Twin-spotted Flying Frog

Rhacophorus bipunctatus

''Rhacophorus bipunctatus'' is a frog species in the moss frog family found from eastern India into Southeast Asia, possibly to southeastern China and south to Malaysia. Due to the identification problems surrounding this species, the eastern and southern limits of its range remain undetermined; all that is known is that the species certainly occurs in the border region of India, Bangladesh, China and Myanmar; its range might extend south to Malaysia, as similar frogs have been reported from Pahang.

This species is notable for having a highly confusing taxonomy, discussed in detail in the Taxonomy section below. It had its scientific name changed twice, was described under different names two times and more than 130 years apart, and has had a second species confused with it. Only in 2007, some degree of certainty about what kind of frog to which the name ''R. bipunctatus'' actually applies was achieved.
Twin-spotted Flying Frog on a leaf You can just make out one of the spots under the front leg. The second spot might be under the hind leg, or might not be present at all. Geotagged,Malaysia,Rhacophorus bipunctatus,Winter

Appearance

''R. bipunctatus'' is a smallish tree frog with a pointed snout and body length of about 37–60 mm when adult, with females being larger than males. Its back is intensely green to violet-brown in living animals; in preserved specimens, this becomes blue to violet. No conspicuous pattern is visible on the back, though there may be a few tiny whitish and/or dark speckles. The arms and legs have very faint darker bands. The sides, belly and toes are brilliant yellow, becoming dull pink in preserved specimens. Behind the arms, there is almost always a conspicuous large black spot on the flanks; towards the hind legs there may be another one or two such spots, but very rarely the flank spots are absent entirely. The well-developed webbing of the toes is bright orange-red and not spotted, becoming whitish in preserved specimens. The eyes are dull green, sometimes with yellow rims.

It can be distinguished from ''R. rhodopus'', with which it was long confused, by the larger size and unspotted back with at least some trace of green or olive, often being entirely green . In individuals of similar size, ''R. bipunctatus'' has a much larger head.

Status

Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, subtropical or tropical high-altitude shrubland, intermittent rivers, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, plantations and rural gardens. It is known from altitudes of several hundreds of meters ASL to more than 2,000 meters ASL; it is unclear whether this species is ever found in the lowlands.

The IUCN classified ''R. bipunctatus'' as a Species of Least Concern in 2004. However, they include ''R. rhodopus'' under the name. It is not known whether the true ''R. bipunctatus'' occurs across the whole of Southeast Asia like ''R. rhodopus''; the available data indicate it is only known with certainty from a rather restricted area in the hills and mountains of the India-China-Myanmar border region, but the status of the similar frogs from Pahang in Malaysia needs to be determined. Therefore, it is probably most appropriate to consider this frog a Data Deficient species. Indeed, ''R. htunwini'' – a junior synonym of ''R. bipunctatus'' as it seems – was in fact evaluated as Data Deficient by the IUCN in 2006 for precisely these reasons.

Habitat

Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, subtropical or tropical high-altitude shrubland, intermittent rivers, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, plantations and rural gardens. It is known from altitudes of several hundreds of meters ASL to more than 2,000 meters ASL; it is unclear whether this species is ever found in the lowlands.

The IUCN classified ''R. bipunctatus'' as a Species of Least Concern in 2004. However, they include ''R. rhodopus'' under the name. It is not known whether the true ''R. bipunctatus'' occurs across the whole of Southeast Asia like ''R. rhodopus''; the available data indicate it is only known with certainty from a rather restricted area in the hills and mountains of the India-China-Myanmar border region, but the status of the similar frogs from Pahang in Malaysia needs to be determined. Therefore, it is probably most appropriate to consider this frog a Data Deficient species. Indeed, ''R. htunwini'' – a junior synonym of ''R. bipunctatus'' as it seems – was in fact evaluated as Data Deficient by the IUCN in 2006 for precisely these reasons.

References:

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Status: Unknown
EX EW CR EN VU NT LC
Taxonomy
KingdomAnimalia
DivisionChordata
ClassAmphibia
OrderAnura
FamilyRhacophoridae
GenusRhacophorus
SpeciesR. bipunctatus
Photographed in
Malaysia