Limnonectes modestus (Boulenger, 1882)

(Figure 2 (a))

Description

Adult males, SVL (snout vent length) = 29.85 – 43.45 mm; vomerine teeth present; mandibles with two prominent, sharply protruding bones; snout rounded; loreal region concave; nostrils closer to the tip of the snout than to the eyes; tympanum diameter (TY), 2 / to 3 / 5 5 of the eye diameter (EY) TY/EY = 0.473 – 0.694. Disk of finger small; the first finger reaches and exceeds the second finger; completely webbed toe, except on the fourth finger; subarticular tubercle developed; inner metatarsal present, elongated; length of tibia (TL) half or more of body length (TL/SVL = 0.569 – 0.659). Dorsal surface brown, black, reddish yellow; granular- ious, with small, even, smooth warts, following the body axis; there is a distinct fold above the tympanum; sometimes there is a yellowish-white line from the snout, or two lines from the back of the eyes, to the posterior end of the body; there are dark lines on the limbs.

Habitat

This species was often found close to the water flow, and at most 1 m away. It is sensitive to movement and light. During the survey, it was most active, making noise; however, when approached this species immediately stopped calling and hid. It was found in a variety of habitat types, such as leaf litter, grasses, herbaceous plant roots in the water flow, above the leaves in a puddle of water, fallen trees and branches. One specimen was collected from a rotten root with a horizontal and vertical distance from the water flow of 0.5 m. The noise it made sounded like the call of a bird and was distinct from that of the other individuals of this species. It was active at 20 – 25°C and 84 – 89% humidity.

Remarks

The species is widespread, occuring on Sulawesi, Peleng, Seram, Buru, Ambon, Obi, Bacan, Batudaka, Togian and Talatakoh, and Halmahera islands in Indonesia, up to 1200 m asl (IUCN 2017). It was the most common amphibian species observed in the Lake Kalimpa ’ a area, distributed throughout the observation plots at an elevation of 1650 – 1700 m asl, except for plot 8.