silent, at least until nightfall provides the cue to lovesick frogs and crickets.

We are on the lookout for the Hump-nosed Pit Viper but instead we sight the Bicoloured Frog. It, too, is wet and soaked, motionless until it notices us with its large, round, red eyes, which are well adapted to sight in the semi-darkness of the rainforest. 


True to its name, the predominant impression of the Bicoloured Frog (Clinotarsus curtipes), is the neat division of the colouration of the upper and the lower halves of its body. The upper half (which has been described as grey or brown) is cream-coloured, tinged with yellow resulting in a very light shade of brown that matches the surrounding leaf litter. The lower half of the body is glistening black with no banding on the limbs. Seen in dimmer light the glistening back gives the impression of deep beige. 


The nostrils are very close to the mouth and the tympanum, present on the black half of the body and hence not very easily seen, is as large as the eye. The size is approximately 7 cm and the snout is pointed. The backs of all the four or five frogs that we encountered bore randomly distributed black spots, providing excellent camouflage in the leaf litter. The spotting on the back may or may not be present on individual frogs though all the frogs that we encountered had them.

While we photographed the frog – almost lying on the ground for an eye-level view (an act of extreme gallantry considering the omnipresent, ever-flipping thirsty-for-blood leeches) the frog was moderately alarmed and tried to move away, on one occasion walking up using its limbs, but was not unduly shy, never taking more than one hop. Clinotarsus curtipes seemed to be fairly common but none happened to be in breeding colors yet.

The IUCN status is Near Threatened, primarily on account of habitat loss. Clinotarsus curtipes is a terrestrial leaf-litter frog but has webbed toes and enters the water only during the breeding season. It adapts well and is found in different forest types -- evergreen, semi-evergreen and deciduous. In the breeding season the frog acquires a ruddy disposition with the black receding out from the sides and the underside becoming very dark, almost black. The vocal sac is internal. As in a lot of frog species the female is larger than the male. J C Daniel notes that the dispersal of young frogs is very orderly and almost battalion-like. 

The spots, like the stripes of the tiger, can be distinctive and are used to identify individual frogs during density surveys. The spots are also a good aid to locate the frog since an uncannily well synchronised set of polka dots hopping on the forest floor give away an otherwise excellent camouflage.

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Text and photographs by Sahastrarashmi 
Photograph of the breeding male by L Shyamal (Wikipedia Commons)

Encounter: Blue-eyed Bush Frog

On a dark, wet monsoon night in Agumbe we met the very kissable blue-eyed prince of frogs

A Blue-eyed Bush Frog vocalising with its throat sac puffed out

If the name Philautus neelanethrus does not suggest a blue-blooded prince to you, an audience with the aforesaid certainly will, assuming that you will be granted one. The Blue-eyed Bush Frog inhabits the deep, dense evergreen rainforests of the Western Ghats and was described to science as recently as 2007 from the Sharavathi Valley. 

This diminutive frog, less than 3 cm long, acquires a yellow colouration during the breeding season (though in the picture it appears redder) and has a beautiful golden eye with a horizontal pupil, completely encircled by an iridescent blue ring. It owes its name to this lovely blue eye-ring. It is usually found on mid-height bushes perched on leaves. In the non-breeding season, its colour is creamy.

Our rendezvous with the blue-eyed prince occurred on a wet, rainy night at the Agumbe Rainforest Research Station. We heard the call -- one among many enigmatic mating croaks that filled up the inky monsoon night: treek tink-tink-tink. Once located, like a true celebrity, it seemed uncomfortable with the attention and stopped calling. 

After a short break, it called again and we scrambled for a view. I was lucky to get this one shot of the prince before being banished from his august presence. 

Text and photo by Sahastrarashmi 

Excellent pictures of this frog can be viewed at AMOGHAVARSHA and Sharath’s websites.


This post is the first of our Agumbe Diaries. Look out for more about monsoon in the rainforest.

Encounter: The Bronzed Frog

In April 2006, we trekked from the Iruppu waterfalls in Kodagu (Coorg) to the Brahmagiri peak on the Karnataka-Kerala border. After crossing the lower bamboo-dominated patches we crossed a transition zone and reached a nice shola patch at the edge of the high-altitude grassland.


That's where we saw the frog. We found this individual near a small clear-water stream where we had stopped for lunch. In the dappled sunlight of the shola floor, a few individuals were perched on rocks close to the water. It was wet and quite well camouflaged among the rust, brown and maroon leaves sticking to wet stream rocks. The Bronzed Frog was not shy and stayed with us while we lunched, graciously allowing us to photograph it and allowing a close approach.

The common name of the frog is derived from the striking bronze strips that begin from near the snout, continue down the lower jaw, and run along the sides of the body to the lower limbs. The back is brown with bronze spotting and the hind limbs have broken bronze stripes. These strips appear just after the metamorphosis is complete. The Bronzed Frog is an important prey species for the Malabar Pit Viper (Trimeresurus malabaricus), another endemic species that loves the same moist, wet and green canopy-covered shola habitat. Hylarana temporalis was first described in 1864 and is endemic to the Indian subcontinent. It is found in the evergreen forests of the Western Ghats and the Sri Lankan highlands.

Hylarana temporalis or Bronzed Frog is similar to Hylarana aurantiaca, another endemic. H. temporalis is also found in slightly disturbed areas, but H. aurantiaca prefers only fairly pristine canopy-covered streams.

While an alarming die-out of amphibians, especially frogs, has been recorded in recent years, new species continue to be discovered across the world, including the Western Ghats. In early 2009, amphibian researchers S.D. Biju of Delhi University's Systematics Lab and Franky Bossuyt of the Amphibian Evolution Lab of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel announced the discovery of 12 new species of tree frogs from the Western Ghats. Dr Biju also rediscovered the Travancore Bushfrog (Philautus travancoricus), which had not been sighted in 100 years and was hence believed to be extinct. Approximately 126 amphibian species have been described from the Western Ghats.

Another species, Raorchestes resplendens, was recently described from the Eravikulam National Park and is believed to be restricted to a 3 sq km range on the summit of Anaimudi (the highest peak in the Western Ghats), further reinforcing the status of the Western Ghats as an important bio-diversity hotspot.

Text and photographs by Sahastrarashmi

Thanks to K S Gopi Sundar for ID help.

With a wave of his hand, the Panamanian golden frog...

BBC reports: The Panamanian golden frog communicates with other frogs by semaphore in the form of gentle hand waves. It has evolved the mechanism to signal to rivals and mates above the noise of mountain streams. Shortly after filming for the BBC One series Life In Cold Blood, the frogs had to be rescued from the wild, due to the threat of chytrid fungus. Hilary Jeffkins, senior producer of Life In Cold Blood, said the semaphoring behaviour of the Panamanian golden frog was very unusual. "Normally, frogs would croak to get their message across but it's too noisy," she said. "An extra mechanism they've evolved is to wave to each other." The frogs (Atelopus zeteki) were filmed at a remote location in the Panamanian rainforest. The population had all but disappeared because of a fungus that grows on the amphibians' skin and suffocates them. The film crew was disinfected - to stop them from carrying the disease - and managed to capture unique footage of the frogs in the wild. Just after filming was completed in June 2006, the location was overtaken by the chytrid fungus. Scientists were forced to remove the remaining frogs from the wild and keep them in captivity. Hilary Jeffkins added: "The whole species is now extinct in Panama - this was one of the last remaining populations. It's its final wave in our programme." Chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis) is a major contributor to the decline of amphibian populations around the world, threatening many species with extinction. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7219803.stm My friend Gopi Sundar sends an update: "In the Western Ghats, there is an endemic genera called Micrixalus that also has intricate leg-waving. It's quite amazing to watch." In a 2004 article, BBC had warned that "as many as 122 [amphibian] species may have become extinct since 1980 and a third of known amphibians face oblivion."