Exciting frog find in Seychelles’ Garden of Eden
Amphibian species worldwide are in what can only be described as a crisis.
With many species at risk of extinction, the Seychelles Islands Foundation (SIF) is particularly excited about a recent find in the Vallée de Mai.
SIF employee Daniel Jessy, a fieldworker at the World Heritage Site on the island of Praslin, found a tiny frog no bigger than a thumbnail. “Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something jump,” he said.
Daniel and other SIF staff are now trying to answer some important questions about this find. Could it be a new species? How come nobody has seen it before on a populated and often-visited island? How does it compare with species of frogs found on other Seychelles islands?
With help from colleague and SIF science coordinator Lindsay Chong-Seng, more frogs have been found, and the SIF is now working with experts to formally identify the species. Believed to be from the Sooglossidae family, it is not known whether the frog is a member of an already described or an entirely new species.
The Sooglossidae are represented in Seychelles by four currently described species. However, up until now, these have only been recorded on the two highest of the granitic islands, Mahe and Silhouette. This new find is encouraging as it may well be a previously undescribed species.
Alternatively, it may indicate an additional location and significant increase in distribution and altitudinal range for a known species.
Amongst the smallest frogs in the world, the four Sooglossid species endemic to Seychelles have their nearest relative in India. They are unusual for several reasons, including the fact that they exhibit an unusually high degree of parental care through nest guarding or carrying of tadpoles on the adult’s back. Further, they lack eardrums, a primitive feature indicating the family’s ancient origin. Very cryptic in behaviour and found among leaf litter, they are often hard to find. Each species has a distinctive call but many people mistake them for insects or crickets.
Seychelles is renowned for stunning palm-fringed beaches, yet the islands are home to many rare and interesting species of animals and plants.
Around 200 million years ago the granitic islands were joined to the eastern part of the supercontinent known as Gondwana. This ancient southern land mass then split apart into Australia, Antarctica, Madagascar, India and Seychelles. The islands therefore harbour some ancient species, a number of which are known nowhere else in the world.
The Sooglossids survived the geological breakup of India and Seychelles around 65 million years ago and typify the special nature of wildlife found on the islands.
The Vallée de Mai, where the tiny frog was found, is an ancient palm forest on the island of Praslin, which is best known for its population of the rare coco de mer palm, the female of which bears the largest seed in the world.
Whether the recently discovered frogs belong to an already described species or not, the discovery on Praslin highlights the need for continued research and conservation in Seychelles and the important role the SIF plays as the caretaker of the Vallée de Mai.
The Seychelles Islands Foundation is a public trust established under Seychelles law, responsible for conserving and managing Seychelles’ two World Heritage Sites: Vallée de Mai and Aldabra Atoll.