The world is filled with different types of animals ranging from extremely small to monstrously huge and everything in between. Every species of animal is fascinating in its own way, but for some reason, most people have a particular attachment to tiny, cute, vertebrates.
Well, if you count yourself among those who love these little animals, consider yourself lucky. A new species has recently been discovered, and this one ranks as the second smallest known vertebrate in the world.
It belongs to the genus Brachycephalus, which is generally called flea toads. This genus has six other members, all of which are very small, and some of which boast tiny toadlets that are bright orange and poisonous.
The newest addition to this tiny family was first noticed in 2021 during a sampling survey on the coast of Sao Paulo state, which is a part of the Atlantic Rainforest. The animal had to be studied to confirm it was indeed a new species.
The study of the animal is published in Zoological Science. The researchers who published the paper wrote:
“One of the individuals measured 6.95 mm, which is currently the second smallest adult vertebrate ever described, only larger than another individual of a different congeneric [belonging to the same genus B. pulex] species.”
To the untrained eye, this tiny toad does not appear much different than the other members of the genus. The study reveals, however, that it has sufficient diversity in morphological, bioacoustics, and DNA to be considered its own species.
One of the authors of the study, Luis Felipe Toledo, said in a statement:
“There may have been specimens belonging to the new species among those that served as a basis for describing B. hermogenesi in 1998. The diversity of these miniature frogs may be far greater than we think. Hence the importance of describing as many traits and features as possible, to expedite the description process and get to work on conservation as quickly as possible.”
While these tiny flea toads do have a lot in common with larger species, there are a number of distinctions (other than size). The most prominent of these is that they do not come from tadpoles. Instead, they hatch from eggs in the same form as adults.
Flea toads are so cute!
Thought that was fascinating? Here’s another story you might like: Why You’ll Never See A Great White Shark In An Aquarium
