Fascinating Frogs Found in Mudumalai Western Ghats

So finally, monsoon arrives and with it the forest changes dramatically. The trees grow back their leaves and the leaves go flush, trickling streams flow once again and water holes in the forest get full. There is water everywhere, the forest is soaked…even tree holes are full. This makes it particularly wonderful for a group of creatures that love wet moist places … You guessed it …. FROGS!!!
Wonder why ? Because this is when they make love; reproduce .Which means, this is also the time when you will find them most, as they are continuously on the move or actively calling to find mates. Given that they are cold blooded , if they attempted to move to drier conditions they are likely to get dehydrated and so the chances of them finding a mate is rather slim.
Frogs are closely associated to Salamanders – represented by just one species the Himalayan newt – and Caecilians which are commonly referred to as limbless amphibians.
Frogs are an interesting group of animals with about 5000 species across the world of which about 250 are from India. More of them are being discovered / rediscovered and described from all over India and across the world . You can find them almost anywhere starting from the Himalayan foothills to Kanyakumari in the Indian peninsular and anywhere in between in the plains. They can be found just about anywhere.
Different species have adapted to different life styles. Whether it is a stream or a forest floor or even the canopy, different communities of frogs occupy them. Unbelievable as it seems, Frogs have even been discovered from canopies way up , higher than was even known before!
Given such versatility you can find them wherever you are! (more on this later)
Alas, frogs are colorful, beautiful, and sing(mind you ,some species even engage in duets).Here s some evidence!

Photo by Hopeland
Frogs are important (even economically important!) by effectively controlling pests in agricultural fields.
Having said all this, these beautiful creatures – their presence, their existence , their persistence and even their importance amongst various other wonderful things – are often overlooked and ignored.
So here’s to a celebration of these wonderful creatures this monsoon!
Find out more about them in the next article ! Cheers!
Some of the frogs found at Deep Jungle Camp Mudumalai campus are listed below
Frogs are beautiful! – Name: Winged flying frog( Rhacophorus lateralis)

Photo by Hopeland
Frogs are colourful! – Name: Malabar gliding frog (Rhacophorus Malabaricus)

Photo by Vijay Samraj
Frogs are intriguing! – Narrow Mouthed Frog (Ramanella Triangularis)

Photo by Vijay Samraj
Frogs are Intelligent – Fungoid Frog (Hylarana Malabarica)

Photo by Bala
Some Fascinating Frogs Found in Mudumalai Western Ghats. The below listed frogs are very rare to spot is known to occur scattered in western ghats.
Frogs are weird! – Name: Indian Purple Frog (Nasikabatrachus Sahyadrensis)

Photo by S.D Biju (University of Delhi)
Frogs are Eloquent – Dancing Frogs

Photo by S.D Biju (University of Delhi)
Yes like its name suggests the frog actually dances by lifting and stretching out its leg. It is a part of its mating behavior.
There are total of 14 different species of dancing frogs discovered in and around the ranges of western ghats.
Other known facts about the dancing frog
1. The existing male to female ratio is 100:1
2. The dancing frog kicks of other competing male frogs during the courtship behavior.
3. The female lays egg in small holes dug in the grounds near small perennial streams.
4. The dance performed by the frog is a breeding behavior called foot flagging
5. The mating call of the male dancing frogs is not so loud and shrill enough to be audible to the female frogs near the streams so Dancing is the main method of attracting females
6. Dancing frogs are tiny little creatures the biggest one being in the size of a plum. They have colorful patterns on their skin

Frogs are Zesty – Meowing Night Frog (Nyctibatrachus poocha) – See more at:

Photo by S.D Biju (University of Delhi)
The known facts about the Meowing Night Frog
1. The meowing frog croaking sound resembles a cats call.
2. It is nocturnal meaning it is mostly active during the night time only and very difficult to sight it during the day
3. The meowing frog generally hides behind rocks
4. The adult frog measures about 1.5 inches in size roughly the size of a midsized Orange
There are many more varieties of frogs found around Mudumalai.
It is easy to spot different species of frogs during a night nature trail at Mudumalai / western ghats

Hopeland is an aspiring young wildlife researcher. He has worked on Nilgiri tahr, habitat connectivity for elephants, pollinators and gene flow. Lesser known fauna and Issues directly linked with population / conservation status of species are his areas of thrust along with conservation education and citizen science projects.