Thoughtful frogs have become extinct for over 100 years

An extinct tree frog more than a century ago was discovered by scientists in tropical northeastern India.

The research team to rediscover frog species by Indian famous biologist Sathyabhama Das Biju at New Delhi University and in collaboration with biologists from Sri Lanka, Belgium, and the History Museum Natural America and Natural History Museum in London (UK).

According to AP, Mr. Das Biju did not disclose specific discovery sites to protect frogs and said to discover them by chance one night in 2007.

Frankixalus frogs nest in moss-covered hollows.(Photo: AP).

"We heard a love song of a frog coming from the trees and immediately investigated. It was a magical night," said Das Biju.

Through investigation, identification and DNA testing, the new team determined that this was the Frankixalus frog that coincided with the specimen collected by British naturalist Jerdon in 1870 and deposited at the Museum of Self History course in London (England).

For a long time, scientists thought that Frankixalus frogs were extinct.

The research literature shows unusual behavior of the female frog Frankixalus. The egg-laying frog has been fertilized into a tree-filled cavity at an altitude of about 6m and returned to the nest regularly so that the newly hatched tadpoles eat unfertilized eggs. Scientists believe this species can also be found in Asian forest areas, from China to Thailand.

Observations showed that Frankixalus frog tadpoles had a smooth mouth like a straw, without teeth that helped pull the eggs that their mothers dropped into their mouths. The eyes are positioned on the tip of the head instead of the two sides that seem to help it easily observe that its mother releases eggs into the water. When developing into adult frogs, it is as big as a golf ball. The other strange thing is that it only eats plants rather than insects and larvae.

Frankixalus tadpole frog.(Photo: AP).

"This is unbelievable , " said Das Biju.

"This is an interesting discovery but does not mean that frogs are safe. Many patches of forest where Frankixalus frogs live intact in 2007-2008 but in 2014 we found them destroyed and burned to cultivating agricultural land, expanding settlements and building roads " , Mr. Das Biju expressed concern.

"Frogs have appeared on Earth more than 350 million years ago and have evolved in many different ways to adapt to many environmental challenges , " said Das Biju. The biologist nicknamed the "frog" because of his great contribution to the discovery of more than 89 frogs in India.

The newly re-identified frog team, Frankixalus (of the new genus Frankixalus), remembered the mentor Franky Bossuyt who taught him during his time at Vrije University (Belgium).

Close up of mouth of tadpole frog Frankixalus.(Photo: AP).

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), of the more than 7,000 globally known amphibians, about 32% are threatened with extinction.