Amphibians · Anura · Micrixalidae

Kalakkad Dancing Frog

Micrixalus fuscus

Near Threatened

It could become endangered in the near future if current threats go unchecked. See full glossary

The Kalakkad dancing frog is a tiny frog of the torrents of the Western Ghats that communicates in an unusual way: because the noise of the water drowns out any call, the male raises and waves a hind leg, spreading the white webbing of the foot, a visual signal that replaces sound and that gives the species its name.

Size

2 cm – 3 cm

Lifespan

5 years

Diet

Insectivore

Feeds mainly on insects and other invertebrates.

Activity

Diurnal

Active mainly during the day.

Social structure

Solitary

Lives and hunts alone, joining others only to breed.

Sighting difficulty

Moderate

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Fun facts

It dances because it cannot be heard: in the torrents where it lives the noise of the water drowns out any call, so the male raises a hind leg and waves the white webbing of his foot like a flag to mark territory and attract females.
Its tadpoles develop buried in the gravel of the streambed, without functional eyes or pigment, feeding on organic matter in the sediment.
The Western Ghats are one of the planet's biodiversity hotspots and hold dozens of amphibians found nowhere else, many of them described only in the last two decades.

Life cycle & biology

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (amphibian)
Habitat & environment: Fast rainforest streams of the Western Ghats, in India
Sexual maturity: 12 months
Gestation / incubation: Larval development buried in the streambed gravel
Litter / clutch size: 30 eggs

Sources consulted: https://www.iucnredlist.org/ | https://animaldiversity.org/ | https://es.wikipedia.org/